From: blogs.telegraph…

Is Joe Biden trying to impersonate Vladimir Putin?

By Nile Gardiner World Last updated: December 16th, 2010

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oir0YW_G-So]

It’s bad enough that the Obama White House is willing to surrender to Moscow over the heavily flawed New START Treaty, but does it have to resort to impersonating Russia’s leaders too? Watch this astonishing clip (hat tip: RealClear Politics) of Vice President Joe Biden’s interview with Andrea Mitchell during a taping of Hardball with Chris Matthews on MSNBC. In the video, an angry Biden warns Republican senators Jim DeMint and Jon Kyl to “get out of the way” in reference to their efforts to delay a vote on the hugely controversial treaty until the new US Congress sits in January.

Even by Biden’s undiplomatic standards, this was an extraordinary outburst against democratically elected representatives of the American people, displaying what can only be described as utter contempt for political opposition in a free society. His remarks also came just six weeks after his party suffered a humiliating defeat in midterm elections, amidst overwhelming disenchantment with the Obama presidency.

It is a sad day for democracy in America when the ruling elites feel they can act with impunity. As a former senator himself, Joe Biden must surely understand that the US Senate plays a vital role in checking the power of the Executive Branch, and deserves to be treated with respect. After all, this is not Moscow, Mr Vice President, but the capital of the free world.