Historically, when a former vice president runs for a promotion to the top job, he struggles with the legacy of his former boss. George H. W. Bush was caricatured as a wimp as he tried to step out of Ronald Reagan’s shadow. Al Gore was paralyzed as he tried to embrace Bill Clinton’s popular policies while distancing himself from the sex scandal that led to Clinton’s impeachment. Hillary Clinton faced a similar dynamic in 2008 and 2016, when the former first lady treated her husband’s administration like a buffet, endorsing some of his policies and discarding others.
So far Biden has had it easier. Barack Obama is the most popular figure in the Democratic Party and Biden embraces the man and his legacy with the kind of affection he previously reserved only for Amtrak or Corvettes. CONT.
Ryan Lizza, Politico