^[1]Open thread. Joe Biden is Barack Obama’s running mate. Why Biden? And what does he bring to the table? The AP ^[2] says that Obama sought to balance his ticket with “an older congressional veteran well-versed in foreign policy and defense issues”. Both Obama and Biden are Senators, and neither has held an executive position of any magnitude.

“Biden slowly emerged as Obama’s choice across a long day and night of political suspense as other contenders gradually fell away. … Among those on the short list, Biden brought the most experience in defense or foreign policy — areas in which Obama is rated relatively poorly in the polls compared with Republican Sen. John McCain.”

Here’s an extract from the Wikipedia profile of Joe Biden ^[3].

Biden serves on the following committees in the 110th U.S. Congress

* Committee on Foreign Relations (Chairman)
o As Chairman of the full committee Biden is an ex officio member of each subcommittee.
* Committee on the Judiciary
o Subcommittee on Antitrust Competition Policy and Consumer Rights
o Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs, (Chairman)
o Subcommittee on Human Rights and the Law
o Subcommittee on Immigration Border Security and Citizenship
o Subcommittee on Technology Terrorism and Homeland Security
* Caucus on International Narcotics Control (Co-Chairman)