By Jumping in, Biden Might Free Obama to Release the Hounds on Hillary

October 17th, 2015 12:12 PM

The conventional wisdom is that Joe Biden has been staying on the sidelines, waiting to see how bad the email scandal gets for Hillary. But while that might be true, consider that Biden need not just be a passive player in the game. There is a plausible theory by which Biden's entry into the race by its very fact would increase the odds of Hillary encountering legal travails.

One reason that President Obama might be holding off on giving his Justice Department free rein to go after Hillary is that he doesn't want to destroy the candidacy of the only plausible Dem candidate in the race.  As brilliant and charismatic as is Lincoln Chaffee, still he might just not do.

But what if Biden were to take the initiative now to jump in?  Might it not free Obama to release the hounds on Hillary?  Obama would know that if Hillary's campaign were badly undermined or even destroyed as a result, there would still be a bona fide Dem in the race. Indeed, recent polls suggest that Biden would make a stronger general election candidate than Hillary.

And given the choice, Obama might well prefer Biden over Hillary.  Recall the glowing statement that Obama spokesman Josh Earnest gave on Biden's behalf, even making something of an invidious comparison to Hillary.  And Obama surely hasn't forgotten the slights that Bill Clinton shot his way during the 2008 race.  Consider also that Biden is more likely to defend and sustain the Obama legacy--such as it is--than would Hillary, who is already showing signs of distancing herself from Obama on some issues, such as with her call for a no-fly zone in Syria.

Even if Obama doesn't have the gumption to call down an indictment on Hillary, simply letting it be known that one of her top aides is under serious criminal investigation might well be enough to spook the Dem primary electorate and donor class, throwing the race to Biden.

So if the race goes to the bold, it could be time for Biden to jump in, thus liberating his boss to do the right thing about Hillary's compromising of classified intelligence.