Joe Biden biography by Jules Witcover: on War & Peace
Bill Clinton:
1993: NATO air strikes on Serbs only with European support
convince Pres. Clinton, who balked at acting alone, without European support. He did accede, however, to Biden's plea to send Secretary of State Warren Christopher to sound out the British and French on a strategy to "lift [the embargo] and strike" the
Biden introduced into the conversation the concept that Milosevic was a war criminal. A visit to Sarajevo by Biden reinforced his view that the US should back a policy of lifting the arms embargo and supporting NATO air strikes. But Biden was unable to
ethnic cleansing of Kosovo, and with Clinton's approval NATO air strikes began. At one point Clinton told Biden he was considering halting the bombing, but Biden urged him otherwise; shortly afterward, Milosevic pulled his forces out of Kosovo.
Serb forces, but Christopher was summarily rebuffed. Three years after Biden had called for action, the Senate finally voted to lift the arms embargo. In 1999 Biden introduced a resolution in the Senate authorizing Clinton to take action against the
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.325-327
Oct 5, 2010
Colin Powell:
Iraq Security Council speech is "worst blot" on my record
Hussein had such weapons, and that he had one last chance to come clean or be forcibly disarmed. Biden was convinced that the weapons existed, especially after the Powell presentation, Powell himself, however, later regretfully labeled his own
Bush sent Secretary of State Colin Powell before the Security Council on February 5, 2003. Armed with information and pictorial support from the CIA and other U.S. governmental sources, he gave a lengthy and forceful case that Saddam
Biden asked him to convey to Powell "my strong view not to say anything you do not know for certain." Powell himself expressed home that in going back to the United Nations "we may yet be able to avoid this war, and how bad would that be?"
speech "the worst blot" on his career record, as it turned out he had been misled by the CIA and there were no such weapons to be found. Biden recalled long after that when Powell's deputy had appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee,
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.349
Oct 5, 2010
George Bush Sr.:
1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait: "This shall not stand!"
U.S.-driven military buildup dubbed "Desert Shield." Bush famously declared at the time of the invasion that "this shall not stand" and would be rolled back by force unless Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein withdrew.
Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in August 1990 had triggered a strong diplomatic response at the United Nations from President George H.W.Bush that segued from stronger sanctions to a
Meanwhile, the Foreign Relations committee scheduled hearings on the crisis.
Biden called for a special session of the Senate to debate the American policy, charging that Bush had "moved from a reasoned and practical response to a misguided policy in the [Persian] Gulf.
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.247
Oct 5, 2010
George W. Bush:
2002: Rejected bipartisan bill for more Afghanistan funding
In 2002, Biden flew to Afghanistan, as mopping-up operations continued. What Biden heard from all quarters were pleas for more of everything--money, troops, security--and a commitment for the US presence to remain, at least until circumstances greatly
improved. Biden returned conveying a plea for urgent help, and Powell joined it, but while Bush "was agreeable and willing to listen, he was also noncommittal," Biden wrote later. Though Bush talked of a Marshall Plan for Afghanistan, he had other
ideas, and was already giving Cheney and Rumsfeld "the force and resources they requested for a new target"--Iraq.
By now it was becoming increasingly clear to Biden that a critical pivot was under way from the unfinished business in Afghanistan to the
neoconservatives' vision of spreading democracy throughout the Middle East, starting with deposing Saddam Hussein.
Biden and Republican Senator Chuck Hagel introduced a bill providing more money for Afghanistan, but the administration opposed it.
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.342
Oct 5, 2010
Joe Biden:
1971: Campaigned on wanting Vietnam War over
who had died in a war we simply couldn't understand. But I think it was the fact that the campaign was run by his family. My specific job was to contact each high school in the state so we could get Joe into the classrooms. Whether it was speaking to a
[One supporter] later wrote that his recruitment into the Biden Children's Crusade was spurred because "Joe said he wanted the Vietnam War over. That was a biggie for my gang in 1971. Most of us were 17 and 18 and already had friends or knew of someone
an opportunity to have our voices heard in a wartime atmosphere that had set the generations at odds. Joe says, 'We've got an issue with Vietnam today, and the young people are concerned. I'm organizing all the young people in the state of Delaware.'"
single civics class or to an entire auditorium of students, he began to excite and inspire young people by the thousands. No one had ever really asked young people to get involved before, not at this level. It seemed more like a movement than a campaign,
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p. 63-64
Oct 5, 2010
Joe Biden:
No vital interest in Kuwait in 1990; like Vietnam in 1972
playing into the hands of Ho Chi Minh where we disagreed [with administration policy]. Now I hear today we are unknowingly playing into the hands of Saddam Hussein. Boy, oh boy," Biden said in his folksy way, "Here we go again." In another apparent
Biden questioned what American vital interest was involved in the [Iraq War] objective, noting that the same question had been raised in the Vietnam War. "I came to the Senate in 1972," he said, "because I was so tired of hearing that we were unknowingly
resumed his argument for more time to allow the sanctions to break Saddam's will. "Before we ask Americans to die for the liberation of Kuwait, I would like to be sure we have tried every possible alternative. So far, this has not been the case."
analogy to Vietnam, he added that no one had "laid out clearly what our vital interests are sufficient to have 10 thousand, 20 thousand, 30 thousand, 40 thousand Americans killed. I have not heard that one yet. A week before the UN deadline, Biden
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.249-250
Oct 5, 2010
Joe Biden:
1990: One man deciding to go to war is tyranny
simply was no time for extensive debate before using force, lest the element of surprise would be lost. Biden said, "[That] has been shown to be a red herring by the UN resolution, at least in this case." Biden readily conceded one argument to the
Biden [disagreed that] a president could constitutionally declare and wage war without explicit congressional approval. He offered a vigorous insistence on Congress's role. Biden disagreed with the argument that in modern warfare in the nuclear age there
unfettered choice to decide by himself whether we could go to war or not go to war, and we launched a revolution to free ourselves from the tyranny of such a system. He was one of only ten Senate Democrats in opposition as the vote narrowly passed.
other side. "Finally, we have been told that the congressional debate on war could tie the president's hands or limit his discretion. To this charge I have one simple response: Exactly right. Americans once lived under a system where one man had
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.251
Oct 5, 2010
Joe Biden:
1992: lift Bosnian arms embargo; NATO air strikes on Serbs
As accounts of shocking atrocities came to Biden's attention, including reports of massive murder camps run by the Serb Yugoslav army, with Clinton assuming the presidency in early 1993, Biden pushed for lifting the arms embargo to give the
Bosnians the means of defending themselves. Biden also called for NATO air strikes on Serb positions encircling Bosnian cities. In a meeting, Milosevic began by informing Biden that he had the wrong idea of what was going on in his country, pointing
out places where the Serbs were being attacked by the Muslims and Croats. "I told him the whole world knew who was doing the attacking, and it was up to him to stop it," Biden wrote. "He was still calm. And he lied to my face. Biden wrote in his
memoir, "Milosevic could tell I had just about had it with his lies, and at one point he looked up from the maps and said, without any emotion, 'What do you think of me?'" Biden said he replied: "I think you're a damn war criminal."
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.322-323
Oct 5, 2010
Joe Biden:
9/11: Urged Bush to stay in public, like DeGaulle in WWII
On 9/11 Biden called for calm, saying Congress would be going back into session soon and he had heard that the president was "coming back to Washington, and I applaud him for that." Pres. Bush called Biden to commend him for "saying the right things."
Biden asked Bush where he was, and was told: "I'm on Air Force One, heading to an undisclosed location in the Midwest." Biden said he urged the president to return to Washington. "I said, 'Mr. President, don't do that. Come home.
Let everybody see you.'" But Bush said his security people would not permit it.Later, Biden told how, after WWII, General Charles de Gaulle was in Paris when suddenly a sniper started firing at him. Everyone ducked or ran "except Charles de Gaulle.
He kept marching, head erect and high. He did not flinch. That one defiant act rallied a nation." Biden said he had tried to get the Senate leaders to call the senators back into session to make the same demonstration, to no avail.
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.337-338
Oct 5, 2010
Joe Biden:
2002: Iraq pivots from unfinished business in Afghanistan
In 2002, Biden flew to Afghanistan, as mopping-up operations continued. What Biden heard from all quarters were pleas for more of everything--money, troops, security--and a commitment for the US presence to remain, at least until circumstances greatly
improved. Biden returned conveying a plea for urgent help, and Powell joined it, but while Bush "was agreeable and willing to listen, he was also noncommittal," Biden wrote later. Though Bush talked of a Marshall Plan for Afghanistan, he had other
ideas, and was already giving Cheney and Rumsfeld "the force and resources they requested for a new target"--Iraq.
By now it was becoming increasingly clear to Biden that a critical pivot was under way from the unfinished business in Afghanistan to the
neoconservatives' vision of spreading democracy throughout the Middle East, starting with deposing Saddam Hussein.
Biden and Republican Senator Chuck Hagel introduced a bill providing more money for Afghanistan, but the administration opposed it.
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.340-342
Oct 5, 2010
Joe Biden:
2008: Afghanistan is forgotten war, & Pakistan is neglected
Biden, as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in late February 2008, he flew to Afghanistan, India, Turkey and Pakistan on a fact-finding tour. Afterward, Biden labeled Afghanistan "the forgotten war" and
Pakistan "the neglected frontier," calling for a fresh look at the former and more economic aid for the latter. Afghanistan, he said, was "slipping toward failure because it has never been given a priority" as the war in Iraq dragged on.
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.405
Oct 5, 2010
Joe Biden:
Not necessary to defeat Taliban; it's part of Afghan society
I wrote to the president, a long, 20-page handwritten memo focused on making the case:- that this is a 3-dimensional problem--al Qaeda, Pakistan and Afghanistan;
- that there be a limit on the number of troops so that this wouldn't be a constant,
creeping escalation whatever troop level was announced;
- that there be a date at which we would begin the drawdown of American forces with the aim of drawing down all combat forces out, a la Iraq;
- that it was not necessary to defeat the
Taliban because the Taliban was and is part of the fabric of the Pashtun society--20% to 30% of it is incorrigible and must be defeated, and the remainder should be integrated into Afghan society;
- that the return of the ability of the Taliban
to overthrow the Afghan government was simply not within their power;
- that the Taliban was not seeking to establish a new caliphate, they were not an existential threat to the USA,
- that al-Qaeda's return to Afghanistan was highly unlikely.
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.463
Oct 5, 2010
Joe Biden:
Enemy is Al Qaeda, not Taliban; timetable for withdrawal ok
Biden and Gen. McChrystal, the Afghan Commander, disagreed over the troop surge and the prime enemy in the war. McChrystal insisted it was the Taliban; Biden said it was still al-Qaeda, and he never saw the defeat and destruction of the Taliban as
essential, since the American mission was not nation-building as it was under Pres. Bush in Iraq--hence Biden's insistence on a timetable for troop withdrawal. Such sentiments were muted, however, by the time the Afghan strategy had been hammered out.
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.475
Oct 5, 2010
John McCain:
2008: No one has supported Bush in Iraq more than I have
As Obama's new running mate, Biden immediately took on the traditional running mate's role as a critic of the opposition party's nominee, linking Republican John McCain with George W. Bush, the embattled lame-duck president.
After describing McCain as "genuinely a friend of mine" and a courageous war hero, Biden said, "you can't change America and end this war in Iraq when you declare--and again these are
John's words--"No one has supported President Bush in Iraq more than I have.'" Biden added, "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."
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.414-415
Oct 5, 2010
Page last updated: Feb 14, 2019