CBS: Biden's team considers whether to set up "exploratory committee"

[ram2008]

Awaiting a decision their boss has yet to make, Vice President Joe Biden's circle of staff and longtime advisers have kicked into a higher gear of preparation for a presidential campaign that may never launch.

It's an effort that includes feeling out potential campaign staffers and considering whether to set up an "exploratory committee" that could start raising money, and wondering when Biden will make a decision that will determine if those efforts will be for naught...

...The idea of forming an exploratory committee is among a number of options that Biden's advisers have put in front of him in recent weeks, according to half a dozen current and former Biden aides who are familiar with his deliberations. They spoke on condition of anonymity, because they weren't authorized to speak publicly about the discussions....

...As Biden's aides game out what a campaign would look like, they have started discussing names of potential staffers who could add recent experience in successful presidential races, several individuals said.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/bidens-team-considers-whether-to-set-up-exploratory-committee/

I'm still betting that he jumps in the race making it three-way free for all. What do you guys think?

[TwilightGardener]

1. "Considering an exploration"... oh fer God's sake.

In or out. Pick one.

[MissDeeds]

9. +1000

Stop dithering, Joe. You're either going to run or you're not. Every single day it's another "will he or won't he" story. This prolonged hesitation will provide ample fodder for the GOP should he finally decide to run and win the primary. It's getting ridiculous.

[Warren DeMontague]

19. That sounds too definite.

I think it might be safe to speculate that there is some discussion going on about the potential to think about pondering whether to investigate potentially examining the possibility of looking at the pros and cons of debating the possibility of perhaps weighing the question of deciding whether or not to consider an exploration.

[TwilightGardener]

21. ...

[kenfrequed]

24. Every day he thinks about it

Is another day where we could be having policy take the center stage over this stupid speculation. It also gives a rationale why it is "ok" if we delay the debates since we don't know if Joe is going to run.

[TwilightGardener]

30. I would hope they don't delay debates for him. They should have already

had at least one by now, of course.

[still_one]

26. This nonsense only convinces me that Biden should not be President

[Robbins]

2. I think

he's defently thinking about jumping In.

My thinking is he has gotten encouragement as some in establishment are worried about the clintons' problem and scared to death of Bernie.

[Fred Sanders]

3. More speculation from a mass media that seems to only be good at speculation...slow news day story

[cali]

5. this is called reporting, Fred.

There wasn't anything wrong with that article.

[beam me up scottie]

11. Slow news day? It's a freakin Pope-a-Palooza today.

You never fail to bring the entertainment, Fred.

[Fred Sanders]

12. You are making me blush...you are far more entertaining, beam me up scottie.

[beam me up scottie]

14. Yes but when I entertain it's usually intentional.

[kenfrequed]

23. Agreed

The media seems to want a horserace, they just don't like Hillary versus Sanders for some reason.

[restorefreedom]

28. hmmmm

wonder what that reason could possibly be...not that they are terrified of bernie getting in

no couldnt be that..

[kenfrequed]

29. It actually is a bit more complicated and less designed

The reasons are more structural and pragmatic than you might guess.

For reporters it is more about laziness and a desire to have easy to write stories. Having to ask questions and do digging and research on policy differences and their effects is a lot more work than just asking Wolff Blitzer style 'he-said/she-said' crap.

For Editors Bernie's campaign has less of the kind of professional pundit staff that are good for milking for access or for those on or off the record quote-nuggets.

For owners it ends up being economics and ideology. A lot of them do not like candidates that are too economically progressive.

Of course there is also the institutional bias of many of the mainstream democrats already supporting Hillary. It puts the media in an awkward place. They can get away with trumpeting Trump because he sells papers and there isn't an establishment consensus onn the Republican side.

[restorefreedom]

31. makes sense

so boiled down, it sounds like

laziness
greed
desire for viewers/readers etc which goes back to greed
bias against bernie and for hillary

yup. makes perfect sense. sad, though

[cali]

4. he needs to shit or get off the pot.

[ram2008]

6. They're waiting for something

Maybe after the first debate or after the Benghazi/e-mail hearings to see how that moves the numbers?

[virtualobserver]

7. he is shaking Hillary's tree, slowly increasing the intensity

This just might be a brilliant strategy.

[LettuceSea]

13. What does he gain from officially jumping in or declining now?

While giving an answer now may help Bernie or HRC, there are lots of moving parts to this equation IMO.

Jump in too early and he's "the old white guy who got in the way" which would piss off the voting hornet's nest. We will all need each other's vote in the General, regardless of who the candidate is. This is the best way for him to stay viable in the wings as a plan B while not fracturing the party IMO. The objective is to win, whether it be Joe, HRC or Bernie.

[HereSince1628]

32. He's got ~ 4 1/2 weeks 'til deadlines for getting his name on ballots start to blossom

How "now" must now be to start giving him some motivation to act?

If he blows those deadlines, he doesn't get a mulligan. He'd have to run a write-in campaign in states he misses.

[Snotcicles]

15. What timing, I was just about to say it. nt lol

[AgingAmerican]

8. He isn't running

He disqualified himself from being a serious contender when he said he might not be able to handle it emotionally.

And if he does jump in to 'save' Hillary, it will backfire as seems to happen whenever someone jumps in to 'save' her.

[magical thyme]

16. he just lost one of his two surviving sons...

having tragically lost his 1st wife and daughter.

Not even the GOP would try to hold that statement against him, if only out of fear of garnering a sympathy vote for him.

[HereSince1628]

33. I think you may underestimate his potential opponents.

I remember Musky and Eagleton.

[Maedhros]

34. Remember, this is the same party that depicted Max Cleland as a "terrorist sympathizer"

despite the fact that Cleland lost multiple limbs in Vietnam.

Don't underestimate their ability to debase themselves.

[magical thyme]

36. you make a good point. but I suspect the media wouldn't give them a pass if they went after

Biden in that way. I could be wrong on that one too, of course. No telling how low any of them would sink. Sigh...

[Godhumor]

10. He is rapidly running out of time to put together a viable election operatus

If he can't pull the trigger in the next few weeks, the decision will be moot. Even today, the obstacles he would need to overcome to make a real run are substantial.

In other words, if he doesn't make up his mind pretty much now, then it really won't matter if he decides to run or not.

[LettuceSea]

17. those ballot deadlines are crucial

It doesn't matter how visible you are...those are pretty black and white.

If he does enter, it will be interesting to see how those obstacles play out. I don't think $$ would be a concern, as the majority of Obama bundlers are still on the sidelines. But on the ground infrastructure would be an issue, for sure. He'd need Obama's campaign pros for that, and I'm assuming most are already employed.

[Catherina]

18. Oh please Joe, jump right in. The water's real warm

I encourage this because very very few Sanders supporters will budge.

On immediate issues, like terrorizing the poor in favor of banks, Joe hasn't been so hot.

[brooklynite]

20. I think a lot of Biden's inner ring are trying to move things along without discussing it with him..

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

22. It makes sense. There's a gap between the progressives and Hillary that Biden can fill.

He would be the "Not as bad" as Hillary candidate and the "Not too liberal" candidate.

A three way race gives Bernie a better chance.

[Maedhros]

35. Biden is to the right of Hillary, IMO. [n/t]

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

38. But, that's the perception.

I see them as tweedle dum and tweedle dee moderates but Biden has less baggage that hits the media.

[Wankle Ronnie]

25. He's already said no a long time ago.

People who're wishing for Biden to stave off Bernie's rise won't get that wish.

[Maedhros]

37. I think his constant teasing about a run is a calculated tactic

designed to keep him included in the polls, thus making it look like Sanders is farther behind Clinton that he is.

[workinclasszero]

27. Yup MSM

Gotta keep that tired horse race line going.

YAWN. Wake me up when Uncle Joe is on TV announcing his candidacy.

[tabasco]

39. Bill Clinton didn't announce he was runing until October 1991.

People getting their undies in a wad are funny.