It used to be, there was truth and there was falsehood. Now, there is spin and there are gaffes. Spin is often thought to be synonymous with falsehood or lying, but more accurately it is indifference to the truth. A politician engaged in spin is saying what he or she wishes were true, and sometimes, by coincidence, it is. Meanwhile a gaffe, it’s been said, is when a politician tells the truth — or, more precisely, when he or she accidentally reveals something truthful about what is going on in his or her head. A gaffe is what happens when the spin breaks down.
2008 US Presidential Election, Democratic Party, Barack Obama for President., Joe Biden for President.February 5, 2007 8:36 pm
Biden tells Dems he regrets Obama remark
WASHINGTON - Sen. Joe Biden tried on Saturday to stem the damage from the botched launch of his presidential campaign as underdog candidates in the Democratic field looked to gain momentum from the party faithful.
The Democratic National Committee wrapped up a three-day meeting that featured speeches from all 10 candidates already in the race or considering a bid. The front-runners all appeared Friday before a packed ballroom.
The crowd thinned to roughly half on Saturday, but those in attendance were no less enthusiastic. New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson stirred them by calling for a primary without negative campaigning and saying he would bring troops home from Iraq by the end of the year.
Biden Starts Presidential Race With Apology Over Obama Remark
Feb. 1 (Bloomberg) — Senator Joe Biden, on the day he officially joined the race for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination, may have diminished his chances by having to apologize for remarks he made about rival Barack Obama
Yesterday the New York Observer quoted Biden as saying of Senator Obama’s presidential candidacy: “You got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy.'’
Obama, an Illinois Democrat, said he didn’t take Biden’s remarks personally. “But obviously they were historically inaccurate,'’ Obama said in a statement. “African-American presidential candidates like Jesse Jackson, Shirley Chisholm, Carol Moseley Braun and Al Sharpton gave a voice to many important issues through their campaigns and no one would call them inarticulate.'’
Biden starts White House run with controversy
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sen. Joseph Biden (news, bio, voting record) of Delaware on Wednesday joined the crowded field of Democratic contenders in the 2008 White House race but his campaign quickly ran into controversy after his comments about a potential rival, Sen. Barack Obama (news, bio, voting record).
In an interview with the New York Observer published on the day he announced his candidacy, Biden made personal comments about Obama that critics said could be seen as racially insensitive.
Biden, 64, and a six-term senator, is the eighth Democrat to enter the presidential race, and often registers in the low single digits in polls behind Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Obama and 2004 vice presidential nominee John Edwards.
