VP Joe Biden Blunders Through Swine Flu Talking Points

Vice President Joe Biden made it through the first 100 days in office without any major verbal slipups, but yesterday, speaking with members of the media about the swine flu, Biden made some comments that must have had President Obama cringing. Asked what advice he would give to his own family regarding traveling to Mexico, where the swing flu outbreak is at its worst, Biden noted, "I would tell members of my family — and I have — I wouldn't go anywhere in confined places now. It's not that it's going to Mexico. It's you're in a confined aircraft. When one person sneezes, it goes all the way through the aircraft."

Biden spokeswoman Elizabeth Alexander tried to spin Biden’s comments, but sometimes when Biden shoots off at the mouth, it’s like trying to put a fired bullet back into a gun. Said Alexander, "The advice he is giving family members is the same advice the administration is giving to all Americans: That they should avoid unnecessary air travel to and from Mexico. If they are sick, they should avoid airplanes and other confined public spaces, such as subways."

A nice effort by Alexander, but of course that’s not at all what Biden said. Homeland Security Chief Janet Napolitano gave her own version of what Biden "should have said" when she noted, "If he could say that over again, he would say if they’re feeling sick they should stay off of public transit or confined spaces because that is indeed the advice that we’re giving." Either way, you heard it here – Biden says don’t travel on airplanes or confined spaces.