News broke on Monday that Joe Biden will head to South Florida on Monday, Oct. 13, to campaign with Charlie Crist — and that’s a mixed bag for the once-and-would-be-future governor of Florida.
With November looking like a low turnout election, Crist needs to get out the Democratic base. That won’t be an easy task. Democrats aren’t exactly enamored of Crist who has spent years campaigning as a pro-life, pro-gun, pro-God conservative Republican. There are few competitive elections at the state and congressional levels which will increase Democratic turnout.
But Barack Obama carried Florida twice and, even if he’s doing badly in the polls in general, Democrats still have his back. Biden is probably the best member of the administration to serve as Obama’s surrogate for Crist. While he is certainly gaffe-prone, Biden is an enthusiastic force on the campaign trail who does well with seniors. Republicans have been underestimating Biden for years. No matter his mistakes and missteps, Biden has shown a knack for surviving and even moving up the political ladder. There’s a reason he’s been a player in Washington for 40 years.
Biden has reasons of his own to head to Florida: he has thrown his name out as a possible presidential candidate in 2016 and polls show he is, at best, Democrats’ second choice behind Hillary Clinton. With Clinton campaigning alongside Crist later this week, and lesser hopefuls like Martin O’Malley and Deval Patrick already busy in Florida, Biden needs to get active in Florida if he wants to run in 2016.
Despite all this, Biden poses a major problem for Crist. With Obama fatigue clearly in the air, Rick Scott and the Republicans are looking to paint Crist as the White House’s man in Florida, pinning Obamacare and other unpopular programs on him. Republicans might be divided on some issues but nothing brings them together like Obama and their dislike of his presidency. Having Biden on the campaign trail might help mobilize Democrats for Crist but it will also muster Republicans against him. Biden’s mouth could also hurt Crist if the vice president makes yet another unforced error.
Nor does Biden help Crist as much as other Democrats would — namely, the Clintons. Biden might be a familiar figure in Washington for 40 years now but his standing simply doesn’t measure up to the Clintons. Bill Clinton presided over the best economy Americans have experienced in recent years and Hillary Clinton is a legitimate possibility to become the first woman president in American history. Biden is also more connected to Obama than Hillary Clinton, having spent more time as vice president than she did at the State Department. While both of them stood in Obama’s path to the White House in 2008, Biden bowed out quickly while Clinton took Obama down to the wire.
Biden simply does not offer Crist some of the same upside Clinton does. But Biden does offer a great opportunity for Republicans to link Crist to the increasingly unpopular Obama. Look for the Republicans to go all out on the attack when Biden hits South Florida for Crist.
