Presidential candidate Joe Biden shares personal story, addresses misstatements

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Former Vice President Joe Biden answered questions from New Hampshire voters ranging from restoring civility in Washington to addressing his misstatements on the Iraq War.



In a taping of "Conversation with the Candidate," Biden addressed some of his recent misstatements, using humor to defuse a recent gaffe and providing context on comments that he opposed the Iraq War before it began.

"The misrepresentation was my saying that — first, the mistake was voting in the first place to trust the judgment, and the second mistake was saying I was immediately opposed," Biden said. "Internally, I was opposed, and I did say things like, 'This is not the way to do it,' 'The way we went to this is the wrong way,' 'We didn't have a coalition behind us,' etc., etc. So that's the context in which that was said."

Biden also shared the personal side of his story, describing the loss of his wife and daughter as his Senate career began and then his son, Beau, a few years ago.

"When my son, Beau, died, he was my soul," Biden said.

Biden has polled strongly among older voters, but even younger voters who are still candidate shopping said Biden's ability to connect emotionally in a room full of people is impressive.

"I think it's more powerful to see him in person, especially when he talks about his son, Beau," said Janelle Fassi, of Goffstown, New Hampshire. "That was very powerful."

Although Biden has been the front-runner in many polls, longtime primary voters said this far out, it's way too early to speculate who will be on top in February.

"I honestly have no idea," said Paul Doscher, of Weare, New Hampshire. "I've been living in New Hampshire and coming to these events for 40 years, and I never call it right, so I'm not going to try."

