Run, Biden, run! Column

It may just be boredom among Democrats who are less than enthralled by all the attention being lavished on Donald Trump, or discomfort with a Democratic contest whose outcome seems in the bag for Hillary Clinton, or even the unease that the party faithful feel about dynastic politics — something they share with Republicans who also feel squeamish about the prospect of leaders with roman numerals after their names. The explanation could be the simple concern that some Democrats have about the other shoe that they fear will drop about private servers or classified emails, the Clinton foundation, or even Benghazi. Whatever it is, interest is heating up about one of the most familiar and appealing faces in American politics, Vice President Biden.

There is no prominent figure in American politics whose image has improved so dramatically in recent years. From being the butt of unjustified criticism that he was the clown prince of American politics, Biden is increasingly looking like the only adult in the room.

There is no Biden Foundation hoovering up billions of dollars from dubious sources. There is no spouse looming ominously in the background and raising questions about who the real president will be: Dr. Jill Biden is blessedly free of political ambitions. Above all, there is a feeling that the vice president, for all his sometimes over-the-top bonhomie, is a serious guy who has the knack of cutting deals, knows Capitol Hill like the back of his hand, feels comfortable in the company of foreign leaders, and for all of his gaffes and blunders — such as cribbing lines from a speech by British politician Neil Kinnock in 1987 — is mostly a straight shooter.

An illustration of Biden's political skill can be shown in the deal he pulled off in 2012 with Senate GOP leader Mitch McConnell to avert what was called "the fiscal cliff." It didn't sit well with other big-name Democrats, but it showed him to be a tough and creative negotiator. His personal closeness to President Obama and the president's willingness to delegate important jobs to Biden raise him to the level of the most effective — and consequential — vice presidents. In terms of political heft, Biden is Dick Cheney's angelic twin. But there are downsides to Biden's entry to the Democratic nomination contest.

Democrats, notably Democratic women who have longed for Hillary Clinton to have "her turn," will see this as a power grab by the boys club in the Democratic Party. Biden has indeed been pushed by old bulls such as former South Carolina Democratic chairman Dick Harpootlian. Unenthusiastic support among women, particularly single women, would be a problem, given their prominent place in the Democratic base. There is no sure corrective for this problem other than a growing concern among Democrats that Clinton has feet of clay, and that rather than deliver the White House to a Jeb Bush with his primeval views on reproductive rights, it might be better to get behind someone like Biden, who is a less-polarizing figure who could draw independents to the party.

One would have thought that Ronald Reagan's election in 1980 would have put to rest the concern over the age of a presidential candidate. Biden is just five years older than Clinton and a year younger than Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. The extension of life expectancy is one of the most notable features of American life, and a candidate in his early 70s would have a natural appeal to older voters who are most likely to vote. Biden is also the best one-on-one campaigner in U.S. politics; he excels in eye-to-eye contact. That works magic in places such as Iowa and New Hampshire.

Perhaps at a time of corrosive political polarization, the Democratic Party needs someone who is a figure of reassurance, who doesn't generate the kind of sulfurous animosity that has made our political campaigns into demolition derbies.

Can Biden raise the millions of dollars required to compete? I would bet that his announcement of an exploration would unloose a flood of contributions. Sure, his spontaneity and effusiveness sometimes get the better of him, but his optimism and encyclopedic knowledge of the political terrain in Washington are priceless political assets.

Ross K. Baker is distinguished professor of political science at Rutgers University and a member of the Board of Contributors of USA TODAY.

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