Ok so now Biden says he will decide by either late August or early September, why doesn't he just come out and say he is running or isn't running? Why is he biding his time.
I think he wants to gauge what the public's mood will be to a Biden campaign. If Hillary is doing well and looks set to grab the nomination, a Biden campaign would no the Democrats absolutely no favors.
Consider the following scenario:
Biden joins the race and gets blown out of the water by Clinton. What that will signify to the general electorate is that the Democrats have rejected the Obama administration, and all the work the Democrats have done over the last two terms. This would also damage Clinton in the general election.
Its a smart move on Joe Biden's part, which is something people don't usually associate with the VP.
