Inside the Beltway: Joe Biden meeitng with Elizabeth Warren worries some, elates others

By Jennifer Harper - The Washington Times - Sunday, August 23, 2015

NEWS AND OPINION:

Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Sen. Elizabeth Warren: Their low-key meeting in the nation’s capital over the weekend has Democrats dancing, dubious or dithering over the prospects of “Biden/Warren 2016” — or maybe it’s Warren/Biden 2016, depending on the prevailing winds of sentiment. It’s also certainly possible that there will be no combination, and that the meeting was a staged event to distract the news media from Hillary Rodham Clinton’s email woes for the time being. Yeah, well.

But it’s Mrs. Clinton and her advisers who are paying the most attention to the rendezvous some say, particularly when a new Reuters poll finds Mr. Biden with a 54 percent favorability rating among Democrats, compared to 40 percent for Mrs. Clinton.

“Warren is someone that the Clinton camp has always feared. She is the candidate they worried most about entering the race. Indeed, the only reason a socialist like Sanders has been able to attract such support is because Warren — the real idol of the left — chose to stay on the sidelines,” says Jonathan S. Tobin, a columnist for Commentary magazine.

“Should Warren give hints as to her favoring Biden or at least her neutrality, it would be more than a boost for the vice president. It would be a body blow to Clinton’s hopes of limping to the Democratic convention without a plausible Democratic opponent. It would give mainstream Democrats who don’t want to associate with Bernie Sanders a reasonable alternative to Hillary and motivate even more liberals to abandon her cause,” Mr. Tobin observes.

Meanwhile, Draft Biden 2016, an independent political action committee that has been issuing press releases and making noise since March about a potential Biden return to the White House, has intensified its PR outreach. They’ve adopted the motto “I’m Ridin’ with Biden” for bumper stickers, wearables and other campaign swag, complete with a stylized image of Mr. Biden at the wheel of a convertible.

“No one else will bring the same passion, joy and knowledge to the office, and there is no one more deserving, more willing and more qualified to be our 45th President than Joseph R. Biden,” the group proclaims.

FROM THE VINEYARD TO VEGAS

Well that was quick. President Obama arrived home at the White House on Sunday evening after a 15-day vacation in Martha’s Vineyard. But travel is still in the forecast, so rev up Air Force One.

On Monday, Mr. Obama is off to the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas to serve as the keynote speaker at the National Clean Energy Summit and — wait for it — to attend a Democratic fundraiser. The president will be stepping up for the campaign of Catherine Cortez Masto, the former attorney general for the Silver State who hopes to replace Sen. Harry Reid after his retirement following the 2016 election. Along with the Center for American Progress, Mr. Reid is also a sponsor of the aforementioned summit, which will concentrate on the future of rooftop solar energy, among other things.

JEB’S WEEK OF FUNDRAISERS

Speaking of campaigns, this is some serious scheduling. Republican hopeful Jeb Bush has 10 private fundraisers in seven states through Saturday — lunches, brunches, coffees, breakfasts and receptions. Beginning Monday, the seemingly indefatigable and much leaner Mr. Bush will be in Texas, Colorado, Utah, Alabama, Virginia, New York and North Carolina. His son Jeb Bush Jr. is hosting at a fundraiser himself on Tuesday in Jacksonville, Florida — an outreach by Mission: Next, a political action committee attuned to the under-40 set which Jeb Jr. co-chairs with his brother George P. Bush.

But such is life — and the price of admission — in an election where major candidates are predicted to spend $4.4 billion on their campaigns, according to the Cook Political Report. Mr. Bush has raised $120 million by the end of July for his campaign this year, and Democratic front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton brought in $67.8 million, according to Federal Election Commission data.

AND IN SUMMATION

“The gunman would have been successful if my friend Spencer had not gotten up. I want that lesson to be learned. In times of terror like that to please do something. Don’t just stand by and watch.”

— Anthony Sadler, who with buddies USAF Airman First Class Spencer Stone and Alek Skarlatos overpowered a heavily armed gunman on a French train Friday. The trio have been called heroes by President Obama and French President Francois Hollande.

STAND WITH RAND, ALASKA STYLE

He is among the most far-flung of GOP hopefuls this week. That would be Sen. Rand Paul, who will be in Anchorage, Alaska, on Tuesday for a pair of major “Stand with Rand” rallies — but that’s just the beginning. Mr. Paul has a five-day western tour planned that takes him through Alaska, Washington, Idaho, Wyoming and Utah, where he’ll campaign with Rep. Raul Labrador.

On the agenda at all points: Protecting the entire Bill of Rights, a 14.5 percent flat tax for individuals and businesses, and less government spending.

“I want to unleash the American Dream. I will return our country to freedom and prosperity, and restore the principles upon which this nation was founded: man’s right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” says Mr. Paul.

ALASKA PART 2

President Obama is also expected to journey to Alaska, and soon. The State Department has organized a major event for 20 nations in Anchorage by the name of Global Leadership in the Arctic: Cooperation, Innovation, Engagement and Resilience — as in “GLACIER” for short. The two-day event begins in a week.

On the agenda: Climate change of course, “strengthening emergency response,” preventing unregulated Arctic high seas fisheries, renewable energy, science cooperation, economic efficiency and community health.

Mr. Obama’s attendance was not exactly expected, apparently.

“Now we have the president coming. And initially, that wasn’t part of the plan. That was a late addition,” Anchorage Police Chief Mark Mew told the Anchorage Dispatch News, who noted that the state has primarily been used by presidents as a refueling stop for Air Force One on Asia trips.

“This time he’s living in a hotel in downtown Anchorage for three days,” the chief noted. “That’s huge compared to our experiences in the past.”

POLL DU JOUR

• 56 percent of Americans favor the government using taxes to pay tuition at public colleges and universities; 17 percent of Republicans, 40 percent of independents and 72 percent of Democrats agree.

• 41 percent overall oppose the idea; 73 percent of Republicans, 42 percent of independents and 18 percent of Democrats agree.

• 55 percent of Americans overall favor making tuition free for college students; 26 percent of Republicans, 52 percent of independents and 78 percent of Democrats agree.

• 37 percent overall oppose the idea; 66 percent of Republicans, 36 percent of independents and 17 percent of Democrats agree.

• 53 percent overall say the federal government does “too little” to help students afford tuition; 34 percent of Republicans, 45 percent of independents and 77 percent of Democrats agree.

• 17 percent say the government does “the right amount”; 26 percent of Republicans, 16 percent of independents and 12 percent of Democrats agree.

• 15 percent say the government does “too much”; 32 percent of Republicans, 16 percent of independents and 2 percent of Democrats agree.

Source: A YouGov poll of 1,000 U.S. adults conducted Aug. 11-12.

• Murmurs and asides to jharper@washingtontimes.com.

• Jennifer Harper can be reached at jharper@washingtontimes.com.