Joe Biden

Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who served as the 47th from 2009 to 2017. Biden also represented in the  from 1973 to 2009. A member of the, Biden is a for president in the.

Biden was born in, and lived there for ten years before moving with his family to. He became a lawyer in 1969 and was elected to the  in 1970. He was first to the U.S. Senate in 1972, when he became the sixth-youngest senator in American history. Biden was re-elected six times and was the when he resigned to assume the vice presidency in 2009. Biden was a long-time member and former chairman of the. He opposed the in 1991, but advocated U.S. and  intervention in the  in 1994 and 1995. He voted in favor of the in 2002 but opposed the  in 2007. He has also served as chairman of the, dealing with issues related to drug policy, crime prevention, and civil liberties. Biden led the efforts to pass the, and the. He also chaired the Judiciary Committee during the contentious nominations of  and. Biden unsuccessfully sought the Democratic presidential nomination in and in.

In, Biden was the running mate of Democratic presidential nominee , and became the first vice president in history. As vice president, Biden oversaw aimed at counteracting the  and helped formulate U.S. policy toward  through the. His ability to negotiate with congressional helped the Obama administration pass legislation such as the, which resolved a taxation deadlock; the , which resolved that year's ; and the , which addressed the impending. Obama and Biden were.

In October 2015, after months of speculation, Biden announced he would not seek the presidency in the. In January 2017, Obama awarded Biden the with distinction. After completing his second term as vice president, Biden joined the faculty of the, where he was named the Benjamin Franklin Professor of Presidential Practice. He announced his on April 25, 2019.

Early life (1942–1965)
Biden was born on November 20, 1942, at St. Mary's Hospital in, to Catherine Eugenia Biden (née Finnegan) and Joseph Robinette Biden Sr. He was the first of four siblings in a family, with a sister and two brothers. His mother was of descent, with roots variously attributed to  or. His paternal grandparents, Mary Elizabeth (Robinette) and Joseph H. Biden, an oil businessman from, were of , , and Irish ancestry. His paternal third great-grandfather, William Biden, was born in, England, and immigrated to the United States. His maternal great-grandfather,, was a member of the.

Biden's father had been wealthy earlier in his life but suffered several financial setbacks by the time his son was born. For several years, the family had to live with Biden's maternal grandparents, the Finnegans. When the Scranton area fell into economic decline during the 1950s, Biden's father could not find sustained work. In 1953, the Biden family moved into an apartment in, where they lived for several years before again moving to a house in. Joe Biden Sr. became a successful, and the family's circumstances were middle class.

Biden attended the in Claymont where he was a standout / on the  team; he helped lead a perennially losing team to an undefeated season in his senior year. He played on the baseball team as well. During these years, he participated in an  at a Wilmington theatre. Academically, he was an, was considered a natural leader among the students, and was elected class president during his junior and senior years. He graduated in 1961.

He earned his bachelor's in 1965 from the, with a in history and political science, graduating with a  of 506 out of 688. His classmates were impressed by his abilities, and he played halfback with the. In 1964, while on in, he met and began dating Neilia Hunter, who was from an affluent background in , and attended. He told her that he aimed to become a senator by the age of 30 and then president. He dropped a junior year plan to play for the varsity football team as a, enabling him to spend more time visiting out of state with her.

He then entered, receiving a half scholarship based on financial need with some additional assistance based on academics. By his own description, he found law school to be "the biggest bore in the world" and pulled many to get by. During his first year there, he was accused of having plagiarized five of 15 pages of a law review article. Biden said it was inadvertent due to his not knowing the proper rules of citation, and he was permitted to retake the course after receiving an "F" grade, which was subsequently dropped from his record. This incident would later attract attention when further plagiarism accusations emerged in 1987. He received his in 1968, graduating 76th of 85 in his class. Biden was admitted to the in 1969.

Biden received during this period, at the peak of the, and in 1968, he was reclassified by the  as not available for service due to having had asthma as a teenager. He never took part in, later saying that at the time he was preoccupied with marriage and law school, and "wore sports coats... not tie-dyed".

Negative impressions of drinking alcohol in the Biden and Finnegan families and in the neighborhood led to Biden becoming a. He suffered from stuttering through much of his childhood and into his twenties, and says he overcame it by spending many hours reciting poetry in front of a mirror.

Early political career and family life (1966–1972)
On August 27, 1966, while Biden was still a law student, he married Neilia Hunter. They overcame her parents' initial reluctance for her to wed a Roman Catholic, and the ceremony was held in a Catholic church in. They had three children, in 1969,  in 1970, and Naomi Christina in 1971.

During 1968, Biden clerked for six months at a law firm headed by prominent local  William Prickett and, as he later said, "thought of myself as a Republican". He disliked the conservative racial politics of incumbent Democratic Governor of Delaware and supported a more liberal Republican,, who defeated Terry in 1968. The local Republicans tried to recruit him, but he resisted due to his distaste for Republican presidential candidate, and registered as an instead.

In 1969, Biden resumed practicing law in Wilmington, first as a and then at a firm headed by Sid Balick, a locally active Democrat. Balick named him to the Democratic Forum, a group trying to reform and revitalize the state party, and Biden switched his registration to Democrat. He also started his own firm, Biden and Walsh. , however, did not appeal to him and did not pay well. He supplemented his income by managing properties.

Later in 1969, Biden ran as a Democrat for the  on a liberal platform that included support for public housing in the suburban area. He won by a solid, two-thousand vote margin in the usually Republican district and in a bad year for Democrats in the state. Even before taking his seat, he was already talking about running for the U.S. Senate in a couple of years. He served on the County Council from 1970 to 1972 while continuing his private law practice. Biden represented the 4th district on the county council. Among issues he addressed on the council was his opposition to large highway projects that might disrupt Wilmington neighborhoods, including those related to.

1972 U.S. Senate campaign
Biden's entry into the presented a unique circumstance. Longtime Delaware political figure and Republican incumbent Senator was considering retirement, which would likely have left   and Wilmington Mayor  in a divisive  fight. To avoid that, U.S. president helped convince Boggs to run again with full party support. No other Democrat wanted to run against Boggs. Biden's campaign had virtually no money and was given no chance of winning. It was managed by his sister Valerie Biden Owens (who would go on to manage his future campaigns) and staffed by other family members, and relied upon handed-out newsprint position papers and meeting voters face-to-face; the small size of the state and lack of a major media market made the approach feasible. He did receive some assistance from the and Democratic pollster. His campaign issues focused on withdrawal from Vietnam, the environment, civil rights, mass transit, more equitable taxation, health care, the public's dissatisfaction with politics-as-usual, and "change". During the summer, he trailed by almost 30 percentage points, but his energy level, his attractive young family, and his ability to connect with voters' emotions gave the surging Biden an advantage over the ready-to-retire Boggs. He won the November 7, 1972 election in an upset by a margin of 3,162 votes.

Family deaths
On December 18, 1972, a few weeks after the election, Biden's wife and one-year-old daughter Naomi were killed in an automobile accident while Christmas shopping in. Neilia Biden's station wagon was hit by a as she pulled out from an intersection. Biden's sons Beau and Hunter survived the accident and were taken to the hospital in fair condition, Beau with a broken leg and other wounds, and Hunter with a minor skull fracture and other head injuries. Doctors soon said both would make full recoveries. Biden considered resigning to care for them, but was persuaded not to by. In later years, Biden commented that the truck driver had been drinking alcohol before the collision, but these allegations have been denied by the driver's family and were never substantiated by the police.

Recovery and remarriage
Biden was sworn into office on January 5, 1973, by, the in a small chapel at the. Beau was wheeled in with his leg still in traction; Hunter, who had already been released, was also there, as were other members of the extended family. Witnesses and television cameras were also present and the event received national attention.

At age 30 (the minimum age required to hold the office), Biden became the sixth-youngest senator in U.S. history, and one of only 18 senators who took office before reaching the age of 31. But the accident that killed his wife and daughter left him filled with both anger and religious doubt: "I liked to [walk around seedy neighborhoods] at night when I thought there was a better chance of finding a fight... I had not known I was capable of such rage... I felt God had played a horrible trick on me." To be at home every day for his young sons, Biden began the practice of commuting every day by train for 90 minutes each way from his home in the Wilmington suburbs to Washington, D.C., which he continued to do throughout his Senate career. In the aftermath of the accident, he had trouble focusing on work and appeared to just go through the motions of being a senator. In his memoirs, Biden notes that staffers were taking bets on how long he would last. A single father for five years, he left standing orders that he be interrupted in the Senate at any time if his sons called. In remembrance of his wife and daughter, Biden does not work on December 18, the anniversary of the accident.

Biden's elder son,, became and an Army  who served in Iraq; his younger son, , became a Washington attorney and lobbyist. On May 30, 2015, Beau died at the age of 46 after a two-year battle with brain cancer. At the time of his death, Beau had been widely seen as the frontrunner to be the Democratic nominee for in.

In 1975, Biden met, who grew up in , and would become a teacher in Delaware. They had met on a blind date arranged by Biden's brother, although it turned out that Biden had already noticed a photograph of her in an advertisement for a local park in. Biden would credit her with renewing his interest both in politics and in life. On June 17, 1977, Biden and Jacobs were married by a Catholic priest at the Chapel at the United Nations in New York. Jill Biden has a bachelor's degree from the ; two master's degrees, one from and the other from ; and a doctorate in education from the University of Delaware. They have one daughter together, Ashley Blazer (born 1981), who became a social worker and staffer at the. Biden and his wife are Roman Catholics and regularly attend Mass at in.

Early Senate activities
During his first years in the Senate, Biden focused on legislation regarding consumer-protection and environmental issues and called for greater accountability on the part of government. In mid-1974, freshman Senator Biden was named one of the 200 Faces for the Future by  magazine, in a profile that mentioned what had happened to his family and characterized Biden as "self-confident" and "compulsively ambitious".

Biden was one of the Senate's leading opponents of. In his Senate campaign, Biden expressed support for the 1971 ' decision of the Supreme Court, which supported busing programs to integrate school districts to remedy ', but opposed it to remedy  segregation, as in Delaware. He said Republicans were using busing as a scare tactic to court Southern white votes, and alongside Boggs voiced opposition to a constitutional amendment banning busing. In 1974, Biden voted to table an amendment to an omnibus education bill promoted by (R-FL) which contained anti-busing measures and anti-school desegregation clauses. In May, Senator (R-MI) attempted to revive an amended version of this amendment. Minority Leader (R-PA) and Majority Leader  (D-MT) offered a compromise to leave intact the text of Griffin's amendment but added the qualifier that such legislation was not intended to weaken the judiciary's power to enforce the  and  of the U.S. Constitution. Biden voted for this compromise, which angered his local voters.

Following this, an organization of Delaware residents met at the Krebs School in Newport to protest integration. Biden spoke to the auditorium and said that his position on school busing was evolving, emphasizing that busing in Delaware was (in his opinion) beyond the restriction of the courts. The crowd was unconvinced, and heckled him until he yielded the microphone. This, alongside the prospect of a busing plan in Wilmington (see "Delaware matters"), led to Biden aligning himself with civil rights opponent Senator (R-NC) in opposing busing. Biden and anti-busing senators wanted to limit the scope of as relating to the power of federal government to enforce school integration policies. After 1975, Biden took a harsher line on further legislative action to limit busing. That year, Helms proposed an anti-integration amendment to an education bill which would stop the (HEW) collecting data about the race of students or teachers and therefore could not stop funding districts which refused to integrate. Biden supported this amendment, saying: "I am sure it comes as a surprise to some of my colleagues... that a senator with a voting record such as mine stands up and supports" the amendment. He said busing was a "bankrupt idea [that violated] the cardinal rule of common sense," and that his opposition would make it easier for other liberals to follow suit. However, he had also supported integrationist Senator 's (R-MA) initiatives on housing, job opportunities and voting rights. Biden's support was criticized by civil rights lawyer (director of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund), who said that the bill "heave[d] a brick through the window of school integration", with Biden having his hand on the brick.

Biden supported a measure sponsored by Senator (D-WV), that forbad the use of federal funds to transport students beyond their closest school. This was adopted as part of the Labor-HEW Appropriations Act of 1976. In 1977, Biden co-sponsored an amendment alongside segregationist (D-MO) to close loopholes in Byrd's amendment. A 1977 status report on school desegregation by the federal in Washington, D.C. said, "the enactment of Eagleton-Biden would be an actual violation, on the part of the Federal Government, of the fifth amendment and Title VI" of the Civil Rights Act. The amendment was signed into law by the in 1978. Biden repeatedly asked for, and received, Eastland's support on anti-busing measures.

Such opposition to busing later led his party to mostly abandon school desegregation policies.

Biden became of the  in 1981. In 1984, he was Democratic floor manager for the successful passage of the. Over time, the tough-on-crime provisions of the legislation became controversial on the left and among proponents, and in 2019, Biden characterized his role in passing the legislation as a "big mistake". Biden and his supporters praised him for modifying some of the Act's worst provisions, and it was his most important legislative accomplishment at that point in time. He first considered running for president in that year, after he gained notice for giving speeches to party audiences that simultaneously scolded and encouraged Democrats.

Regarding foreign policy, during his first decade in the Senate, Biden focused on issues. In response to the refusal of the to ratify the  Treaty signed in 1979 by Soviet leader  and President, he took the initiative to meet the Soviet Foreign Minister , educated him about American concerns and interests, and secured several changes to address objections of the Foreign Relations Committee. When the wanted to interpret the 1972  Treaty loosely in order to allow the  to proceed, Biden argued for strict adherence to the treaty's terms. He clashed again with the Reagan administration in 1986 over ; he received considerable attention when he excoriated Secretary of State at a Senate hearing because of the administration's support of that country, which continued to practice the  system.

1988 presidential campaign
Biden ran for the, formally declaring his candidacy at the on June 9, 1987. He was attempting to become the youngest president since. When the campaign began, he was considered a potentially strong candidate because of his moderate image, his speaking ability on the stump, his appeal to s, his high-profile position as chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee at the upcoming hearings, and his fundraising appeal. He raised $1.7 million in the first quarter of 1987, more than any other candidate.

By August 1987, Biden's campaign, whose messaging was confused due to staff rivalries, had begun to lag behind those of and, although he had still raised more funds than all candidates but Dukakis, and was seeing an upturn in Iowa polls. In September 1987, the campaign ran into trouble when he was accused of a speech that had been made earlier that year by, leader of the British. Kinnock's speech included the lines:

"Why am I the first Kinnock in a thousand generations to be able to get to university? [Then pointing to his wife in the audience] Why is Glenys the first woman in her family in a thousand generations to be able to get to university? Was it because all our predecessors were thick?"

While Biden's speech included the lines:

"I started thinking as I was coming over here, why is it that Joe Biden is the first in his family ever to go to a university? [Then pointing to his wife in the audience] Why is it that my wife who is sitting out there in the audience is the first in her family to ever go to college? Is it because our fathers and mothers were not bright? Is it because I'm the first Biden in a thousand generations to get a college and a graduate degree that I was smarter than the rest?"

Biden had in fact cited Kinnock as the source for the formulation on previous occasions. But he made no reference to the original source at the August 23 Democratic debate at the being reported on, nor in an August 26 interview for the. Moreover, while political speeches often appropriate ideas and language from each other, Biden's use came under more scrutiny because he fabricated aspects of his own family's background in order to match Kinnock's. Biden was soon found to have earlier that year lifted passages from a 1967 speech by (for which his aides took the blame), and a short phrase from the 1961 ; and in two prior years to have done the same with a 1976 passage from.

A few days later, Biden's plagiarism incident in law school came to public light. Video was also released showing that when earlier questioned by a resident about his grades in law school, he had stated that he had graduated in the "top half" of his class, that he had attended law school on a full scholarship, and that he had received three degrees in college, each of which was untrue or exaggerations of his actual record. Advisers and reporters pointed out that he falsely claimed to have marched in the.

The Kinnock and school revelations were magnified by the limited amount of other news about the nomination race at the time, when most of the public were not yet paying attention to any of the campaigns; Biden thus fell into what  writer Paul Taylor described as that year's trend, a "trial by media ordeal". He lacked a strong demographic or political group of support to help him survive the crisis. He withdrew from the nomination race on September 23, 1987, saying his candidacy had been overrun by "the exaggerated shadow" of his past mistakes.

After Biden withdrew from the race, it was revealed that the Dukakis campaign had secretly made a video highlighting the Biden–Kinnock comparison and distributed it to news outlets. Later in 1987, the 's Board of Professional Responsibility cleared Biden of the law school plagiarism charges regarding his standing as a lawyer, saying Biden had "not violated any rules".

In February 1988, after suffering from several episodes of increasingly severe neck pain, Biden was taken by long-distance ambulance to and given lifesaving surgery to correct an  that had begun leaking; the situation was serious enough that a priest had administered  at the hospital. While recuperating, he suffered a, which represented a major complication. Another operation to repair a second aneurysm, which had caused no symptoms but was also at risk from bursting, was performed in May 1988. The hospitalization and recovery kept Biden from his duties in the U.S. Senate for seven months. Biden has had no recurrences or effects from the aneurysms since then. In retrospect, Biden's family came to believe that the early end to his presidential campaign had been a blessing in disguise, for had he still been campaigning in the midst of the primaries in early 1988, he might well have not stopped to seek medical attention and the condition might have become unsurvivable.

Senate Judiciary Committee
Biden was a long-time member of the. He chaired it from 1987 until 1995 and he served as on it from 1981 until 1987 and again from 1995 until 1997.

While chairman, Biden presided over two of the most contentious confirmation hearings in history, those for  in 1987 and  in 1991. In the, he stated his opposition to Bork soon after the nomination, reversing an approval in an interview of a hypothetical Bork nomination he had made the previous year and angering conservatives who thought he could not conduct the hearings dispassionately. At the close, he won praise for conducting the proceedings fairly and with good humor and courage, as his 1988 presidential campaign collapsed in the middle of the hearings. Rejecting some of the less intellectually honest arguments that other Bork opponents were making, Biden framed his discussion around the belief that the provides rights to liberty and privacy that extend beyond those explicitly enumerated in the text, and that Bork's strong  was ideologically incompatible with that view. Bork's nomination was rejected in the committee by a 9–5 vote, and then rejected in the full Senate by a 58–42 margin.

In the, Biden's questions on constitutional issues were often long and convoluted, sometimes such that Thomas forgot the question being asked. Viewers of the high-profile hearings were often annoyed by Biden's style. Thomas later wrote that despite earlier private assurances from the senator, Biden's questions had been akin to a. The nomination came out of the committee without a recommendation, with Biden opposed. In part due to his own bad experiences in 1987 with his presidential campaign, Biden was reluctant to let personal matters enter into the hearings. Biden initially shared with the committee, but not the public, 's sexual harassment charges, on the grounds she was not yet willing to testify. After she did, Biden did not permit other witnesses to testify further on her behalf, such as Angela Wright (who made a similar charge) and experts on harassment. Biden said he was striving to preserve Thomas's and the decency of the hearings. The nomination was approved by a 52–48 vote in the full Senate, with Biden again opposed. During and afterward, Biden was strongly criticized by liberal legal groups and women's groups for having mishandled the hearings and having not done enough to support Hill. Biden subsequently sought out women to serve on the Judiciary Committee and emphasized women's issues in the committee's legislative agenda. In April 2019, Biden called Hill to express regret over his treatment of her; after the conversation, Hill said that she remained deeply unsatisfied.

Biden was involved in crafting many federal crime laws. He spearheaded the of 1994, also known as the Biden Crime Law, which included the, which expired in 2004 after its ten-year sunset period and was not renewed. It also included the landmark (VAWA), which contains a broad array of measures to combat. In 2000, the Supreme Court ruled in  that the section of VAWA allowing a federal civil remedy for victims of -motivated violence exceeded Congress's authority and therefore was unconstitutional. Congress reauthorized VAWA in 2000 and 2005. Biden has said, "I consider the Violence Against Women Act the single most significant legislation that I've crafted during my 35-year tenure in the Senate." In 2004 and 2005, Biden enlisted major American technology companies in diagnosing the problems of the -based, and to donate equipment and expertise to it in a successful effort to improve its services.

Biden was critical of the actions of  during the 1990s  and  investigations, and said "it's going to be a cold day in hell" before another Independent Counsel is granted the same powers. Biden voted to acquit on both charges during the.

As chairman of the, Biden wrote the laws that created the U.S. "", who oversees and coordinates national drug control policy. In April 2003, he introduced the controversial Reducing Americans' Vulnerability to Ecstasy Act, also known as the. He continued to work to stop the spread of " drugs" such as, and drugs such as and. In 2004, he worked to pass a bill outlawing s like, the drug used by many baseball players.

Biden's "Kids 2000" legislation established a public/private partnership to provide computer centers, teachers, Internet access, and technical training to young people, particularly to low-income and at-risk youth.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Biden was a long-time member of the. In 1997, he became the and chaired the committee in January 2001 and from June 2001 through 2003. When Democrats re-took control of the Senate following the, Biden again assumed the top spot on the committee in 2007. Biden was generally a in foreign policy. He collaborated effectively with important Republican Senate figures such as and  and sometimes went against elements of his own party. Biden was also co-chairman of the Observer Group in the Senate. A partial list covering this time showed Biden meeting with some 150 leaders from nearly 60 countries and international organizations. Biden held frequent hearings as chairman of the committee, as well as holding many subcommittee hearings during the three times he chaired the.

Biden became interested in the after hearing about  abuses during the  in 1991. Once the broke out, Biden was among the first to call for the "" policy of lifting the arms embargo, training  and supporting them with  air strikes, and investigating. Both the and  were reluctant to implement the policy, fearing Balkan entanglement. In April 1993, Biden spent a week in the Balkans and held a tense three-hour meeting with Serbian leader. Biden related that he told Milošević, "I think you're a damn war criminal and you should be tried as one." Biden wrote an amendment in 1992 to compel the Bush administration to arm the Bosnians, but deferred in 1994 to a somewhat softer stance preferred by the Clinton administration, before signing on the following year to a stronger measure sponsored by and. The engagement led to a successful NATO peacekeeping effort. Biden has called his role in affecting Balkans policy in the mid-1990s his "proudest moment in public life" that related to foreign policy. In 1999, during the, Biden supported the , and co-sponsored with his friend the McCain-Biden Kosovo Resolution, which called on President Clinton to use all necessary force, including ground troops, to confront Milošević over Serbian actions in. In 1998,  named Biden one of "Twelve Who Made a Difference" for playing a lead role in several foreign policy matters, including and the successful passage of bills to streamline foreign affairs agencies and punish religious persecution overseas.

Biden had voted against authorization for the in 1991, siding with 45 of the 55 Democratic senators; he said the U.S. was bearing almost all the burden in the. Biden was a strong supporter of the 2001, saying "Whatever it takes, we should do it." Regarding Iraq, Biden stated in 2002 that was a threat to national security, and that there was no option but to eliminate that threat. In October 2002, Biden voted in favor of the, justifying the. While he soon became a critic of the war and viewed his vote as a "mistake", he did not push to require a U.S. withdrawal. He supported the appropriations to pay for the occupation, but argued repeatedly that the war should be internationalized, that more soldiers were needed, and that the Bush administration should "level with the American people" about the cost and length of the conflict.

By late 2006, Biden's stance had shifted, and he opposed the, saying General was "dead, flat wrong" in believing the surge could work. Biden was instead a leading advocate for dividing Iraq into a loose of three  states. In November 2006, Biden and, President Emeritus of the , released a comprehensive strategy to end. Rather than continuing the present approach or withdrawing, the plan called for "a third way": federalizing Iraq and giving s, s, and "breathing room" in their own regions. In September 2007, a non-binding resolution passed the Senate endorsing such a scheme. However, the idea was unfamiliar, had no political constituency, and failed to gain traction. Iraq's political leadership united in denouncing the resolution as a de facto partitioning of the country, and the issued a statement distancing itself.

In March 2004, Biden secured the brief release of Libyan democracy activist and, after meeting with leader  in. In May 2008, Biden sharply criticized President for his speech to 's  in which he suggested that some Democrats were acting in the same way some Western leaders did when they appeased Hitler in the runup to World War II. Biden stated: "This is bullshit. This is malarkey. This is outrageous. Outrageous for the president of the United States to go to a foreign country, sit in the Knesset... and make this kind of ridiculous statement." Biden later apologized for using the expletive. Biden further stated, "Since when does this administration think that if you sit down, you have to eliminate the word 'no' from your vocabulary?"

Delaware matters
Biden was a familiar figure to his Delaware constituency, by virtue of his daily train commuting from there, and generally sought to attend to state needs. Biden was a strong supporter of increased funding and rail security; he hosted barbecues and an annual Christmas dinner for the Amtrak crews, and they would sometimes hold the last train of the night a few minutes so he could catch it. He earned the nickname "Amtrak Joe" as a result (and in 2011, Amtrak's was named the Joseph R. Biden Jr. Railroad Station, in honor of the over 7,000 trips he made from there). He was an advocate for Delaware military installations, including and.

In 1978, when Biden was seeking re-election as Senator, generated much turmoil. Biden's compromise solution between his white constituents and African-American leaders was to introduce legislation to outlaw the court's power to enforce certain types of busing, while allowing it to end segregation which had been deliberately imposed by school districts. White anti-integrationists seized onto a comment Biden made saying that he would support the use of federal helicopters if Wilmington's schools could not be voluntarily integrated, and Littleton P. Mitchell (head of the Delaware ) later said that Biden "adequately represented our community for many years, but he quivered that one time on busing". This compromise nearly alienated him both from working-class whites and from African-Americans, but tensions ended following the end of a teachers' strike which began over pay issues raised by the busing plan.

Beginning in 1991, Biden served as an at the, Delaware's only law school, teaching a seminar on. The seminar was one of Widener's most popular, often with a waiting list for enrollment. Biden typically co-taught the course with another professor, taking on at least half the course minutes and sometimes flying back from overseas to make one of the classes.

Biden was a sponsor of bankruptcy legislation during the 2000s, which was sought by, one of Delaware's largest companies, and other credit card issuers. Biden allowed an amendment to the bill to increase the homestead exemption for homeowners declaring bankruptcy and fought for an amendment to forbid anti-abortion felons from using bankruptcy to discharge fines; the overall bill was vetoed by Bill Clinton in 2000 but then finally passed as the in 2005, with Biden supporting it.

Biden held up trade agreements with Russia when that country stopped importing U.S. chickens. The downstate region is the nation's top chicken-producing area.

In 2007, Biden requested and gained $67 million worth of projects for his constituents through.

Reputation
Following his initial election in 1972, Biden was re-elected to six additional terms, in the, , , , , and , usually getting about 60 percent of the vote. He did not face strong opposition; Pete du Pont, then governor, chose not to run against him in 1984. Biden spent 28 years as a junior senator due to the two-year seniority of his Republican colleague After Roth was defeated for re-election by  in 2000, Biden became Delaware's senior senator. He then became the longest-serving senator in Delaware history and,, was the 18th longest serving senator in the history of the United States. In May 1999, Biden became the youngest senator to cast 10,000 votes.

With a between $59,000 and $366,000, and almost no outside income or investment income, Biden was consistently ranked as one of the least wealthy members of the Senate. Biden stated that he was listed as the second-poorest member in Congress; he was not proud of the distinction, but attributed it to having been elected early in his career. Biden realized early in his senatorial career how vulnerable poorer public officials are to offers of financial contributions in exchange for policy support, and he pushed measures during his first term. Biden earned $15.6 million in 2017-2018. By 2019, Biden's middle class status was referred to as a "state of mind". Biden's assets increased to between $2.2 million and $8 million.

During his years as a senator, Biden amassed a reputation for loquaciousness, with his questions and remarks during Senate hearings being known as long-winded. He has been a strong speaker and debater and a frequent and effective guest on. In public appearances, he is known to deviate from prepared remarks at will. According to political analyst, he has shown "a persistent tendency to say silly, offensive, and off-putting things";  writes that Biden's "weak filters make him capable of blurting out pretty much anything". Journalist has written that "Biden's vanity and his regard for his own gifts seem considerable even by the rarefied standards of the U.S. Senate."

The political writer has said, "Biden is not an academic, he's not a theoretical thinker, he's a great street pol. He comes from a long line of working people in Scranton—auto salesmen, car dealers, people who know how to make a sale. He has that great Irish gift." Political columnist has viewed Biden as having grown since he came to Washington and since his failed 1988 presidential bid: "He responds to real people—that's been consistent throughout. And his ability to understand himself and deal with other politicians has gotten much much better." Traub concludes that "Biden is the kind of fundamentally happy person who can be as generous toward others as he is to himself."

2008 presidential campaign
Biden had thought about running for president again ever since his failed 1988 bid.

Biden declared on January 31, 2007, after having discussed running for months prior. Biden made a formal announcement to on , stating he would "be the best Biden I can be". In January 2006, Delaware newspaper columnist Harry F. Themal wrote that Biden "occupies the sensible center of the Democratic Party". Themal concludes that this is the position Biden desires, and that in a campaign "he plans to stress the dangers to the security of the average American, not just from the terrorist threat, but from the lack of health assistance, crime, and energy dependence on unstable parts of the world".

During his campaign, Biden focused on the and his support for the implementation of the Biden-Gelb plan to achieve political success. He touted his record in the Senate as the head of major congressional committees and his experience on foreign policy. Despite speculation to the contrary, Biden rejected the notion of accepting the position of Secretary of State, focusing only on the presidency. At a 2007 campaign event, Biden said, "I know a lot of my opponents out there say I'd be a great Secretary of State. Seriously, every one of them. Do you watch any of the debates? 'Joe's right, Joe's right, Joe's right. Other candidates' comments that "Joe is right" in the were converted into a Biden campaign theme and ad. In mid-2007, Biden stressed his foreign policy expertise compared to Obama's, saying of the latter, "I think he can be ready, but right now I don't believe he is. The presidency is not something that lends itself to on-the-job training." Biden also said that Obama was copying some of his foreign policy ideas. Biden was noted for his one-liners on the campaign trail, saying of Republican then-frontrunner at the debate on October 30, 2007, in, "There's only three things he mentions in a sentence: a noun, and a verb and 9/11." Overall, Biden's debate performances were an effective mixture of humor, and sharp and surprisingly disciplined comments.

Biden made remarks during the campaign that attracted controversy. On the day of his January 2007 announcement, he spoke of fellow Democratic candidate and Senator : "I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy, I mean, that's a storybook, man." This comment undermined his campaign as soon as it began and significantly damaged his fund-raising capabilities; it later took second place on Time magazine's list of Top 10 Campaign Gaffes for 2007. Biden had earlier been criticized in July 2006 for a remark he made about his support among : "I've had a great relationship. In Delaware, the largest growth in population is Indian-Americans moving from India. You cannot go to a 7-Eleven or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking." Biden later said the remark was not intended to be derogatory.

In an unusual move, Biden shared campaign planes with one of his rivals for the nomination, US Senator of. Dodd and Biden were friends, and seeking to save funds during somewhat long-shot efforts at obtaining the nomination.

Overall, Biden had difficulty raising funds, struggled to draw people to his, and failed to gain traction against the high-profile candidacies of Obama and Senator ; he never rose above single digits in. In the initial contest on January 3, 2008, Biden placed fifth in the, garnering slightly less than one percent of the state delegates. Biden withdrew from the race that evening, saying "There is nothing sad about tonight.... I feel no regret."

Despite the lack of success, Biden's in the political world rose as the result of his 2008 campaign. In particular, it changed the relationship between Biden and Obama. Although the two had served together on the, they had not been close, with Biden having resented Obama's quick rise to political stardom, and Obama having viewed Biden as garrulous and patronizing. Now, having gotten to know each other during 2007, Obama appreciated Biden's campaigning style and appeal to working class voters, and Biden was convinced that Obama was "the real deal".

2008 vice presidential campaign
Since shortly following Biden's withdrawal from the presidential race, Obama had been privately telling Biden that he was interested in finding an important place for him in a possible Obama administration. Biden declined Obama's first request to vet him for the vice presidential slot, fearing the vice presidency would represent a loss in status and voice from his Senate position, but subsequently changed his mind. In a June 22, 2008, interview on 's , Biden confirmed that, although he was not actively seeking a spot on the ticket, he would accept the vice presidential nomination if offered. In early August, Obama and Biden met in secret to discuss a possible vice-presidential relationship, and the two developed a strong personal. On August 22, 2008, Barack Obama announced that Biden would be his.  reported that the strategy behind the choice reflected a desire to fill out the ticket with someone who has and  experience—and not to help the ticket win a  or to emphasize Obama's "change" message. Other observers pointed out Biden's appeal to middle class and voters, as well as his willingness to aggressively challenge Republican nominee  in a way that Obama seemed uncomfortable doing at times. In accepting Obama's offer, Biden ruled out to him the possibility of running for president again in 2016 (although comments by Biden in subsequent years seemed to back off that stance, with Biden not wanting to diminish his political power by appearing uninterested in advancement). Biden was officially nominated for vice president on August 27 by voice vote at the in.

After his selection as a vice presidential candidate, Biden was criticized by his own Bishop  for not opposing abortion. The diocese confirmed that even if elected vice president, Biden would not be allowed to speak at Catholic schools. Biden was soon barred from receiving by the bishop of his original hometown of, because of his support for abortion rights; however, Biden did continue to receive Communion at his local Delaware parish. Scranton became a flash point in the competition for swing state Catholic voters between the Democratic campaign and liberal Catholic groups, who stressed that other social issues should be considered as much or more than abortion, and many bishops and conservative Catholics, who maintained abortion was paramount. Biden said he believed that life began at conception but that he would not impose his personal religious views on others. Bishop Saltarelli had previously stated regarding stances similar to Biden's: "No one today would accept this statement from any public servant: 'I am personally opposed to human slavery and racism but will not impose my personal conviction in the legislative arena.' Likewise, none of us should accept this statement from any public servant: 'I am personally opposed to abortion but will not impose my personal conviction in the legislative arena.

Biden's vice presidential campaigning gained little media visibility, as far greater press attention was focused on the Republican running mate,. During one week in September 2008, for instance, the 's found that Biden was included in only five percent of the news coverage of the race, far less than for the other three candidates on the tickets. Biden nevertheless focused on campaigning in economically challenged areas of s and trying to win over blue-collar Democrats, especially those who had supported. Biden attacked McCain heavily, despite a long-standing personal friendship; he would say, "That guy I used to know, he's gone. It literally saddens me." As the reached a peak with the  and the  became a major factor in the campaign, Biden voted in favor of the $700 billion, which passed the Senate 74–25.

On October 2, 2008, Biden participated in the with Palin at. Post-debate polls found that while Palin exceeded many voters' expectations, Biden had won the debate overall. On October 5, Biden suspended campaign events for a few days after the death of his mother-in-law. During the final days of the campaign, Biden focused on less-populated, older, less well-off areas of battleground states, especially in Florida, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, where polling indicated he was popular and where Obama had not campaigned or performed well in the Democratic primaries. He also campaigned in some normally Republican states, as well as in areas with large Catholic populations.

Under instructions from the Obama campaign, Biden kept his speeches succinct and tried to avoid off-hand remarks, such as one about Obama's being tested by a foreign power soon after taking office, which had attracted negative attention. Privately, Obama was frustrated by Biden's remarks, saying "How many times is Biden gonna say something stupid?" Obama campaign staffers referred to Biden blunders as "Joe bombs" and kept Biden uninformed about strategy discussions, which in turn irked Biden. Relations between the two campaigns became strained for a month, until Biden apologized on a call to Obama and the two built a stronger partnership. Publicly, Obama strategist said that any unexpected comments had been outweighed by Biden's high popularity ratings. Nationally, Biden had a 60 percent favorability rating in a poll, compared to Palin's 44 percent.

On November 4, 2008, Obama was elected president and Biden was elected vice president. The Obama–Biden ticket won 365 to McCain–Palin's 173, and had a 53–46 percent edge in the nationwide popular vote.

Biden had continued to run for his Senate seat as well as for vice president, as permitted by Delaware law. On November4 Biden was also, defeating Republican. Having won both races, Biden made a point of holding off his resignation from the Senate so that he could be sworn in for his seventh term on January6, 2009. He became the youngest senator ever to start a seventh full term, and said, "In all my life, the greatest honor bestowed upon me has been serving the people of Delaware as their United States senator." Biden cast his last Senate vote on January 15, supporting the release of the second $350 billion for the. Biden later that day; in emotional farewell remarks on the Senate floor, where he had spent most of his adult life, Biden said, "Every good thing I have seen happen here, every bold step taken in the 36-plus years I have been here, came not from the application of pressure by interest groups, but through the maturation of personal relationships."

Delaware Gov. appointed long-time Biden adviser,, to complete the term. Kaufman chose not to fun for a full term and, after a special election in 2010, was succeeded by Democrat.

Post-election transition
On November 4, 2008, Biden Vice President of the United States as Obama's running mate.

Soon after the election, he was appointed chairman of president-elect Obama's transition team. During the transition phase of the, Biden said he was in daily meetings with Obama and that McCain was still his friend. The codename given to Biden is "Celtic", referencing his Irish roots.

Biden chose veteran Democratic lawyer and aide to be his chief of staff, and Time Washington bureau chief  to be his director of communications. Biden intended to eliminate some of the explicit roles assumed by the vice presidency of his predecessor,, who had established himself as an autonomous power center. Otherwise, Biden said he would not emulate any previous vice presidency, but would instead seek to provide advice and counsel on every critical decision Obama would make. Biden said he was closely involved in all the cabinet appointments that were made during the transition. Biden was also named to head the new White House Task Force on Working Families, an initiative aimed at improving the economic well being of the middle class. In his last act as Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, Biden went on a trip to, Afghanistan and during the second week of January 2009, meeting with the leadership of those countries.

First term (2009–2013)
On January 20, 2009, at noon, Biden became the 47th, sworn into the office by Supreme Court Justice. Biden is the first United States vice president from Delaware and the first to attain that office.

In the early months of the, Biden assumed the role of an important behind-the-scenes counselor. One role was to adjudicate disputes between Obama's "team of rivals". The president compared Biden's efforts to a basketball player "who does a bunch of things that don't show up in the stat sheet". Biden played a key role in gaining Senate support for several major pieces of Obama legislation, and was a main factor in convincing Senator to switch from the Republican to the Democratic party. Biden lost an internal debate to Secretary of State regarding his opposition to sending 21,000 new troops to the. His skeptical voice was still considered valuable within the administration, however, and later in 2009 Biden's views achieved more prominence within the White House as Obama reconsidered his Afghanistan strategy.

Biden made visits to Iraq about once every two months, including trips to Baghdad in August and September 2009 to listen to Prime Minister and reiterate U.S. stances on Iraq's future; by this time he had become the administration's point man in delivering messages to Iraqi leadership about expected progress in the country. More generally, overseeing Iraq policy became Biden's responsibility: the President is said to have put it as "Joe, you do Iraq". Biden said Iraq "could be one of the great achievements of this administration". Biden's January 2010 visit to Iraq in the midst of turmoil over banned candidates from the resulted in 59 of the several hundred candidates being reinstated by the Iraqi government two days later. By 2012, Biden had made eight trips there, but his oversight of U.S. policy in Iraq receded with the exit in 2011 of U.S. troops.

Biden was also in charge of the oversight role for intended to help counteract the, and stressed that only worthy projects should get funding. He talked with hundreds of governors, mayors, and other local officials in this role. During this period, Biden was satisfied that no major instances of waste or corruption had occurred, and when he completed that role in February 2011, he said that the number of fraud incidents with stimulus monies had been less than one percent.

It took some time for the cautious Obama and the blunt, rambling Biden to work out ways of dealing with each other. In late April 2009, Biden's off-message response to a question during the beginning of the, that he would advise family members against travelling on airplanes or subways, led to a swift retraction from the White House. The remark revived Biden's, and led to a spate of late-night television jokes themed on him being a loose-talking buffoon. In the face of persistently rising unemployment through July 2009, Biden acknowledged that the administration had "misread how bad the economy was" but maintained confidence that the stimulus package would create many more jobs once the pace of expenditures picked up. The same month, Secretary of State Clinton quickly disavowed Biden's remarks disparaging Russia as a power, but despite any missteps, Biden still retained Obama's confidence and was increasingly influential within the administration. On March 23, 2010, a microphone picked up Biden telling the President that his signing of the was "a big... deal", using an adjective beginning with "f", during live national news telecasts. White House press secretary replied via Twitter "And yes Mr. Vice President, you're right..." Despite their different personalities, Obama and Biden formed a friendship, partly based around Obama's daughter Sasha and Biden's granddaughter Maisy, who attended together.

Biden's most important role within the administration was to question assumptions, playing a contrarian role. Obama said that "The best thing about Joe is that when we get everybody together, he really forces people to think and defend their positions, to look at things from every angle, and that is very valuable for me." Another senior Obama advisor said Biden "is always prepared to be the skunk at the family picnic to make sure we are as intellectually honest as possible". On June 11, 2010, Biden represented the United States at the opening ceremony of the, attended the which was tied 1–1, and visited Egypt, Kenya, and South Africa. Throughout, Joe and Jill Biden maintained a relaxed atmosphere at their official residence in Washington, often entertaining some of their grandchildren, and regularly returned to their home in Delaware.

Biden campaigned heavily for Democrats in the, maintaining an attitude of optimism in the face of general predictions of large-scale losses for the party. Following large-scale Republican gains in the elections and the departure of White House Chief of Staff, Biden's past relationships with Republicans in Congress became more important. He led the successful administration effort to gain Senate approval for the. In December 2010, Biden's advocacy within the White House for a middle ground, followed by his direct negotiations with Senate Minority Leader, were instrumental in producing the administration's compromise tax package that revolved around a temporary. Biden then took the lead in trying to sell the agreement to a reluctant Democratic caucus in Congress, which was passed as the.

In foreign policy, Biden supported the NATO-led in 2011. Biden has supported closer economic ties with.

In March 2011, Obama detailed Biden to lead negotiations among both houses of Congress and the White House in resolving federal spending levels for the rest of the year, and avoiding a government shutdown. By May 2011, a "Biden panel" with six congressional members was trying to reach a bipartisan deal on raising the as part of an overall  plan. The developed over the next couple of months, but it was again Biden's relationship with McConnell that proved to be a key factor in breaking a deadlock and finally bringing about a bipartisan deal to resolve it, in the form of the, signed on August 2, 2011, the same day that an unprecedented  had loomed. Biden had spent the most time bargaining with Congress on the debt question of anyone in the administration, and one Republican staffer said, "Biden's the only guy with real negotiating authority, and [McConnell] knows that his word is good. He was a key to the deal."

It has been reported that Biden was opposed to going forward with the May 2011, lest failure adversely affect Obama's chances for a second term. He took the lead in notifying Congressional leaders of the successful outcome.

2012 re-election campaign
In October 2010, Biden stated that Obama had asked him to remain as his running mate for the. With Obama's popularity on the decline, however, in late 2011 White House Chief of Staff conducted some secret polling and focus group research into the idea of Secretary of State Clinton replacing Biden on the ticket. The notion was dropped when the results showed no appreciable improvement for Obama, and White House officials later said that Obama had never entertained the idea.

Biden's May 2012 statement that he was "absolutely comfortable" with gained considerable public attention in comparison to President Obama's position, which had been described as "evolving". Biden made his statement without administration consent, and Obama and his aides were quite irked, since Obama had planned to shift position several months later, in the build-up to the party convention, and since Biden had previously counseled the President to avoid the issue lest key Catholic voters be offended. Gay rights advocates seized upon the Biden stance, and within days, Obama announced that he too supported same-sex marriage, an action in part forced by Biden's unexpected remarks. Biden apologized to Obama in private for having spoken out, while Obama acknowledged publicly it had been done from the heart. The incident showed that Biden still struggled at times with ; as Time wrote, "everyone knows [that] Biden's greatest strength is also his greatest weakness." Relations were also strained between the campaigns when Biden appeared to use his to bolster fundraising contacts for a possible run on his own in the, and the vice president ended up being excluded from Obama campaign strategy meetings.

The Obama campaign nevertheless still valued Biden as a retail-level politician who could connect with disaffected, blue collar workers and rural residents, and he had a heavy schedule of appearances in swing states as the began in earnest in spring 2012. An August 2012 remark before a mixed-race audience that proposed Republican relaxation of Wall Street regulations would "put y'all back in chains" led to a similar analysis of Biden's face-to-face campaigning abilities versus tendency to go off track. The  wrote, "Most candidates give the same stump speech over and over, putting reporters if not the audience to sleep. But during any Biden speech, there might be a dozen moments to make press handlers cringe, and prompt reporters to turn to each other with amusement and confusion." wrote that Biden often goes too far and that "Along with the familiar Washington mix of neediness and overconfidence, Biden's brain is wired for more than the usual amount of goofiness."

Biden was officially nominated for a second term as vice president on September6 by voice vote at the in. He faced his Republican counterpart, Representative, in the lone on October 11 in. There he made a feisty, emotional defense of the Obama administration's record and energetically attacked the Republican ticket, in an effort to regain campaign momentum lost by Obama's unfocused debate performance against Republican nominee the week before.

On November 6, 2012, the President and the Vice President were elected to second terms. The Obama–Biden ticket won 332 to Romney–Ryan's 206 and had a 51–47 percent edge in the nationwide popular vote.

Post-election
In December 2012, Biden was named by Obama to head the, created to address the causes of in the aftermath of the. Later that month, during the final days before the country fell off the "", Biden's relationship with McConnell once more proved important as the two negotiated a deal that led to the being passed at the start of 2013. It made permanent much of the Bush tax cuts but raised rates on upper income levels.

Second term (2013–2017)
Biden was in the early morning of January 20, 2013, at a small ceremony in his official residence with Justice  presiding (a public ceremony took place on January 21). He continued to be in the forefront as, in the wake of the, the Obama administration put forth executive orders and proposed legislation towards new gun control measures (the legislation failed to pass).

During the discussions that led to the October 2013 passage of the, which resolved the and the , Biden played little role. This was due to Senate Majority Leader and other Democratic leaders cutting the vice president out of any direct talks with Congress, feeling that Biden had given too much away during previous negotiations.

Biden's Violence Against Women Act was reauthorized again in 2013. The act led to further related developments in the creation of the, begun in the first term, as well as the , begun in January 2014 with Biden as co-chair along with. Biden has a strong stance on sexual assault. For example, Biden stated to a victim of sexual assault at Stanford University, "you did it... in the hope that your strength might prevent this crime from happening to someone else. Your bravery is breathtaking." He has also taken legality into the situation. Biden issued federal guidelines while presenting a speech at the University of New Hampshire. He stated that "No means no, if you're drunk or you're sober. No means no if you're in bed, in a dorm or on the street. No means no even if you said yes at first and you changed your mind. No means no."

Biden favored arming. As, renewed attention was paid to the Biden-Gelb Iraqi federalization plan of 2006, with some observers suggesting that Biden had been right all along. Biden himself said that the U.S. would follow "to the gates of hell". In October 2014, Biden said that, and the  had "poured hundreds of millions of dollars and tens of thousands of tons of weapons into anyone who would fight against Al-Assad, except that the people who were being supplied were , and al Qaeda, and the extremist elements of  coming from other parts of the world."

By 2015, a series of swearings-in and other events where Biden had placed his hands on women and girls and talked closely to them attracted the attention of both the press and social media. In one case, a senator issued a statement afterward saying about his daughter, "No, she doesn't think the vice president is creepy." On January 17, 2015, Secret Service agents heard shots were fired as a vehicle drove near Biden's Delaware residence at 8:28 p.m. outside the security perimeter, but the vice president and his wife Jill were not home. A vehicle was observed by an agent speeding away.

On December 8, 2015, Biden spoke in Ukraine's parliament in Kiev in one of his many visits to set USA aid and policy stance for Ukraine. On February 28, 2016, Biden gave a speech at the to do with awareness for sexual assault; he also introduced.

In March 2016, Biden spoke at the Policy Conference in  In his speech, he stated, "We're all united by our unyielding—I mean literally unyielding—commitment to the survival, the security, and the success of the Jewish State of ."

On December 8, 2016, Biden went to to meet with the,.

During his two full terms, Joe Biden never, making him the longest serving vice president with this distinction.

Death of Beau Biden
On May 30, 2015, Biden's son,, died at age 46 after having battled for several years. In a statement, the Vice President's office said, "The entire Biden family is saddened beyond words." The nature and seriousness of the illness had not been previously disclosed to the public, and Biden had quietly reduced his public schedule in order to spend more time with his son. At the time of his death, Beau Biden had been widely seen as the frontrunner to be the Democratic nominee for in.

Role in the 2016 presidential campaign
During much of his second term, Biden was said to be preparing for a possible bid for the. At age 74 on in January 2017, he would have been the  in history. With his family, many friends, and donors encouraging him in mid-2015 to enter the race, and with 's favorability ratings in decline at that time, Biden was reported to again be seriously considering the prospect and a "Draft Biden 2016" was established.

, Biden was still uncertain whether or not to run. Biden cited the recent death of his son being a large drain on his emotional energy, and that "nobody has a right... to seek that office unless they're willing to give it 110% of who they are".

On October 21, speaking from a podium in the with his wife and President Obama by his side, Biden announced his decision not to enter the race for the Democratic presidential nomination in the 2016 election. In January 2016, Biden affirmed that not running was the right decision, but admitted to regretting not running for president "every day."

As of the end of January 2016, neither Biden nor President Barack Obama had endorsed any candidate in the 2016 presidential election. Biden did miss his annual Thanksgiving tradition of going to, opting instead to travel abroad and meet with several European leaders. He took time to meet with, having previously met with , both 2016 candidates. Neither of these meetings was considered an endorsement, as Biden had said that he would meet with any candidate who asked.

After Obama endorsed Hillary Clinton on June 9, 2016, Biden endorsed her later the same day. Though Biden and Clinton were scheduled to campaign together in Scranton on July 8, the appearance was canceled by Clinton in light of the the previous day.

Following his endorsement of Clinton, Biden publicly displayed his disagreements with the policies of Republican presidential nominee. On June 20, Biden critiqued Trump's proposal to temporarily ban Muslims from entering the country as well as his stated intent to between the United States and Mexico border, furthering that Trump's suggestion to either torture and or kill family members of terrorists was both damaging to American values and "deeply damaging to our security". During an interview with at the  on July 26, Biden asserted that "moral and centered" voters would not vote for Trump. On October 21, the anniversary of his choice to not run, Biden said he wished he was still in high school so he could take Trump "behind the gym". On October 24, Biden clarified he would have fought Trump only if he was still in high school, and the following day, October 25, Trump responded that he would "love that".

Post–vice presidency (2017–present)
In 2017, Biden was named the Benjamin Franklin Presidential Practice professor at the, where he intended to focus on foreign policy, diplomacy, and national security while leading the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement. He also wanted to pursue his "cancer moonshot" agenda, calling the fight against cancer "the only bipartisan thing left in America" in March 2017.

Biden had been close friends with Sen. for over 30 years. In 2018, Sen. McCain died at the age of 81 after dealing with the same cancer that Joe Biden's late son died of. Biden gave the eulogy at McCain's funeral service in Phoenix, Arizona. He opened with "My name's Joe Biden. I'm a Democrat. And I loved John McCain.", he also called him a "brother". Biden also served as a pallbearer at Sen. McCain's memorial service at the alongside, and.

Comments on President Trump
While attending the launch of the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement on March 30, 2017, a student asked Biden what "piece of advice" he would give to President Trump. Biden responded that the President should grow up and cease his tweeting so he could focus on the office. During a speech at a May 29, 2017 gathering of supporters at a community center gymnasium, Biden said, "There are a lot of people out there who are frightened. Trump played on their fears. What we haven't done, in my view—and this is a criticism of all us—we haven't spoken enough to the fears and aspirations of the people we come from." On June 17, 2017, Biden predicted the "state the nation is today will not be sustained by the American people" while speaking at a fundraiser in. Biden told CBS This Morning that Trump's administration "seems to feel the need to coddle autocrats and dictators" like n leaders, Russian president, North Korean leader or Philippine president. In October 2018, Biden said if Democrats retake the House of Representatives, "I hope they don't [impeach Trump]. I don't think there's a basis for doing that right now." On June 11, 2019, Biden criticized Trump's "damaging".

Climate change
During an appearance at the Brainstorm Health Conference in on May 2, 2017, Biden said the public "has moved ahead of the administration [on science]". On May 31, Biden tweeted that climate change was an "existential threat to our future" and remaining in the was the "best way to protect our children and global leadership." The following day, after President Trump announced his withdrawal of the US from the Paris Agreement, Biden tweeted that the choice "imperils US security and our ability to own the clean energy future." While appearing at the Concordia Europe Summit in on June 7, Biden said, referring to the Paris Agreement, "The vast majority of the American people do not agree with the decision the president made."

Healthcare
On March 22, 2017, Biden referred to the Republican healthcare bill as a "tax bill" meant to transfer nearly US$1 trillion used for health benefits for the lower classes to wealthy Americans during his first appearance on Capitol Hill since Trump's inauguration. On May 4, after the House of Representatives narrowly voted for the, Biden tweeted that it was a "Day of shame for Congress", lamenting the loss of pre-existing condition protections. On June 24, in response to Senate Republicans revealing an American Health Care Act draft the previous day, Biden tweeted that the bill "isn't about health care at all—it's a wealth transfer: slashes care to fund tax cuts for the wealthy & corporations". On July 28, in response to the Republican Senate healthcare bill falling through, Biden tweeted, "Thank you to everyone who tirelessly worked to protect the healthcare of millions."

Immigration
On September 5, 2017, after Attorney General announced that the Trump Administration is rescinding the, Biden tweeted, "Brought by parents, these children had no choice in coming here. Now they'll be sent to countries they've never known. Cruel. Not America."

LGBT rights
On April 14, 2017, Biden released a statement denouncing the authorities in for their rounding up, torturing, and murdering of "individuals who are believed to be gay", also stating his hope that the Trump administration honor a prior pledge to advance human rights by confronting Chechen leader  and Russian leaders over "these egregious violations of human rights". On June 21, during a speech at a Democratic National Committee gala in, Biden said, "Hold President Trump accountable for his pledge to be your friend."

On July 26, 2017, after Trump announced a ban of, Biden tweeted, "Every patriotic American who is qualified to serve in our military should be able to serve. Full stop."

In March 2019, Biden condemned 's new, tweeting: "Stoning people to death for homosexuality or adultery is appalling and immoral. There is no excuse – not culture, not tradition – for this kind of hate and inhumanity." Biden suggested that the Trump administration's hostility to the rights of LGBT people was sending a poor example to countries like Brunei.

Allegations of inappropriate physical contact
There have been multiple photographs and videos of Biden engaged in what commentators considered to be inappropriate proximity to women and children, including kissing and or touching. Biden has described himself as a "tactile politician" and admitted that this behavior has caused trouble for him in the past. An image of Biden in close proximity to Stephanie Carter during her swearing in as  in 2015 resulted in a mocking epithet that was widely repeated. Carter defended Biden's depicted behavior in a 2019 interview.

In March 2019, former Nevada assemblywoman alleged that Biden kissed her without her consent at a 2014 campaign rally in Las Vegas. In a  magazine op-ed for The Cut, Flores wrote that Biden had walked up behind her, put his hands on her shoulders, smelled her hair, and kissed the back of her head. Adding that the way he touched her was "an intimate way reserved for close friends, family, or romantic partners – and I felt powerless to do anything about it." In an interview with , Flores stated she believed Biden's behavior to be disqualifying for a 2020 presidential run. Biden's spokesman stated that Biden did not recall the behavior described. Two days after Flores, Amy Lappos, a former congressional aide to, said Biden crossed a line of decency and respect when he touched her in a non-sexual, but inappropriate way by holding her head to rub noses with her at a political fundraiser in Greenwich in 2009. The next day, two additional women came forward with allegations of inappropriate conduct. One woman said that Biden placed his hand on her thigh, and the other said he ran his hand from her shoulder down her back.

By early April 2019, a total of seven women had made allegations of inappropriate physical contact regarding Biden. At a conference on April 5, Biden apologized for not understanding how individuals would react to his actions, but stated that his intentions were honorable; he went on to say that he was not sorry for anything that he had ever done, which led critics to accuse him of sending a mixed message. He also proclaimed—with each public embrace he gave during the event—that he had received permission for it. Some critics interpreted this as Biden jokingly deflecting criticism, while other observers considered his change in tone responsive to the criticisms received.

2020 presidential campaign
During a tour of the U.S. Senate with reporters before leaving office, on December 5, 2016, Biden refused to rule out a bid for the presidency in the, after leaving office as vice president. If he were to run in 2020, Biden would be 77 years old on election day and 78 on in 2021. He reasserted his ambivalence about running on an appearance of  on December 7, in which he stated "never say never" about running for president in 2020, while also acknowledging that he did not see a scenario in which he would run for office again. He seemingly announced on January 13, 2017, exactly one week prior to the expiration of his vice presidential term, that he would not run. He then appeared to backtrack four days later, on January 17, stating "I'll run if I can walk." A known as  was formed in January 2018, seeking Biden's entry into the race.

Between 2016 and 2019, Biden was mentioned by various media outlets as a potential candidate. He told a forum held in, on July 17, 2018, that he would decide whether or not to formally declare as a candidate by January 2019. On February 4, 2019, with no decision having been forthcoming from Biden, Edward-Isaac Dovere of  wrote that Biden was "very close to saying yes" but that some close to him are worried he would have a last-minute change of heart, as he did in 2016. Dovere reported that Biden was concerned about the effect another presidential run could have on his family and reputation, as well as fundraising struggles and perceptions about his age and relative centrism, compared to other declared and potential candidates. Conversely, his "sense of duty," offense at the Trump presidency, the lack of foreign policy experience amongst other Democratic hopefuls and his desire to foster "bridge-building progressivism" in the Party, were said to be factors prompting him to run. In March 2019, he indicated he may run, and ultimately launched his campaign on April 25, 2019. In May 2019, Biden chose to be his 2020 U.S. presidential campaign headquarters.

While at a fundraiser on June 18, 2019, Biden said that one of his greatest strengths was "bringing people together" and pointed to his relationships with Senators and, two  as examples. While imitating a, Biden remarked "I was in a caucus with James O. Eastland. He never called me 'boy,' he always called me 'son.'” New Jersey Senator was one of many Democrats to criticize Biden for the remarks, issuing a statement that said "You don't joke about calling black men 'boys.' Men like James O. Eastland used words like that, and the racist policies that accompanied them, to perpetuate white supremacy and strip black Americans of our very humanity". In response, Biden said that he was not meaning to use the term "boy" in.

During the first Democratic, Kamala Harris criticized Biden for his comments regarding his past work with segregationist senators and his past opposition to that allowed black children like her to attend. Biden was widely criticized for his debate performance and support for him dropped 10 points. President Trump defended Biden, saying Harris was given "too much credit" for her debate with Biden.

Biden's history of "verbal fumbles" became a problem in campaign. In 2018, Biden said he was "a gaffe machine" but disagreed with comparisons to Trump, saying his gaffe-prone nature was "a wonderful thing compared to a guy who can't tell the truth". On August 26, 2019 Biden subtly addressed the controversy. Following a minor mishap in which he stumbled over where he had spoken earlier that day at, he directly looked at the assembled press and said that "I want to be clear: I'm not going nuts."

On July 15, 2019, the Biden Cancer Initiative announced the foundation was ceasing operations for the foreseeable future. Biden and his wife left the initiative's board in April as an ethics precaution before starting his 2020 presidential campaign.

In September 2019 it was reported that President had been pressuring the Ukrainian President  to investigate alleged wrongdoing by Biden and his son  in correlation with a whistleblowing report regarding a phone call between Trump and Zelensky on July 25, 2019. Despite the allegations, as of September 2019, there has been no evidence produced of any wrongdoing by the Bidens. It was also reported that Trump's calls for investigation of the Bidens came at the same time as Trump withholding scheduled from Ukraine; three Congressional committees started looking into whether this was done to force Ukraine to carry out the investigations. This pressure to investigate the Bidens was widely believed to be an attempt to hurt Biden's chances of winning the presidency, resulting in. Trump held a meeting with Zelensky in where they both stated that Zelensky had not been pressured to investigate alleged wrongdoing by Biden and his son. This series of events is closely connected with the.

Political positions
Biden has been characterized as a. He has supported for  in the ; the increased infrastructure spending proposed by the Obama administration;, including , bus, and subway subsidies; ; and the reduced military spending proposed in the Obama Administration's fiscal year 2014 budget.

A method that political scientists use for gauging ideology is to compare the annual ratings by the (ADA) with the ratings by the  (ACU). Biden has a lifetime 72 percent score from the ADA through 2004,  while the ACU awarded Biden a lifetime  rating of 13 percent through 2008. Using another metric, Biden has a lifetime average liberal score of 77.5 percent, according to a  analysis that places him ideologically among the center of Senate Democrats as of 2008.  rates congressional votes as liberal or conservative on the, in three policy areas: economic, social, and foreign. For 2005–2006, Biden's average ratings were as follows: the economic rating was 80 percent liberal and 13 percent conservative, the social rating was 78 percent liberal and 18 percent conservative, and the foreign rating was 71 percent liberal and 25 percent conservative. This has not changed much over time; his liberal ratings in the mid-1980s were also in the 70–80 percent range.

Various have given Biden scores or grades as to how well his votes align with the positions of each group. The gives him an 80 percent lifetime score, with a 91 percent score for the 110th Congress. Biden opposes drilling for oil in the and supports governmental funding to find new energy sources. Biden believes action must be taken on. He co-sponsored the Sense of the Senate resolution calling on the United States to be a part of the United Nations climate negotiations and the, the most stringent climate bill in the. Biden was given an 85 percent lifetime approval rating from the, and he voted for the (NAFTA).

Distinctions
Biden has received s from the (1976),  ( 1981),  (2000),  (2003), his alma mater the  (2004),  (2005), and his other alma mater  ( 2009)   ( 2013)   (2014)   ( 2016)   ( 2017)   (DPS 2017)   ( 2017)

Biden also received the Chancellor Medal from his alma mater,, in 1980, and in 2005, he received the George Arents Pioneer Medal—Syracuse's highest alumni award—"for excellence in public affairs."

In 2008, Biden received the Best of Congress Award, for "improving the American quality of life through family-friendly work policies", from  magazine. Also in 2008, Biden shared with fellow Senator the  award from the  "in recognition of their consistent support for Pakistan". In 2009, Biden received the award from, that region's highest award, for his vocal support for their independence in the late 1990s.

Biden is an inductee of the Hall of Fame. He was named to the in 2009.

On June 25, 2016, Joe Biden received the of  in the.

On January 12, 2017, Obama surprised Biden by awarding him the during a farewell press conference at the White House honoring Biden and his wife. Obama said he was awarding the Medal of Freedom to Biden for "faith in your fellow Americans, for your love of country and a lifetime of service that will endure through the generations". It was the first and only time Obama awarded the Medal of Freedom with the additional honor of distinction, an honor which his three predecessors had reserved for only President, and , respectively.

On December 11, 2018, the renamed their School of Public Policy and Administration after Biden, naming it the Joseph R. Biden, Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration, which also houses the Biden Institute.

Writings by Biden

 * Also paperback edition, Random House 2008, ISBN 0-8129-7621-5.
 * Also paperback edition, Random House 2008, ISBN 0-8129-7621-5.