Good ol' Mike Barnicle dutifully carried Dem water this morning, maintaining a straight face while calling Hillary Clinton a "strong" candidate. But also on the Morning Joe set was Nicolle Wallace, who reported that "Democrats think she's terrible. I hope [Biden] doesn't run, because he's better than her."
For good measure, Mark Halperin opined that Biden might want to wait until February, on the theory that if Bernie Sanders beats Hillary in Iowa or New Hampshire, "there'll be panic," or as Wallace put it, "pandemonium."
Wallace also gave insight into how politicians go about deciding whether to jump into a race: Biden "will be watching [Hillary on] Meet the Press and going: phhh! I'm so much better than that!"
MARK HALPERIN: I'm not making a prediction about whether he runs or not. I will say that everyone I know who knows him well thinks, their gut is, that he won't run. Everyone I know who knows him well their gut is he won't run. I don't know that he won't but that's the consensus of people I know who know him well.
NICOLLE WALLACE: He had to be watching [Hillary on] Meet the Press and going, phh: I'm so much better than that! Democrats think she's terrible. I hope he doesn't run --
WILLIE GEIST: A lot of Democrats like her though.
WALLACE: - because he's better than her. He's still top of the polls, but so's Donald Trump.
MIKE BARNICLE: She's a strong candidate.
WALLACE: Who thinks that that you know?
BARNICLE: I know a lot of people who think that. Her problem is she's carrying around this e-mail baggage.
WALLACE: Everyone thinks she's a terrible candidate and they are desperate for Biden to run.
HALPERIN: If he didn't have personal issues to deal with, the death of Beau Biden and having to hold the family together, I don't have any doubt that he would run. If I were her I would be afraid of him on the big stage. He would be formidable.
WALLACE: She should be afraid of Bernie Sanders. I mean, Democrats think she's [shakes head].
WILLIE: Does he make the decision by this CNN debate or is he not worried about that deadline, do you suspect? That's two weeks from now.
HALPERIN: There's some people advising the Biden camp to skip the first debate and to show the Democrats here's what you got without me.
WALLACE: Exactly my point.
HALPERIN: And to create sort of a greater debate -- and to buy himself a little more time. So I don't get a sense he's about to get in.
BARNICLE: What's the final drop dead date for him?
HALPERIN: Depends on how you look at it.
BARNICLE: Thanksgiving?
HALPERIN: Depends on how you look at it. I mean, by conventional standards and filing deadlines it's around Thanksgiving. But the reality, and again some Democrats are arguing for this, wait till Iowa and New Hampshire, because even though you miss some filing deadlines you still have room to deal with. If Sanders beats her in Iowa and/or New Hampshire --
BARNICLE: Ooof!
HALPERIN: -- and there's no other major candidate in the race, there'll be panic, there'll be panic.
WILLIE: And then he can ride in on his white horse.
WALLACE: Pandemonium. I can't wait.
