A clip from 2015 in which Joe Biden praises Dick Cheney as a “decent man” is making the rounds on social media. The clip is being discussed in the wake of Mr Biden’s comments about Mike Pence, who he called a “decent guy” in a recent speech.

Mr Biden’s comments came during a discussion with Walter Mondale, who was vice president under Jimmy Carter. Asked about receiving guidance from his predecessor, Mr Biden told the crowd “I actually like Dick Cheney, for real. I get on with him. think he’s a decent man.”

Mr Biden went on to describe how Mr Cheney and his wife had welcomed them into the Vice Presidential residence and explained to the then-incoming VP how he’d chosen to operate under former president George W Bush. Mr Biden acknowledged that “Cheney had a very different idea about how it [the vice presidency] functioned internally, but he was extremely helpful” to him regarding internal protocol.

Responses to the newly surfaced video have been critical online, where many are frustrated to see the current frontrunner in the Democratic primary show show support for a man widely regarded as detrimental to Democratic causes.

"Without any exaggeration, Dick Cheney is one of the most evil men to set foot in this world, a man behind whom a trail of war crimes follow, and Biden think he's a 'decent man,'" wrote Sana Saeed in a popular tweet quoting the video. "Is this your man, Democrats?"

The key players in the Iraq War Show all 11 1 /11 The key players in the Iraq War The key players in the Iraq War Jack Straw Jack Straw was the UK foreign secretary at the time of the Iraq invasion, and fully endorsed the decision Getty The key players in the Iraq War Geoff Hoon Geoff Hoon was Tony Blair’s defence secretary from October 1999 to May 2005 Getty Images The key players in the Iraq War Alastair Campbell Alastair Campbell was involved in the drafting of two Downing Street dossiers on the war, in September 2002 and in February 2003 Getty The key players in the Iraq War John Scarlett John Scarlett was chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee at the time of the 2003 invasion Getty Images The key players in the Iraq War Peter Goldsmith Peter Goldsmith was Mr Blair’s attorney general from 2001 to 2007 AFP/Getty Images The key players in the Iraq War Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza Rice was named as National Security Advisor to George W Bush in 2000, becoming the first woman to occupy the post, and argued publicly in favour of the 2003 invasion Getty Images The key players in the Iraq War Colin Powell Colin Powell was Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005 Getty Images for TIME The key players in the Iraq War Tommy Franks Tommy Franks was the leading US general at the start of the Iraq war The key players in the Iraq War Dick Cheney Dick Cheney was George W Bush’s vice president from 2001 to 2009 Getty Images The key players in the Iraq War Paul Bremer Paul Bremer ran Iraq for 14 months after the invasion, appointed Bush’s Presidential Envoy in charge of the occupying forces Getty Images The key players in the Iraq War Hans Blix Hans Blix was the UN weapons inspector tasked with monitoring Iraq from 2002 to 2003 Getty Images

A number of people are also dismayed to see Mr Biden assert that personal encounters with Mr Cheney as more indicative of his decency than his actions in office.

In fact, many Democratic supporters might have been happier with Mr Mondale’s response, which comes just after Mr Biden’s in the full-length video. When asked for his view on Mr Cheney, Mr Mondale answered candidly “Little bit different.”