The Chronicle Covers The Conventions

By Samuel Rubenfeld

SENIOR NEWS EDITOR

DENVER–Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.), Barack Obama’s running mate, used his introductory speech in Springfield, Ill. to attack the positions of presumptive Republican nominee, John McCain.

“We can’t afford four more years of a foreign policy that has shredded our alliances and sacrificed our moral standing around the world,” he said. “That’s the bad news but here is the good news: We don’t have to have four more years of George W. Bush and John McCain.”

Obama introduced Biden at the Old State Capitol in Springfield, the same place where Obama first launched his candidacy 19 months ago during a cold February day.

“Joe Biden gets it,” Obama said during his introcutory remarks. “He’s that unique public servant who is at home in a bar in Cedar Rapids and the corridors of the Capitol; in the VFW hall in Concord and at the center of an international crisis.”

Biden is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and is seen as an authority figure on international relations–he spent last weekend in Georgia discussing its conflict with Russia with the Georigian president. He has a lengthy Washington resume: Biden was first elected to the Senate since 1972, when he was 29 years old, turning the constitutionally mandated 30 just prior to his swearing in.

In the wee hours of Saturday morning following the news of Obama’s announcement, the McCain campaign released an ad questioning Biden’s loyalty to a potential President Obama.

In choosing Biden, Obama also chose someone who relishes political combat. Biden’s speech ripped into McCain, tying him to every policy Democrats believe has been a failure during the Bush administration.

“You can’t change America when you know your first four years as president will look exactly like the last eight years of George Bush’s presidency,” Biden said.

Biden and Obama are not scheduled to appear together again until the convention, held here in Denver beginning Monday.

Barack Obama’s campaign confirmed its choice for vice president via text message, delivered at about 3:00 a.m. (I got it at 3:19 a.m.) “Barack has chosen Sen. Joe Biden to be our VP nominee. Watch the first Obama-Biden rally live at 3 p.m. EDT on BarackObama.com. Spread the word,” the message.

Despite promising supporters to be the first to know, the campaign was about two and a half hours behind the break.

–Samuel Rubenfeld

The Obama campaign named Sen. Joe Biden (D-Del.) as his nominee for vice president, CNN reported at 12:45 12:42 a.m. Saturday morning.

–Samuel Rubenfeld

Update: Just behind CNN were CBS at 12:46 a.m. and The Associated Press, who reported it in an alert at 12:47 a.m.