I think it’s incredible that Beau Biden, the Delaware Attorney General and son of the state’s senior US Senator, went overseas for a tour of duty in the Iraq with his Delaware National Guard Unit. It’s a selfless act of bravery and patriotism. And from a partisan standpoint, I think it’s fantastic because far too few Democrats have a personal understanding of what it means to serve in uniform. And what’s more is that Biden had to know that there was a decent chance his father would end up this country’s vice president. Heading overseas for an extended period of time virtually guaranteed that he couldn’t immediately succeed his father (even if he is the heir apparent for the 2010 general election, when Senate appointee and longtime Joe Biden aide Ted Kauffman has said he will retire). But stepping back and taking things as they are now, the son of the next Vice President of the United States is in a war zone. Flash back to last year when news broke that Prince Harry of Wales had been serving for 77 days on the front lines in Afghanistan. As soon as the media outlets got a hold of the information, Harry was whisked away back to merry old England, much to his irritation and disappointment. But, the reasons were good enough. There was a higher-than-usual security risk with a prince on the battlefield, both to him and the men in his platoon. Now, Beau Biden is a JAG officer, meaning he deals mostly in military tribunal courtrooms and highly-secure office buildings. Nonetheless, Baghdad still isn’t exactly a bastion of peace, and the presence of such an important member of Second Family poses serious security threats. God-willing, Biden will finish his tour of duty without incident. But still, his active participation in the Iraq War, however safe or secure the country may be, the security is an issue the mainstream media has missed.
