Joe Biden, blabbermouth

Is there something wrong with Joe Biden? I mean wrong in the head. He has - once again - made some off the ranch comments. This time about Russia.

In a Wall Street Journal interview he held forth on Russia's backwardness. Excepts are linked here. This time it was SoS Clinton's job to backtrack for the Admin.

Whatever truth there may be in Biden's ongoing blabbering - it begs the question - is the man out of control? Is there a method to his brand of madness or is he just mad?

Cheney was often dispatched to make the harsher points. But one knew he was playing bad cop to W's good cop - and that in the end the Bush Administration backed what Cheney said. It's a little hard to believe that Biden in speaking for Obama when he says Russian leaders are "clinging to something in the past that is not sustainable. " Nothing about Obama's performance in foreign affairs so far indicates he wants this type of remark made about Russia by the second in command.

In Biden's case Obama (on the economy) and now Clinton have had to walk back Biden's mouth recently. Biden is one inanity away from Quayle-hood. In politics the appearance of dysfunction is often as bad as dysfunction.

Tasking Biden with actual work as V.P. may have been a mistake. In the grand tradition of many V.P.s he needs to fade into the background.