Washington: US Vice President Joe Biden is reportedly considering entering the 2016 presidential race, a move analysts believe would throw up a fresh challenge to Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton’s second bid for the top post.
Though Biden, 72, has not made any announcement yet, but mainstream media is abuzz with reports that the Vice President might soon announce his bid to run for the US president.
There are reports that some of the top political advisors have joined his super political action committee, a precursor to such major announcements.
“What the Vice President has said publicly is that a possible campaign for the presidency is something that he’s considering, and he anticipated that he would make a decision by the end of this summer,” White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest told reporters at his daily news conference.
Somebody with the extensive experience of the Vice President, and somebody who has made such a significant contribution to the safety and prosperity of his country should be afforded the opportunity to make that decision on a timeframe that he chooses, he said.
“It sounds like that’s exactly what he’s doing,” Earnest said.
Before Obama selected him as his vice president nominee for the 2008 elections, Biden has had at least two unsuccessful presidential bids.
As per tradition of American political system, the vice president of the ruling party normally becomes its nominee after the two-term of the president.
But this did not happen in the case of Obama’s predecessor George Bush, whose vice president Dick Cheney, declined to run for the president.
Hillary Clinton, the former Secretary of State and the First Lady, in May this year became the first major Democratic candidate to announce her presidential bid.
She is currently facing a minor challenge from the Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.
According to political analysts, Clinton is all but the Democratic presidential nominee.
But the entry of Biden in the race, if he does, would throw up a fresh challenge to Clinton’s second presidential bid.
She lost to Obama in the 2008 primaries.
The New York Times, which was the first to break the news about a possible Biden bid, today said that the Clinton campaign is now weighing the implications of this serious challenge.
“She has the most money and she is beating every Republican in most of the polls,” Jennifer Palmieri, a spokeswoman for the campaign, told CNN on Sunday.
Today, the Clinton campaign would start running its first television ad in Iowa and New Hampshire – the two key primary states.
“We’re going to make sure everyone knows who Hillary Clinton really is – who she fights for and what has motivated her lifelong commitment to children and families,” said Campaign Manager Robby Mook.
“Since Day One, we’ve planned for a competitive primary with Hillary herself working to earn every vote and, ultimately, the nomination. This is the natural next step,” he added.