Biden Emotional at Football Hall of Fame
(CANTON, OHIO) - Joe Biden was smiling and relaxed as he toured Pro Football Hall of Fame, throwing out player names and pointing to memorablia, until he came across an old football memory that seemed to catch him by surprise.
Among the exhibits he wandered through, one was a tribute to pro football players who served in the Vietnam War.
Biden's eyes welled up as he looked at the Purple Heart awarded to Rocky Bleier, the former Pittsburgh Steelers running back and Vietnam War vet who returned from Vietnam with shrapnel in his body.
But Biden recognized Bleier as the sports hero who visited Biden's sons, Hunter and Beau, after they were injured in the 1972 car crash that killed Biden's first wife and daughter. Bleier surprised Biden's children in the hospital and tried to rouse their spirits. Biden paused and quietly reflected on the moment.
Biden toured the facility with Joe Horrigan, the Hall of Fame's VP of Communications and Exhibits and Stephen A. Perry, the Hall of Fame's President and Executive Director before holding a rally outside.