August 25, 2008
Biden's Higher-Education Background
U.S. Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. is better known for his role as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee than for his higher-education proposals. But the six-term congressman from Delaware has championed college-affordability issues during his tenure and is also pretty familiar with the inside of a college classroom.
Senator Biden, tapped on Saturday as the Democratic vice-presidential candidate, has taught a seminar on constitutional law at Widener University School of Law since 1991. His wife, Jill, is a longtime educator who teaches English at Delaware Technical & Community College.
During Senator Biden’s brief Democratic presidential primary run last fall, he made college access and affordability some of the major themes of his campaign. Among other proposals, Senator Biden recommended replacing two existing federal tax breaks for college expenses with a refundable tax credit of up to $3,000 per year meant to cover the average cost of tuition and fees at a public two-year college and more than half of those at a public four-year college.
For more on Senator Biden’s higher-education background and record, see our story today and also our Campaign U. coverage of his campaign for the presidential nomination last fall.
Sara Hebel | Posted on Monday August 25, 2008 | PermalinkComments
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he’s also a whining neo-prohibitionist who supports a 21 year old drinking age and binge drinking behind closed doors.
— rml Aug 25, 02:26 PM #
to #1 – ummm, that’s just nuts. Hardly worthy of response but given the coming vitriol and viciousness of the right-wing lie machine, I’ll bite. So… where’s your proof. Unsubstantiated allegations, no matter how often repeated, without evidence is specious and indicates that the opposition has nothing to say for itself other than it hates the other guy. Enough lies and innuendo – bring the proof. I expect a higher standard. Argue your ideas; show where you disagree; try and convince me you’re right and that your ideas are better; but, stop with the bs character assaults. All it tells me is that you’ve got nothing else worth saying.
— J Aug 25, 03:10 PM #
“J” is so certain that the posting by “ml” is part of “the coming vitriol and viciousness of the right-wing lie machine” — and not just reverse psychology from an Obama supporter trying to manipulate everyone — that I’d better give the following quote from the New York Times on Joe Biden’s honesty and academic standing without comment or interpretation.
It took only about three minutes to find this September 24, 1987, piece by D. J. Dionne so I hope others will do their homework on the presidential and vice-presidential nominees before making wild claims.
From: http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE0DF173AF937A1575AC0A961948260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=2
(If that URL is too long for you, just search the Times Web site for a key phrase. E.g.: “he misstated several facts about his academic career”.)
“Mr. Biden’s troubles began with the revelation in The New York Times and The Des Moines Register that he had used, without attribution, long portions of a moving address by the British Labor Party leader, Neil Kinnock. Later, it emerged that he had also used passages from the speeches of Robert F. Kennedy and Hubert H. Humphrey.
“Then, it was revealed that Mr. Biden had been disciplined as a first-year law student for using portions of a law review article in a paper without proper attribution. Mr. Biden tried to put the charges behind him by admitting to mistakes at a news conference, but he was hit again by a Newsweek magazine report on a videotape of an appearance in New Hampshire in which he misstated several facts about his academic career.
“The events unfolded just at the moment when Mr. Biden had hoped to make a favorable national impression in the hearings on Judge Bork. Instead, his national image was deeply tarnished.”
(I can’t resist adding: Now you know why Biden was so determined to make up for his mistakes by terrorizing one of the best-qualified Supreme Court nominees in history.)
— S. Britchky Aug 25, 04:43 PM #