Biden, who was raised in Scranton, Pa., and New Castle county, Del., received a bachelor's degree from the University of Delaware in 1965 and a law degree from Syracuse University in New York in 1968. After graduating from law school, he returned to Delaware to work as an attorney before quickly turning to politics, serving on the New Castle county council from 1970 to 1972. Biden was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1972 at the age of 29, becoming the fifth youngest senator in history. He went on to win reelection six times and became Delaware's longest-serving senator. In addition to his role as U.S. senator, Biden also served as an adjunct professor at the Wilmington, Del., branch of the Widener University School of Law in 1991.
Long-time Delaware senator Joe Biden is best known for his frequent appearances on Sunday morning talk shows, his off-the-cuff speaking style, and for the most high-profile hair transplant in recent politics. A longtime standard bearer for a moderate, conciliatory style of Democratic politics, he is largely perceived as an inside-the-beltway specialist. Though he has run somewhat to the left of Hillary Clinton particularly regarding opposition to the Bush Administration and on issues of constitutional law, his past record has alienated him from many traditional liberals and a vast majority of online progressives, while his outspoken style has yet to attract other voters.
Born in 1942 and growing up in suburban Delaware since age ten, Joe Biden was on the fast track to a significant political career very early in life, getting elected to the U.S. senate at the age of 29. The remarkable success was marred by wrenching tragedy when his family was involved in a severe auto accident, killing his first wife and infant daughter, and seriously injuring his two sons.
Deciding to take office, the young senator took his oath of office from his sons’ hospital room. He nevertheless chose to remain in Delaware in order to better care for his injured sons, becoming a daily public transit commuter from suburban Delaware into the U.S. capital. Since then, Senator Biden has remained popular in Delaware, consistently winning reelection by a comfortable margin for over three decades.
Over the years, he has taken sometimes unexpected positions that could variously be described as either “independent” or simply unpredictable. For example, Senator Biden is a strong opponent of tort reform, a cause favored by business-oriented conservatives and many corporations, while he has also authored bankruptcy legislation strongly supported by the finance industry and hated by most liberals and consumer groups.
An adjunct professor of constitutional law and a longtime member of the Senate Judiciary committee, his legal stances have gotten far better marks from progressives, though his part in establishing a U.S. drug czar and authorship of the so-called RAVE Act (i.e., “Reducing Americans' Vulnerability to Ecstasy Act”) has been criticized by some for possibly harming civil liberties. He has also been highly visible during controversies involving senate confirmation of White House nominees to the Supreme Court and other key offices.
More recently, the chairman of Senate Foreign Relations Committee has become the co-creator of the complex “Biden-Gelb” plan, a so-called “third-way” route to ending the war in Iraq. The plan involves the gradual reduction of U.S. forces, creating “breathing room” between sectarian groups, and federalizing Iraq. He was originally a supporter of the war, though he now believes it to have been a mistake.
Senator Biden first ran for president in 1987. That campaign was quickly sidelined when he gave a speech that was similar to another speech given by British Labour politician Neil Kinnock, and charges of plagiarism resulted. The incident turned out to be simply a one-time mistake — Senator Biden had attributed portions of his speech to Kinnock on several other occasions. By the time Biden was vindicated, however, his campaign was long over. It would be another two decades before he would officially announce his second run for the U.S. presidency.
Married to his second wife, Jill, since 1977, Senator Biden’s personal health became an issue during the eighties, when he was hospitalized with a pair of brain aneurysms. Fortunately, he made a smooth recovery and has endured the jokes about his mysteriously reappearing hair while showing a strong of humor of his own. However, as candidates often learn, that sense of humor and sharp-tongue have already proven to be two-edged swords. Still, in a world where voters frequently complain about “canned” political speech, Joe Biden has proven that, for better and for worse, there’s little that’s preprocessed about the senator’s speaking style.
