During his appearance on the Late Show, Joe Biden toyed with Stephen Colbert’s emotions (and the nation’s) when it came to a 2020 bid for the presidency. “I learned that the way to become the most popular guy in America is to announce you’re not running,†Biden said of choosing not to run in the 2016 election, a decision that was partly made because of the death of his son, Beau, in May 2015 from brain cancer. When asked by Colbert about his remarks to a reporter, saying he planned to run in the next presidential election, Biden was quick to demur, “I know, I did that for one reason: so now I can announce I’m not running and be popular again.†Still, he wasn’t ready to completely retire the idea: “I’m a great respecter of fate. I don’t plan on running again, but to say you know it’s going to happen in four years, I just think is not rational.â€
“I can’t see the circumstance in which I’d run, but what I learned a long, long time ago, Stephen, is to never say never,†Biden continued. “You don’t know what’s going to happen. Hell, Donald Trump’s going to be 74, I’ll be 77 — and in better shape. What the heck?†Sounds like a great campaign slogan.