Barack Obama in Promise Me, Dad:, by Joe Biden

On Budget & Economy: Took office in 2009 amid America's worst financial crisis

On Crime: Reject killing police in retaliation for police killings

When de Blasio got word of the ambush, the mayor forcefully condemned the killings, and did so without pause, as did President Obama. The president said: "I ask people to reject violence and words that harm, and turn to words that heal--prayer, patient dialogue, and sympathy for the friends and family of the fallen." But things were already getting out of hand. Rudy Giuliani asserted that the president had given license to the gunman, who was found to have announced on social media his intention to hunt and kill police officers to avenge other [civilian African Americans] who had been killed during recent interactions with law enforcement. "We've had 4 months of propaganda, starting with the president, that everybody should hate the police," Giuliani said, a statement both mean-spirited and demonstrably false.

On Government Reform: Don't expect government to solve all problems; just some

It was clear that Senator Obama would be a great asset on the committee. He seemed to have a breadth and depth of intellect, a willingness to work hard, and a sense of America's role in the world--both the possibilities and limitations--that was similar to my own. Beyond that, his speech at John Kerry's Democratic National Convention the previous summer had really impressed me, as it had everyone that heard it: "People don't expect government to solve all their problems. But they sense, deep in their bones, that with just a slight change in priorities, we can make sure that every child in America has a decent shot at life, and that the doors of opportunity remain open to all."

On War & Peace: Support Ukraine and sanction Russia but no military action

President Obama's sympathies were all with Ukraine, but he was not going to allow this regional conflict to escalate into a hot war with Russia. Barack was a student of modern world history, and an incisive one. He was always on guard of the age-old mistake of allowing smaller brush fires to be unwittingly fed until they had become terrifying conflagrations beyond anyone's control. He would caution me sometimes about overpromising to the new Ukrainian government. "We're not going to send in the 82nd Airborne, Joe. The president and I agreed that we could and should convince our European allies to support and extend serious economic sanctions against Russia. But economic sanctions were as far as the U.S. and its allies in Europe would go.