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Posted: September 27, 2007 6:08 PM
Senate Approves Biden's Iraq Division Plan
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On Wednesday, presidential hopeful Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., celebrated the Senate’s approval of his plan to divide Iraq into three semi-autonomous regions, a victory he then carried into the Democratic debate later that evening.

The resolution, passed 75-23, does not force President Bush to change course in Iraq, but it marks a shift from a military solution toward a political one in the debate on Iraq.

For Biden, the Senate’s endorsement could also signify a much-needed boost in his campaign. He still trails behind Democratic front-runners Sens. Hillary Clinton of New York and Barack Obama of Illinois and former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards.

On Wednesday night at the Democratic debate in Hanover, N.H., Biden heralded his achievement as a way to “end the civil war and bring our troops home.”

During the two-hour debate, Biden also questioned Clinton’s ability to pass health care reform, given her history of fighting with special interest groups in the 1990s. While careful not to place blame on the New York senator, Biden explained why Republicans might be reluctant to deal with another Clinton presidency:

“I’m not suggesting it’s Hillary’s fault. I think it’s a reality that it’s more difficult because there’ s a lot of very good things that come with all the great things that President Clinton did — but there’s also a lot of the old stuff that comes back. When I say old stuff I’m referring to policy — policy!”

Fresh off securing 26 Republican votes in the Senate on his Iraq proposal, Biden reaffirmed the importance of garnering bipartisan support with regards to heath care: “In order to get health care you’re going to have to be able to persuade at least 15 percent of the Republicans to vote for it.”

A compilation of Biden’s notable moments from the debate were spliced together on his “campaign Web site:”http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9lpiDzeQcI

Meanwhile, the campaign continued to focus on Iowa as a number of Biden’s senior staffers were deployed there in hopes of elevating his profile ahead of the caucuses in January.