WASHINGTON — Joe Biden came to the debate stage with stats and one-liners aimed at the feisty group of challengers. But the weapon he used the most was just two words: Barack Obama.
The base of the party has moved left since he moved out of the White House. As popular as Obama remains with Democrats, many of the young people, women and progressives who lined up for him are more than ready to turn the page. Biden showed Wednesday he's not going to do it for them. "Mr. Vice President, you can't have it both ways. You invoke President Obama more than anybody in this campaign. You can't do it when it's convenient and then dodge it when it's not," he said.
In South Carolina, where some two-thirds of the Democratic primary electorate is black, Biden has the support of 51% of African American Democratic voters, according to a recent Monmouth University poll. Harris landed at 12%.