What I know about Joe Biden

The man occassionally allows his mouth to overtake his political savvy. Possibly he'll be able to utter unspeakable truths. This can only be good. And its sure to be entertaining.

MoveOn.org is passing out free goods. I ordered my kid a sticker and a button.

I'll probably try to score a McCain one as well, but that one will just be a keepsake. The Obama one is our election day regalia.

I'm cribbing the rest of this fascinating post from some chick at Sybermoms.

1. In 1972, days before he was to be sworn in as Senator, his wife and 3 kids were in a horrific car accident. His wife and their 18 month old daughter died. His 3 and 4 yo sons survived but were seriously injured. Biden was sworn in in the hospital, and the boys' bedside.Biden's sister and BIL moved in with him to care for the kids and help Biden deal with everything. He wanted to quit the Senate.Here's a GREAT 7 minute clip from Biden's story:http://abcnews.go.com/WN/WhoIs/story?id=3770445&page=1

2. His wife (he remarried 5 years after the car crash) has her doctorate and if a professor of English at a community college in Delaware, has taught in mental institutions, and was a reading specialist in high schools.

3. Biden is either the poorest or the second poorest member of the Senate His net worth is something under $250K, which for a 66-year old man is really low, and for a Senator is striking.

4. He's ridden the Amtrak train from D.C. to Delaware nearly ever day for 36 years; it's how he commutes.

5. He was accused of plagiarism in college, got an F in the course, and repeated the course (he claims he didn't understand proper citation). In 1987 or 88 he was caught on video plagiarizing someone else's speech, though on other occasions giving the same speech, he *had* given proper attribution. The college plagiarism came out as a result of the 1988 campaign issue.

6. He refuses to invest in the stock market (like Gore when Gore was in office) because he views it as a conflict of interest.

7. He voted for the war.

8. He was one of the chief proponents of the 2005 bankruptcy bill. He receives a large amount in campaign contributions from the credit card industry. Delaware is where many ccs are incorporated.

9. He won't meet with lobbyists.

10. He's known as a bulldog and isn't afraid of a verbal debate/fight/confrontation.11. He's one of the widest-read Senators and known for it.

12. He's been a part-time professor of Constitutional Law in DE since 1991.13. He's wildly popular in Delaware and Pennsylvania.