I have spent most of the morning reading the fantastic anecdotes, analysis, and hopes surrounding the announcement of Senator Joe Biden as Obama's VP pick. What I haven't seen yet, however, is the single clip that comes to mind for me every time I hear someone mention Biden's name... the clip that forever solidified him in my own mind as the sort of rare politician that speaks truth to power in ways others can't or don't.
Link Here
The clip below from the Daily Show aired on June 9th, 2004. It regards John Ashcroft testifying about the US Justice Department rationalizing the use of torture in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. I recommend watching the whole clip for full context, but Biden's moment begins around 4:35.
Link Here
Ashcroft refused to release any memos from the Justice Department, but simultaneously insisted he wasn't invoking executive privilege or anything else - simply not turning the memos over (as if that is in any way a legally defensible argument). Biden's response was direct (quoted from the transcript of the hearing, segments and clips of which are also available here);
Thank you very much. Well, General, that means you may be in contempt of Congress then. You got to have a reason not to answer our questions, as you know from you sitting up here. There may be a rationale for executive privilege that misses the point, but -- but, you know, you have to have a reason. You are not allowed, under our Constitution, not to answer our questions. And that ain't -- that ain't constitutional.
But that moment pales in comparison to the smackdown he delivered moments later when discussing the Geneva Conventions;
"I'll conclude by saying there's a reason why we sign these treaties - to protect my son in the military. That's why we have these treaties. So when Americans are captured, they are not tortured."
I recognize some people may have their reservations about Biden, and a single clip obviously won't erase them. It's impossible to have a national consensus on practically anything, let alone something as nuanced as who might best serve as a Vice President to Senator Obama. That being said, this clip alone assures me that an Obama/Biden ticket doesn't see any grey areas in what should be two of the most basic principles in our government, namely the Constitution and our duty to abide by the Geneva Conventions out of respect for out soldiers and soldiers across the rest of the world.
Update: For those with video issues, the direct link is included. I also recommend giving it some time to load... flash videos can be weird.
And if you like the clip, spread it around. It's refreshingly honest, and I think we need to get it out to as many people as possible!
Update II Thanks for all the comments everyone. I'm happy to see that this swayed some people towards being more comfortable with Obama's selection. To answer a couple questions, no, I don't know if there is a clip anywhere of the hearing without any commentary, and no, I don't know how to edit this video. I'll try and track down another copy for those outside of the U.S. that can't access Comedy Central's content, but this PBS link that I included has the option to stream their coverage in Windows or Real, although it doesn't include Biden's comments on the treaty.
Hopefully this fires everyone up for the general election!