Joe Biden to Talk About Economy in Detroit

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Vice President Joe Biden will speak in Detroit Thursday, a week after his wife, Jill, traveled to the Macomb Community College with President Obama to make the case for free community college.

The vice president, who has made 16 trips to the Motor City since taking office, is expected to talk about the economy while in Detroit, then travel to Columbus, OH, where he’s scheduled to speak about the “It’s On Us” campaign to prevent sexual assaults on college campuses.

The latest CNN/ORC poll showed Clinton trailing behind Republicans Ben Carson, a Detroit native and retired neurosurgeon, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush in the general election. Draft Biden groups are already active in early primary states like Iowa and New Hampshire.

Complicating Biden’s decision are still raw emotions over the death of his son Beau from brain cancer on May 30.

In an gut-wrenching, extremely personal interview on “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” Thursday, Biden didn’t sound like a man who was ready to join the race for the White House.

“I don’t think any man or woman should run for president unless, number one, they know exactly why they would want to be president. Two, they can look at the folks out there and say, ‘I promise you have my whole heart, my whole soul, energy, and my passion to do this.’ And I’d be lying if I said that I knew I was there. I’m being completely honest.”

As the interview wrapped up, a clearly partisan Colbert nudged him:

“This is why I think people want you to run for president. I know it’s an emotional decision for you to make, but it’s going to be an emotional decision for a lot of people if you don’t run. And sir, I just want to say that I think your experience and your example of suffering and service is something that would be sorely missed in the race. Not that there aren’t good people on both sides running — but I think we’d all be very happy if you did run.”

Biden last visited Detroit in May, when he gave the keynote speech at the Detroit NAACP’s 60th Annual Fight for Freedom Fund Dinner.