Biden

Biden was recently in Pakistan with John Kerry and Chuck Hagel because he is the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Biden stated to ABC that Musharraf should probably start to prepare for an exit strategy instead of being forced out of power. Biden also acknowledged that because of Musharraf’s defeat, there will be a major setback for America in fighting the al Qaeda and the Taliban. On the issue of Cuba, Biden believes we should not lift the five-decade trade embargo and things we should establish a mail service and create travel restrictions for family visits.

Working for the Weekend

Earlier in the week, Joe Biden called out the current statues for sentencing those found in possession of crack and cocain. For a sentencing of 5 to 10 years, there currently is a 100-1 ratio in weight between the necessary amounts of cocaine and crack, respectively. This disparity has been noted in the past, but Biden also brought up his own legislature, the Drug Sentencing Reform & Cocain Kingpin Trafficking Act, which will eliminate this disparity and put an end to the minimum sentencing that currently exists for simple possesion of crack.

In addition, Biden is traveling to Pakistan with John Kerry and Chuck Hagel for the Feburary 18th primary elections, and generally raising awareness about his belief that the next foreign issue is that of maintaining Pakistan and Afghanistan's stability. Finally, he will visit Turkey and India to discuss peaceful nuclear cooperation and stability in Iraq.

Biden, up to nothing

Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton have been getting quite comfortable together as they sat next to each other as they watched as President Bush delivered the final State of the Union address which he gave in Washington. Although Biden has pulled himself out of the race, he is still on the ballot. Biden recently has been encouraging voters to vote for a candidate who is however still in the race and not for himself.

Gettin' back to work

Joe Biden has getting back to work in the Senate, passing a bill through the Senate Committee on International Narcotics Control to establish a "National Drug Prevention and Awareness Week" from Feb 10 to 16. The goal of this newly christened week is to raise awareness about drug prevention, specifically in communities about the threat of drugs to teenagers.
In addition, Biden spoke to the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs, presenting three critical ideas which will significantly improve the instability in Afghanistan. These goals are to establish consistent security, speed up reconstruction, and get a handle on narcotics trafficking, concerning which Biden states, "Drug-trafficking dominates the national economy, and narco-barons operate with impunity". Biden's message contributed to the hearing about Afghanistan in the Senate, and hopefully his ideas can bear fruit and be observed.
Also, Biden released a statement detracting President Bush's signing to use appropriated funds from Congress for use in the Iraq war to build permanent military bases. The president is overstepping his boundaries for funding, and as biden states, "It is outrageous for the President to suggest that Congress cannot bar the use of funds". Is this another example of a president who has challenged the limits of what a president can and cannot do? That will wait to be seen. At least Biden has called him on it, and we will look for biden to re-establish his reputation in the Senate now that he is back to serving his post.