Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden, Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is the 46th[1] President of the United States of America and the former Vice President of the United States of America under President Barack Obama. Before this, he was the senior Senator from Delaware. On November 7, 2020, he was declared President-elect of the United States by the media after an excruciatingly long vote count from the November 3, 2020 election; once official results had been certified, 306 of 538 electors were pledged to vote for him. The electors' votes were cast on December 14 and were opened, counted and announced on across January 6 and 7 despite a failed attempt by a mob to disrupt counting of the electoral votes. Biden defeated the incumbent, President Donald Trump. Biden's running mate was Kamala Harris and the two were inaugurated into their offices on January 20, 2021.
In a review of the book The Fight of his Life: Inside Joe Biden's White House (by Chris Whipple), the reviewer John Gans[2] comments on the first two years of Biden's presidency, which follow directly after Donald Trump's four years in office:
"...because Biden has been in Washington almost as long as Woodward himself, the minor fender bender of the last two years does not make for titillating rubbernecking, especially compared with the 18-car pileup of the Trump era."
Political career
Biden graduated from Syracuse University law school in 1968, and after briefly practicing law and serving on the New Castle County Council, he was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1972. At the time of his election he was still several days from turning 30 (the minimum age for membership in the Senate). During his Senate career he has chaired both the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee and the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
Presidential campaigns
He ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1988, but lost to Michael Dukakis. He sought nomination from the Democratic Party for the 2008 presidential election but dropped out on 3 January 2008 after the Iowa caucus. In August 2008, Biden was chosen by Barack Obama to be his running mate. On November 4, 2008, Biden was elected Vice President.
Personal life
Biden was married to Neilia (neé Hunter) until her death in a car accident in 1972. In 1977 he married Jill Jacobs, who teaches writing at Delaware Technical & Community College.
References
- ↑ Biden is the 46th president the normal American way of counting, which reckons Grover Cleveland twice as he served two non-consecutive terms.
- ↑ The Fight of his Life: Inside Joe Biden's White House by John Gans