What the Veep? Top 5 Bidenisms of Election 2012

(LIN) — It was a long, drama-filled presidential election, but at the end of the day, Americans could count on Vice President Joe Biden peppering in zingers and gaffes to keep things exciting.

Whether you’re a Republican or a Democrat, it’s a safe bet to assume you’ve giggled — or at the very least scratched your head — at least once at something Biden has said in the past few months.

Now that he’s back in office and somewhat out of the spotlight, it’s time to look back and remember the top 5 Bidenisms of the 2012 campaign.

“Folks, I can tell you I’ve known eight presidents – three of them intimately.”

Biden gave us this little jewel while speaking at a Detroit high school on Aug. 22. Yes, he was only trying to shine a light into President Barack Obama’s character with stories of their close relationship, but all we heard was “intimately.”

• To watch this and other soundbites in this feature, scroll to the video player below.

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“With all due respect, that’s a bunch of malarkey … because not a single thing he said is accurate.”

Probably the most obligatory Joe takeaway in the entire vice-presidential debate, Biden came right out and called Rep. Paul Ryan on inaccurate statements surrounding defense cuts. Although we will always remember the malarkey statement, later fact checks from The Associated Press showed that not everything Ryan said was inaccurate during that moment of the debate.

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“They’re going to put y’all back in chains.”

At a campaign rally in Danville, Va., Biden said that GOP presidential nominee Mitt Romney would let big banks write their own rules within the first 100 days, and used Romney’s quote “unchain Wall Street.” Whether he meant to or not, Biden brought about quite a bit of controversy when many took racial offense to his remark.

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“I promise you, the president has a big stick. I promise you.”

Biden was referring to Theodore Roosevelt’s famous quote, “Speak softly and carry a big stick” in this April 26 press conference, trying to portray the president as someone who is a sound leader. Instead, he said something far more giggle-inducing. As soon as these words were uttered, the crowd awkwardly laughed at this unintentionally inappropriate comment.

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“How they can justify — how they can justify raising taxes on the middle class that's been buried the last four years. How in Lord's name can they justify raising their taxes with these tax cuts?"

Although Biden was fired up about slamming Republican tax policies and appealing to the already-overburdened middle class, pointing out that they’ve been buried for the past four years is not the best way to do it. Why? Barack Obama has been president the past four years, and ole’ Joe was his vice president.

It’s safe to say Biden more than likely means well. He just tends to speak before fully thinking about what’s coming out of his mouth. (Remind you of anyone in recent White House history?)

Even though he’s out of the spotlight for the time being, it’s fun to reflect on the lighter side of things, until of course, he stands behind the microphone again to give us some new material.

• To watch the clips of Biden's best gaffes, click on the player below.
   

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What the Veep is a bi-weekly feature about the office of the vice president. Jessica O. Swink is a contributing editor to onPolitix . Join in the conversation on Facebook and Twitter .