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The Economist.

It turned out to be a prophetic opening line.

Joe Biden looks like the photograph of a great statesman in his youth,

ran the profile in a Delaware paper,

The Evening Journal in November 1970.

You look at it and you can't quite believe how wild-haired and scrawny the great man was in his

dashing 20s. The piece continued.

Joe Biden had just been elected to Newcastle County Council, his first public office.

In what was then solidly Republican Delaware, the dashing young lawyer quickly caught the attention

of Democratic leaders looking for a candidate for the long-shot statewide Senate race two years

later. He has all the qualifications for a great future in government, the Democratic State Chairman was quoted as saying.

Now, the youthful subject of the adoring profile in the Evening Journal is a much, much older man.

With 305 days until the 2024 election, I'm John Priddo, and this is Checks and Balance from The Economist.

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