The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Will Joe Biden tell Symphony Hall audience about presidenti­al plans?

- By Bo Emerson bemerson@ajc.com

Former Vice President Joe Biden is coming to Atlanta.

He has added Atlanta and seven other cities to his America Promise tour, which will bring him to Symphony Hall June 8.

The 36-city tour, which began last fall, is in support of his memoir, “Promise Me, Dad: A Year of Hope, Hardship, and Purpose.”

The book details the events of Biden’s life in 2015, a year in which his son Beau faced brain cancer and Biden mulled over the decision to run for president. Beau Biden, a veteran and the former Delaware attorney general, died on May 30 of that year. He was 46. Five months later, Joe Biden announced that he would not be a candidate.

It was a difficult choice, and the former vice president has since reconsider­ed

the decision, announcing that though he supported Hillary Clinton, he thinks he would have beaten Donald Trump.

During this tour, Biden has been appearing onstage with a guest moderator, usually a different one in each city.

The moderator in Atlanta has not been named, but moderators have included Tom Brokaw, Jenna Bush Hager, Stephen Colbert, Melinda Gates, Dr. Atul Gawande, John Green, Jon Meacham, Wes Moore, Leslie Odom Jr., Ambassador Samantha Power, Al Roker, George Saunders, Aaron Sorkin, Jesmyn Ward and Constance Wu.

It’s a sure bet that Biden will be peppered with questions from both the moderator and his audience about the possibilit­y of a Biden run for the presidency in 2020.

A few of those questions will probably be about age. If he were elected, Biden would be 78 years old on Inaugurati­on Day, making him the oldest president in the history of the republic. (President Donald Trump would be pushed down to second oldest.)

At earlier appearance­s, Biden has dodged questions about his potential candidacy, saying that he hasn’t made up his mind. He has also enjoyed taking a few gentle potshots at the current administra­tion.

Tickets to the June 8 show are $79-$149, and are on sale at joebidenbo­ok.com.

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Joe Biden

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