Exclusive: Beau Biden Considering Senate Bid

Oct. 15, 2009 — -- After nearly a year-long tour in Iraq, Vice President Joe Biden's son, Joe "Beau" Biden III, said he is "absolutely" considering a run for the Senate seat his father occupied for 36 years.

"I'll be making the decision in due course," Biden, 40, told "Good Morning America" today in his first television interview since his return to Delaware last month amid speculation that he would make a bid for the seat.

One of a handful of elected officials to serve in Iraq since the U.S. led invasion in 2003, Biden took a leave of absence from his job as Delaware's attorney general to join his unit as a captain in the Judge Advocate General's Corps, or JAG.

The Senate race is shaping up to be a difficult one. The recent entry by Republican Rep. Mike Castle -- Delaware's only member of the House of Representatives and a popular former governor -- has complicated the outlook for Biden and transformed what was once seen as a safe Democratic seat into a toss-up.

But Biden would start his campaign with resources that any other first-time Senate candidate would envy, including the backing of the White House. He made an impressive debut on the national stage last year, introducing his father at the Democratic National Convention in Denver and speaking movingly about the 1972 car accident that claimed the life of his mother and sister, and left him and his younger brother gravely injured.

For his part, the vice president himself has said his son would "make a great senator."

Beau Biden and Troops Get Hero's Welcome

Biden and his comrades from the Delaware Air National Guard's 261st Signal Brigade last month received a hero's welcome at the Dover Air Force Base, where the vice president gave a stirring tribute to the troops and embraced his oldest son, whom he had visited in Iraq during his numerous trips there as senator and vice president.

Beau Biden was also greeted by wife Hallie, 5-year-old daughter Natalie and 3-year-old son Hunter, who spent a long time perched firmly on his father's shoulders.

"[There is] not a better moment -- a magical, magical moment," Biden said. "[Hunter] got on my head right away and wouldn't let go."

Biden: Afghanistan and Iraq 'Two Different Wars'

It's a welcome thousands of soldiers are still waiting on as the White House continues debating a new strategy in Afghanistan.

"We need to be careful to understand these are two different wars," he said. "What works in Iraq doesn't necessarily mean it will work in Afghanistan. They are fundamentally different places."

Biden said President Obama was doing "exactly the right thing" in taking time to develop a proper strategy in Afghanistan, citing the country's differences from Iraq including topography, literacy and history of central government.

Now that he's back stateside, however, Biden said he would be focusing on doing his jobs as attorney general and as a father.

"I've been away from my family for a year," he said. "First things first."

Even the daily ritual of dropping his kids off at school every morning has become more emotional since his return from Iraq, Biden said.

ABC News' Jennifer Wlach contributed to this report.

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