Obama: I have found right partner

Barack Obama, returning to the spot where he launched his presidential bid, declared this afternoon that he has found the partner to help him bring change to America.

Introducing Senator Joe Biden as his running mate to a rally in Springfield, Ill., Obama said that "For months, I’ve searched for a leader to finish this journey alongside me, and to join me in making Washington work for the American people. I searched for a leader who understands the rising costs confronting working people, and who will always put their dreams first. A leader who sees clearly the challenges facing America in a changing world, with our security and standing set back by eight years of a failed foreign policy. A leader who shares my vision of an open government that calls all citizens -- Democrats, Republicans, and independents -- to a common purpose. Above all, I searched for a leader who is ready to step in and be president.

"Today, I have come back to Springfield to tell you that I’ve found that leader -- a man with a distinguished record, a man with fundamental decency -- and that man is Joe Biden. Joe Biden is that rare mix -- for decades, he has brought change to Washington, but Washington hasn’t changed him. He’s an expert on foreign policy whose heart and values are firmly rooted in the middle class. He has stared down dictators and spoken out for America's cops and firefighters. He is uniquely suited to be my partner as we work to put our country back on track."

Obama then told of Biden's personal trials, losing his wife and daughter in a car crash, then suffering a life-threatening aneurysm. Those trials strengthened Biden's character for his political career, Obama said.

Obama praised Biden's work on foreign affairs and domestic policy. He said that Biden will be a strong vice president, and not a secretive one like Vice President Dick Cheney.

"Joe Biden is what so many others pretend to be -- a statesman with sound judgment who doesn’t have to hide behind bluster to keep America strong. Joe won’t just make a good vice president -- he will make a great vice president. After decades of steady work across the aisle, I know he’ll be able to help me turn the page on the ugly partisanship in Washington, so we can bring Democrats and Republicans together to pass an agenda that works for the American people.

"And instead of secret task energy task forces stacked with Big Oil and a vice president that twists the facts and shuts the American people out, I know that Joe Biden will give us some real straight talk," Obama added.

Obama at first introduced Biden as the next president, before quickly correcting himself and saying the next vice president.

UPDATE: Republican John McCain's campaign jumped on what it called Obama's "Freudian slip."

"Barack Obama sounded as though he turned over the top spot on the ticket today to his new mentor, when he introduced Joe Biden as the next president. The reality is that nothing has changed since Joe Biden first made his assessment that Barack Obama is not ready to lead. He wasn't ready then and he isn't ready now," McCain spokesman Ben Porritt said in a statement.

Biden strode up the stairs and ran across the stage to Obama, hugged him, and waved to the crowd as Bruce Springsteen's "The Rising" blared from loudspeakers.

"I am proud to stand firm with the next president of the United States of America, Barack Obama," Biden said. "Folks, Barack and I come from very different places, but we share a common story, an American story."

Biden said these are "no ordinary times" and this is "no ordinary election" with the American dream receding further and further away for many families.

He then launched into a familiar litany from Obama's campaign about America -- especially the middle class -- not being able to afford four more years of President Bush's policies.

Biden said families are sitting at their kitchen tables trying to balance their budgets. Then he got a dig in at Republican John McCain, who last week acknowledged he didn't know how many houses he owned, and who Biden said didn't share their experience.

"He'll have to figure out which of the seven kitchen tables to sit at," Biden said.

While saying McCain is a friend and honoring his military record, Biden also said that America needs "not just a good soldier, but a wise leader."

Biden had a slip-up of his own, calling his new partner "Barack America."

"Obama! Obama!," the crowd starting chanting.