Disgraced journalist Glenn Thrush has a piece in the New York Times detailing the history of the most adorable bromance in politics. The report examines the somewhat complicated relationship between former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Joe Biden and offers some insight into Obama's thinking as he was searching for a suitable running mate in 2008.
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According to the report, Obama was looking for a running mate who "would not maneuver for the presidency from the No. 2 slot." On this front, Biden stood out among other potential candidates, even going so far as to offer a "loyalty pledge" in which he vowed to support any decision Obama made, and to "follow it to my death."
Biden also reportedly told Obama campaign staffers that "Barack would never have to worry" about him maneuvering for a presidential run. This was something that appealed to Obama, and was one of the reasons why Hillary Clinton was ruled out early on in the selection process. "The protracted primary fight had simply been too bitter, and the president would soon offer her the State Department, to put her near, but not so very near, the seat of power," Thrush writes.
Clinton, who despite her lack of political talent remains one of the most ruthlessly ambitious politicians in American history, was never going to abandon her quest for power and the White House dream Obama had so callously wrenched from her grasp. Given the Clintons' sordid history, Obama's reluctance to place Hillary in a position where she would be "one heartbeat away from the presidency," as the saying goes, seems perfectly reasonable.