White House No. 2 and the decision to give up the "ticket" to run for election

(Baonghean) - On the morning of October 21, local time, US Vice President Joe Biden announced to the press at the Rose Garden, White House that he decided not to run for US President in 2016. This move by Mr. Biden has put an end to the long debate with different speculations about the possibility of participating in the race in this election campaign of the politician who has served 2 terms as Vice President.

In his somewhat hasty but emotional speech, witnessed by current President Barack Obama and Second Lady Jill Biden, Mr. Joe Biden said: "Unfortunately, I think we no longer have enough time to be able to create a winning campaign."

Thus, the door of opportunity that opened the path to the most powerful seat in America for Mr. Biden has officially closed. The decision he made after many days of consideration was largely based on personal reasons, as the Vice President's family has not yet overcome the great loss after the death of his eldest son Beau Biden due to cancer.

Biden's somewhat surprising statement came just one day before former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was due to testify before a House Committee currently under Republican control, to investigate the deadly attacks in Benghazi, Libya in 2012.

US Vice President Joe Biden with his wife Jill Biden and President Obama at the announcement of not running for president on October 21 at the White House. Photo: AP

The US Vice President's 10-minute speech marked a significant change in the presidential race in the world's number 1 power.

Current Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton has removed one potential threat from her path to victory.

Up to now, the results of the referendums have shown that Mr. Biden has never surpassed Mrs. Clinton in terms of public support. Recently, Reuters/Ipsos surveys showed that only 17% of Democrats said that Biden would be the most potential candidate for the presidency, compared to a much larger number of 46% for Clinton.

However, nearly half of the Democrats still want Biden on their list next year. Therefore, experts have firmly stated that if Biden officially "jumps into" the race, Clinton will still lose a significant number of voters, and of course her chances of winning next year's fierce race will be more difficult.

After the words that seemed to close the debate on the American political scene that almost threatened the unity of the Democratic Party, this is probably the time for many people to look back on the long journey of Mr. Joe Biden. He is a person who has spent almost his entire life in politics, with a very impressive record of achievements that is probably not inferior to any politician.

The 72-year-old Vice President's political career began when he was first elected to the Delaware State Senate in 1973. Notably, Biden ran for President twice, in 1988 and 2008, but unfortunately failed. He has held many positions, including Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Many analysts believe that Joe Biden is a prominent figure in the American elite, trusted by Obama, the clearest evidence is that Biden held the position of Vice President in both of Obama's terms from 2009 to present. Not only that, although he cannot avoid "half-laughing, half-crying" situations in his political career, in general, Biden is still a leader trusted by many people after 7 years in the position of "number 2" in the White House.

Contrary to speculation from some observers, he has given up the opportunity to participate in the 2016 election campaign, but still affirmed his commitment to maintaining his support and protecting the legacy of outgoing President Obama, along with fighting for the middle class in society, and warned Democratic candidates not to go against what the incumbent President has worked hard to build.

That view can be easily seen in the bold statements in Biden's speech: "Although I will not be the nominee, I will not be silent. I will speak out clearly and forcefully to have the greatest impact possible on where we stand as a party and what we need to do as a country. What I believe is that President Obama led this country back from the crisis and we are now on the road to recovery. I am proud to have played a part in that. It would be a terrible mistake to turn away from or try to reverse Obama's legacy... Democrats should not only protect these achievements, but also build on them."

President Barack Obama attends Vice President Biden's important decision announcement. Photo: AFP (Source: Zing.vn)

With only about 15 months left before Biden leaves office as Vice President, one of his biggest aspirations in the coming time is probably how to strongly promote finding a cure for cancer - as a way for him to remember his son.

Not only that, Joe Biden still hopes for a "change of skin" in the politics of the land of the stars and stripes, where this man has been attached for decades with many ups and downs.

As Vice President, but first and foremost as a Democrat, he has been more open than many other politicians when he frankly shared: “I don’t think we should see Republicans as our enemies. They are the opposing side, not the enemy.” He believes that it is time for Americans to put an end to partisan and divisive politics, which negatively affects the unity within this multi-ethnic country. This is a different way of thinking from many current American politicians, and is that one of the things that makes up Biden’s “identity”?

Thu Giang