Just a regular Joe

DENVER -- It was always clear Senator Joe Biden would bring foreign policy heft to the Democratic ticket. One question has been how much Barack Obama and his advisers also weighed Biden's appeal to blue-collar workers.

Valerie Jarrett, one of Obama's senior advisers, seemed to offer a strong hint today that it was an important component of the decision. At a breakfast with reporters sponsored by the Christian Science Monitor, Jarrett was asked about whether Obama could make sufficient inroads among white, working-class voters.

"Senator Biden will be a very helpful part of the team," Jarrett said, going on to note Biden's roots in working-class Scranton, Pa. (Actually, she said Scranton, N.J., but she was close.)

"So obviously he has kind of the ability I think to communicate very effectively," she said.

Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois, who was also speaking on Obama's behalf, said Obama and his campaign needed to get more specific on the economy to connect with struggling blue-collar voters.

"My recommendation to the campaign is to get as close to street level as possible and really identify with these people," Durbin said.

Durbin also acknowledged that John McCain had been on something of a run in recent weeks, and that Denver was the Democrats' big change to shift the momentum.