Joe Biden Takes Selfies In Return To Delaware

It's been more than three months since the start of the Trump administration, which is also to say, the end of the Obama administration. And just like you'd expect, with former president Barack Obama and former vice president Joe Biden alike leaving public life as broadly popular figures, plenty of progressives were sad to see them go. But this week, some students caught a glimpse of the former VP at his alma mater: Biden returned to University of Delaware and snapped selfies with his many fans and supporters.

Biden visited the university as part of the unveiling of a new public policy center bearing his name, the Biden Institute. But far beyond some kind of officious, low-key event, Biden was given a hero's welcome, celebrated as though it were a true homecoming event. Signs were posted throughout the campus reading "Biden Is Back," reminding students to keep Friday, April 7 cleared on their calendars so that they could see the former VP's return.

The 72-year-old former senator and vice president delivered a speech to an assembled crowd of students on the campus green, urging them to stay invested, engaged, and interested in politics. Then, of course, he stepped out to take a few selfies with some very enthusiastic students, a number of which you can see below.

Welcome Home

And I Am Thriving

When Joe Biden Takes Your Phone

With The Marching Band

The Stages Of Meeting Joe Biden

Let no one question that Biden is a selfie-snapping man of the people. In all seriousness, as popular as Biden was while in office, the contrast that now exists between the current administration and the one he once occupied seems to have given him near folk-hero status. To say nothing of the fact that he was back among his fellow Blue Hens ― that's the University of Delaware mascot.

As for the new center being launched in his name, the Biden Institute aspires to be a center that crafts policies to benefit American families, at least according to the man himself.

I am happy to continue that work at my alma mater, a place that is stamped on my heart. I look forward to working with a top-notch policy staff at the Biden Institute to continue the hard work of developing public policy to benefit American families.

Suffice to say it was a pretty warm Newark, Delaware reception for the former VP, and from the looks of things he paid the affection back in the form of some visual mementos. It's unclear whether Biden will ever attempt a comeback in electoral politics, although he did tamp down speculation about a 2020 presidential run back in January.