President Barack Obama picked Joe Biden as his running mate in 2008 to improve the ticket’s foreign policy credentials, which has been one of the weak points for Democrats in presidential races. The president’s re-election campaign is now using Biden once again to turn national security into a political weapon against Republican nominee Mitt Romney. Foreign Policy

Biden quoted Romney as stating in 2008 that it was not worth spending billions of dollars to catch Osama bin Laden. He made the speech just a few days shy of the first anniversary of the raid that killed the Al Qaeda leader.

The vice president suggested that Democrats should print a campaign bumper sticker that stated “Bin Laden is dead and General Motors is Alive.” He asked those present that if Governor Romney had been president, could the same slogan be in reverse. He said that it is one of the issues that voters should ponder on.

At this point, it is still unclear whether Biden’s argument gives President Obama an advantage at the presidential race or just an assault to the Republicans. The vice president’s speech is an example of how the Democrats will tackle the election.

Next month, President Obama will try to show himself as a confident leader through the Group of 8 leaders summit at Camp David as well as a NATO summit in Chicago. If he succeeds, the president will be the rare Democrat who is able to control the national security debate. In 2004, John F. Kerry spotlighted his military service record during nomination conventions but it backfired when an ad campaign sponsored by conservatives questioned his Vietnam records.

This is the first time in 70 years wherein both candidates for the presidential race didn’t serve in the military. The last time was in 1944 when Democrat Dranklin D. Roosevelt, who served as civilian secretary of Navy, won against Republican Thomas Dewey.