Vice President Joe Biden didn't give a firm answer in a GQ interview published Thursday on whether he will run for president, but he didn't do much to tamp down whispers, either.
"I can die a happy man never having been president of the United States of America. But it doesn't mean I won't run," he told GQ's Jeanne Marie Laskas. "The judgment I'll make is, first of all, am I still as full of as much energy as I have now -- do I feel this? Number two, do I think I'm the best person in the position to move the ball? And, you know, we’ll see where the hell I am."
There has been speculation for months about whether Biden will run for president in 2016, and he spoke openly to GQ about his future ambitions and a potential face off with former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
He cited his well-received debate performance in the 2012 presidential election against Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), then the Republican vice presidential nominee, as proof that he knows his stuff. He stopped himself when he began to speak about Clinton.
"Listen, I look forward to those kinds of things -- I never speak about anything I don’t know a great deal about," he said. "That I haven’t worked like hell for. But that’s not what you’d expect. You might expect Clinton to do that. ... Well, I shouldn’t. I’m getting --."
GQ also spoke to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), the vice president's former colleague in the Senate, who praised his work and said "President Biden" doesn't sound preposterous as a concept.
"Suppose the economy comes on strong," McCain said. "He's bound to get credit. ... Of course, the State of the Union speech would be the longest in history."
Biden currently has a favorability rating of about 42 percent, according to HuffPost Pollster opinion poll averages. A Quinnipiac poll released last week found that Biden trailed New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie in a hypothetical match-up against the Republican, while Clinton held a lead against the potential GOP nominee.
Biden has some inspiration in the form of the art hanging in his office, he told GQ.
"And by the way, if you come in the office, I have two portraits hanging -- one of Jefferson, one of Adams. Both vice presidents who became presidents," he said. "I joke to myself, I wonder what their portraits looked like when they were vice presidents."
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