Biden says no to 2016 White House run
WASHINGTON (AFP) – Vice President Joe Biden said Wednesday he will not run for the White House in 2016, ending months of speculation that has stalked Hillary Clinton's campaign and threatened Democratic party unity.
Pointing to the tyranny of America's electoral calendar, the two-time presidential hopeful reluctantly relinquished a long-held political dream and in doing so removed a potentially sizable obstacle to Clinton's nomination.
''I believe we're out of time, the time necessary to mount a winning campaign for the nomination,'' Biden said in an emotion-tinged statement at the White House, flanked by his wife Jill and the man he had hoped to replace, President Barack Obama.
Biden's months of soul searching and deliberation have coincided with mourning for his late son Beau, who succumbed to brain cancer in May.
In 1972, weeks after being elected a lawmaker, Biden lost his wife and baby daughter in a car crash that also left his two young sons badly injured.
Biden took his Senate oath of office at Beau and Hunter's hospital bedside.
Today – standing in the sun-bleached Rose Garden, within touching distance of the Oval Office and the Resolute Desk – Biden said that thoughts of Beau now brought a smile to the lips before a tear to the eye, but it was too late.
The effort to draft Biden had been fueled by disillusionment with Clinton, who has struggled to gain traction among voters and remains a deeply polarizing figure.
Responding to the news, Clinton in a statement described Biden as ''a good friend and a great man.''
''Today and always, inspired by his optimism and commitment to change the world for the better,'' she said on Twitter.