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White House idea with bipartisan appeal: Give Joe Biden a reality show

A petition on the White House website proposes giving Joe Biden his own reality show on C-SPAN. The vice president's 'cool' factor has never been higher.

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Matt Rourke/AP
Vice President Joe Biden greets supporters after speaking at a campaign rally in Sarasota, Fla., Oct. 31.
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Jake Danna Stevens/The Times-Tribune/AP
Sen. Bob Casey Jr.'s daughter, Caroline, straightens Vice President Joe Biden's tie after a ceremonial swearing in for Mr. Casey at the Old Senate Chamber in the US Capitol building in Washington Thursday.
  • By Mark Sappenfield Staff writer

From the website that gave us the idea of every state seceding from the Union in protest against President Obama's reelection comes a petition that the whole nation can get behind.

Last year, the White House website became the forum for Americans peeved by the prospect of four more years of Mr. Obama. Now, it is being marshaled for the altogether more glorious purpose of getting Vice President Joe Biden his own reality show on C-SPAN.

Mr. Biden, it seems, is having his "Hillary Clinton" moment.

For parts of the past four years, some pundits have suggested that Obama should have cast off his plain-talking, gaffe-prone vice president for Ms. Clinton, who has become the most popular member of the Obama administration in her four years as secretary of State. Clinton's sunglasses and Blackberry even launched a popular Internet meme.  

But Biden is suddenly, overwhelmingly hip. 

First, he rescues America from the fiscal cliff. Then he hits on senators' mothers during the Senate's mock swearing-in ceremony for the new Congress Thursday.

As vice president, Biden is president of the Senate, which gives him certain official duties, such as presiding over some ceremonies. Those duties did not include confessing to the mother of Sen. Deb Fischer (R) of Nebraska, “You’ve got beautiful eyes, mom.” Or counseling a member of the family of Sen. Tim Scott (R) of South Carolina, “If you ever need any help on your pecs, let me know.”

And yet he did, and the videos went viral.

Actually, Biden has had a bit of a cult following for years now. Perhaps that's not surprising for a man who was once caught by a live mike telling Obama before an official address that passage of health-care reform was "a big [expletive] deal."

Among his greatest fans has been the satirical news website, The Onion, which has published lampoon articles including, "Shirtless Biden Washes Trans Am in White House Driveway" and "Eloquent Biden Brings Entire Audience to Tears in Debate Stunner," complete with photoshopped images. Biden also singlehandedly made "malarkey" one of the most looked-up words of 2012 by using it in a vice presidential debate.

The petition on the White House website states:

"Vice President Joe Biden has a demonstrated ability to bring people together, whether at the negotiating table or at the neighborhood diner. We, therefore, urge the Obama Administration to authorize the production of a recurring C-SPAN television program featuring the daily activities and interactions of the Vice President with elected officials, foreign dignitaries and everyday American families. Such a program would educate the American public about the duties and responsibilities of their Vice President, while providing a glimpse of the lighthearted side of politics even in the midst of contentious and divisive national debates."

Who needs Kim Kardashian, anyway?

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