More Reaction to Biden Pick

Well, we've had a day to digest this earth-shattering news about Biden being the pick for Veep and it seems the more Obama supporters dwell on it, the more they see what a horrid selection this was.

Over at Talk Left, Anita sums it up nicely:

Yes, I've been brooding about our new VP candidate. The only people I've seen doing back flips over the Biden affair are Joe Biden and John McCain. A million unlikely voters got text messages at 3am with the "The VP Announcement!" Yeah!!! They opened their texts and saw...What? Joe Biden? Oh. And went back to sleep.

And that's about the nicest thing I've read.

Public opinion seems to be tracking in that direction as well:

On the day that Barack Obama announced Joe Biden as his running mate, 39% of voters said he made the right choice. A Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 25% disagreed and another 35% are not sure.

Women are notably less enthusiastic than men—33% of women say Biden was the right choice while 27% disagreed. Men, by a 46% to 24% margin, said that Obama made the right choice.

Those numbers aren't good, folks. With a campaign that supposedly was groundbreaking not only because Obama is the first African-American to get the nomination but because it was allegedly a campaign of inclusion has hit a rut with the addition of Joe Biden. Obama could have selected Sebelius (and should have taken Hillary) to make it a truly historic campaign but Obama panicked and took a man who will deliver him nothing but headaches. Look at those numbers: 39%. At least that's three times the approval rate that Congress enjoys as a whole. Generally, the announcement of a VP candidate gives the candidate a nice bounce--especially with the media scrutiny that this announcement enjoyed. Instead, Obama not only muffed the official announcement by sending it at 3:00 AM but by the man he chose.

Anyway, there is one Obama supporter who has been mainlining the Kool-Aid and sees this as a great pick because it was a pick made by The One. Quoth Saint Andrew:

Nonetheless, it seems obvious that Biden speaks his mind frankly, and would have real heft and independence in the office. He knows enough that foreign leaders call him in international crises. That reassures me, as we face some grim days in the coming years in the war on terror.

This strikes me, in other words, as a pick for a candidate who is already very serious about governing - and making calls that forgo a campaign buzz for the sake of the country if he wins. Putting country first, you might say.

The more I think about it, the more I like it.

That after slamming VP Cheney for a coupla paragraphs. Sorry Andy, Biden couldn't hold Cheney's jock when it comes to experience and national security.

Sullivan was once a thoughtful essayist who could be as contrarian as anyone and seemed to offer a fresh take on the issues of the day. Now he's a bitter hack whose hatred of Bush/Cheney comes across in all of his posts. Obama could have chosen John Edwards and Sully would have rationalized t as a great move because he could land that coveted cheating husband demographic or some such garbage.

All in all, the liberal base is not happy with this pick. Sure, they'll toe the party line but the tone in nearly every post--even the Sully one quoted above--is one of yeah, Joe Biden instead of YEAH, JOE BIDEN! Underwhelming to say the least.