This article highlights a part of Joe Biden's time as vice president in which the president gave him the very important task of contending for stricter gun control in the Senate, only to find that he failed to accomplish it. The article says that this failure was not because of a lack of skill or competency on Biden's part, rather, it was a lack of aggressive push and quick thinking.
Gun control has always been a major issue for Joe Biden. As senator, he had written the last major gun legislation, which passed in 1994 after years of debate over it. However, during his time as vice president, Biden did not fight aggressively enough for the issue. It seemed like he saw the difficult, almost impossible situation as something that could never be achieved and then just lost steam. He called many meetings and offered some proposals, but his ideas were not original or particularly moving enough to spark negotiation in the Senate. He didn't assert his positions actively or push to convince other political figures of his stance.
I couldn't agree more with the author's point that "how Biden handled a tough, some believe impossible, assignment offers a window into his leadership style at a moment when he is weighing a possible run for the Democratic nomination for the presidency." There were many times in the course of this election process when I completely forgot that Joe Biden is even in the race. The current vice president has remained in the shadows ever since the campaigning started. There have even been rumors that he is not actually running, or that he will drop out at the quickest sign of difficulty.
It's time for Biden to make a decision. If he is running for presidency, it isn't looking good so far that he has failed to offer something unique to the table. At this point, he is an easily forgettable candidate. I think even if he would start making a serious effort to get into the spotlight now, he would be easily overshadowed by Clinton or even Sanders, candidates who have been actively promoting their platforms since the start of the election.
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/10/joe-biden-gun-control-effort-sandy-hook-214644
http://www.politico.com/story/2015/10/joe-biden-gun-control-effort-sandy-hook-214644
I agree that it is time for Joe Biden to step out from the shadows. I also thought it disappointing at how Joe Biden's candidacy status always said "undecided" for such a long time. It seems to us then, that he can't decide things well and doesn't have an assertive characteristic that is necessary for a president to have, in order to be a leader. Also, what Americans want is someone who can affect our nation and change the bads for the better quality of life. However, with Joe Biden making a barely noticeable presence even as vice president, that does not show us a promising leader. It is important to be careful, yes, but it is also important to show what potential you have over the other presidential candidates if you want people voting for you. A dependable person is needed for the nation that is going downhill everyday and instead of just lurking around in the shadows, Biden needs to walk over to the light switch and turn the bright lights on.
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