Though I try to avoid cable news as much as possible, it's impossible at the gym, and so last night I was treated to three networks at once hyper-analyzing a joke VP Biden made at the swearing-in of White House senior staff yesterday -- it was a crack about John Roberts flubbing the presidential oath on Tuesday (I thought it was funny). Obama didn't laugh, though the rest of the room did. This signaled dreaded CONFLICT to the maniacs who populate cable news (see Jack Shafer here) and suddenly the joke became an issue. Now Marc Ambinder offers this:
The somewhat awkward episode yesterday at the White House staff swearing-in ceremony may be a harbinger of the Obama-Biden relationship for the remainder of this Administration. For all his respective strengths he brings to the office, Biden is a very different person from Obama. Biden is folksy, gregarious, undisciplined, an attention seeker and always the life of the party. Obama is sober, serious, and disciplined. At some point, the two styles will clash in a more significant fashion than yesterday.
To put it another way, Obama respects Biden for his years of experience, relationships with world leaders, and working class roots, but I don't think the two will become personally close. I doubt you will see the Obamas and Bidens vacation together or socialize.
Hmmm. On the latter point, I'd note that most reports indicate Michelle Obama and Jill Biden struck up a close relationship on the campaign trail. But did anyone care if Dick Cheney and GWB hung out together outside of work?
Marc's initial analysis of the Pres-VP relationship is solid right up to the point where he predicts that "the two styles will clash in a more significant fashion than yesterday." Putting aside the news judgment of the cable networks, I can't come up with a scenario where the two men's personality differences have any real affect on government; frankly, their opposites-attract scenario brings the best of both worlds to the executive branch, since Biden is just the man you want buttering up reluctant legislators while Obama brings the serious. The other thing to keep in mind is that Obama isn't exactly a stick in the mud -- look at the cracks he made to pool reporters called to attend his second "abundance of caution" swearing-in last night:
"We decided it was so much fun..." Obama joked while sitting on a couch. ... [the president is sworn in] ..."All right." Obama said. "The bad news for the pool is there's 12 more balls."
-- Tim Fernholz
