Joe Biden leaves door open to presidential bid in 2020
Vice President Joe Biden left the door open Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016, to a presidential run in 2020 during at interview on CNN's "State of the Union," with host Jake Tapper. Credit: CNN / State of the Union
Vice President Joe Biden left the door open Sunday for running for president in 2020.
“Four years is a lifetime in American politics,” Biden said on CNN’s “State of the Union” when asked about running for the Democratic nomination. “I think that nominees are determined by their parties based on what skill sets are most needed at that time. And who knows where we’re going to be two years from now when people start looking seriously about what they’re going to do?”
Biden joked earlier this month that he was running in 2020, but later said, “I’m not committing not to run. I’m not committing to anything. I learned a long time ago fate has a strange way of intervening.”
Biden turned 74 on Nov. 20. Trump, who is 70, will be the oldest incoming president in American history when sworn in next month.
Asked Sunday about his age by CNN host Jake Tapper, Biden said, “Age could be very much an issue, it may not be. It depends on the state of my health and whoever is running.”
He said Democrats needed to do a better job reaching out and appealing to white, working-class voters who have been left behind by economic gains, but dismissed a question about whether he’d have done better than Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in the 2016 race.
“They’d probably have eaten me alive,” he said. “I learned how to become popular — not running for president — and boom, you’re the most popular guy out there.”
On voters Democrats failed to reach, he said: “These are good people, man. These aren’t racists. These aren’t sexists.”
David Schwartz covers environmental issues. A native Long Islander, he's worked at Newsday since 2013.
Updated now Newsday travel writer Scott Vogel took the ferry over to Block Island for a weekend of fun.
Updated now Newsday travel writer Scott Vogel took the ferry over to Block Island for a weekend of fun.
