Feb. 6, 2009
"If we do everything right, if we do it with absolute certainty, there's still a 30% chance we're going to get it wrong."
— Joe Biden, speaking to members of the House Democratic caucus who were gathered in Williamsburg, Va., for their annual retreat.
Biden may have gotten a big promotion on Jan. 20, but he proved early on in his term that he was still the same old gaffe-prone politician. Speaking to his former Capitol Hill colleagues at their annual retreat, he was a little too candid about how the Democratic Party could face major political repercussions in 2010 for its support of the $900 billion economic-stimulus package. He said the line while recalling a White House meeting with President Obama and senior aides — something that probably wasn't expected to leave the room. The White House later dismissed the remark, with Obama quipping at a prime-time press conference, "I don't remember exactly what Joe was referring to, not surprisingly."