An emotional Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. was uncharacteristically at a loss for words yesterday as an introduction from Steelers owner Dan Rooney stirred memories of a bright interlude in a painful time.
On a campaign stop at Greensburg Salem High School, the presence of the Steelers owner reminded the vice presidential candidate of the tragic Dec. 17, 1972, car accident that killed his first wife and daughter and seriously injured two young sons. Mr. Biden had just been elected to the Senate.
Mr. Biden paused, wiped his eyes and, at one point turned away from the crowd for a long moment. Talking of his long vigil at his sons' bedsides, he said he left the boys at some point to go out and buy a Christmas tree for their hospital room. When he returned they each had an autographed football.
"My one little boy was in traction, the other little boy had a serious fractured skull, and they were happy. ..." After pausing, and wiping his eye, he continued.
"I said, 'Guys, where'd you get the balls?' "
They said, 'Daddy, Rocky Bleier brought it for me.'
"Mr. Rooney's Dad, without any fanfare, without an announcement, without anything but this incredible decency. ..." He paused again, and as the crowd applauded, said, "I really apologize. I shouldn't have tried to do this. ... It's a hell of a family."
Ed Kiely, the late Arthur J. Rooney's longtime aide, said he was not surprised that Mr. Rooney had sent the balls to the Biden boys. "He did that an awful lot, even with somebody he didn't even know," Mr. Kiely said yesterday.
The poignant anecdote about the footballs -- a story Mr. Biden has recounted at least once before in the campaign -- stirred applause from the crowd of more than 500 sitting on folding chairs in the high school gym.
Okay, so I actually launched a website at http://obamabettis08.com. I'm hoping to have some fun with it, and to show that politics doesn't have to alway be boring or wonky. The first thing I did was create a bunch of black-and-gold Obama themed icons and desktop wallpaper backgrounds. They can be downloaded free off the site.
So feel free to download and use this stuff to express both your love for our Steelers AND your support for Obama at the same time!
Now that Senator Obama has clinched the nomination and Senator Clinton is backing down from her threat of a convention fight, we can expect a lot of speculation and advice on potential running mates.
Obviously there has been great discussion of putting Hillary Clinton on a so-called "dream ticket." Others have pointed to the various merits of Senator Jim Webb of Virginia, Governor Kathy Sebelius of Kansas, Governor Bill Richardson of New Mexico, and even Mayor Bloomberg of New York.
Those are all fine candidates, and perhaps soon I'll delve into my thoughts on each of them. But for now I'd like to propose what I think would be the perfect ticket. The vice presidential candidate I envision needs the following qualities:
Ladies and gentlemen, there is one candidate I know of who fits all of these criteria. One candidate who would truly make the perfect running mate.
I submit, for your consideration, the following ticket.
Obama/Bettis '08.
Get on the Bus.
