Beau Biden trades campaign event for storm response
Hurricane Sandy had already forced the Obama campaign to scuttle one of Joe Biden’s two scheduled stops in Virginia on Saturday. The latest: It has forced the featured speaker at the remaining event from campaign duty to active duty.
Biden was to hold veterans-themed events in Virginia Beach and Lynchburg, joined by his wife, Jill, and his eldest son, Beau. The second lady has worked with First Lady Michelle Obama on the “Joining Forces” initiative to support military families, and Beau is a member of the Delaware National Guard who was deployed to Iraq in late 2008.
As the Bidens prepared to leave Wilmington for Virginia on Saturday, the younger Biden received fresh orders – his unit was being activated to assist in Delaware’s storm preparation.
PHOTOS: Hurricane Sandy, en route to “Frankenstorm”
Speaking to an audience in Lynchburg, the vice president related the conversation with his son: “Dad, the governor has just called up the National Guard. I’m going home.”
The latest track of the Category 1 storm has Delaware dead center, with landfall possible late Monday or early Tuesday.
Gov. Jack Markell has ordered a mandatory evacuation of all coastal areas at 8 p.m. Saturday.
In addition to his service in the Delaware National Guard, Beau Biden is Delaware’s attorney general, and was elected to a second term in 2010.
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