As Joe Biden tours Northern Ireland this week to mark the 25-year anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, the big question is not what he might say or do while abroad, but rather what he will decide to do back at home. Will he be running for president again?
The question emerged after Biden told NBC over the long weekend that he has ‘plans’ to run again, though he won’t be formally announcing anything yet. These hints have been dropping for months, from both Biden and his wife. But others are more sceptical. The simple fact of his age – Biden is the oldest president in American history – and the pressures of the job are clearly taking a toll on him. Is he really ready to commit to another four-year term? And if so, is it not strange that he hasn’t formally announced yet?
There are some technical reasons he may be holding back his official announcement, including deadlines for disclosing campaign donations (Biden will want these figures to look as impressive as possible before they are publicly analysed and dissected).
But I suspect the overarching reason that no official announcement has been made yet is that there is simply no rush to do so.
Comments
Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months
Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.
UNLOCK ACCESS Just $5 for 3 monthsAlready a subscriber? Log in