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Banner year for Biden? Top political gaffes of 2014

Any election year can pretty much guarantee a steady stream of political gaffes, and 2014 was no different. Democrats and Republicans alike had their share of foot-in-mouth moments -- as did, you guessed it, Vice President Biden. Here are a few gems that stood out this year.

• 1. Biden's swipe at US allies

  

  AP
  
  Perhaps the most significant stumble of the year -- considering the diplomatic damage it did -- came not during the campaign but a policy speech by Biden in October.
  While speaking at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government, the veep hit a diplomatic nerve after he sounded off on U.S. allies in the fight against the Islamic State, suggesting they contributed to the instability in Syria.
  "The Turks ... the Saudis, the Emiratis, etc. What were they doing?" he said. "They were so determined to take down [Syrian President Bashar] Assad and essentially have a proxy Sunni-Shia war." Biden added: "They poured hundreds of millions of dollars and thousands of tons of weapons into anyone who would fight against Assad — except that the people who were being supplied were al-Nusra and Al Qaeda and the extremist elements of jihadis coming from other parts of the world.”
  Some analysts suggested there was a hard dose of truth in Biden's remarks. But they caused diplomatic problems at a very sensitive time -- just days earlier, the U.S. and some of those nations had launched a coordinated airstrike campaign against the Islamic State in Syria.
  Biden quickly apologized to the U.S. allies.
  Incidentally, the remark wasn't the only Bidenism that day. During the same event, Biden also replied to a question from a student who identified himself as the vice president of the student body. "Isn't it a b-tch?" Biden responded. "Excuse me ... the vice president thing."

• 2. Grimes and the 'sanctity of the ballot box'

  

  AP
  
  Kentucky Democratic Senate candidate Alison Lundergan Grimes tried for months to distance herself from President Obama -- but really went the extra mile during a cringe-worthy interview with a local newspaper.
  During an October sit-down with the Louisville Courier-Journal editorial board, Grimes three times refused to answer whether she voted for Obama in 2008 and 2012. Instead, she replied, "I respect the sanctity of the ballot box." Her attempts to duck the question landed her in the media spotlight, and not in a good way. She continued to get hammered for the dodge until Election Day, when she lost to Republican Mitch McConnell. 

• 3. No place like home?

  

  AP
  
  Republican Kansas Sen. Pat Roberts was faced with the biggest challenge of his political career this year. In a race full of unexpected twists and turns, Roberts ended up facing independent candidate Greg Orman after his Democratic challenger dropped out. In the end, he won.
  But his campaign for months was shadowed by a telling gaffe from a radio interview over the summer. In the interview, Roberts said he goes back to Kansas "every time I get an opponent -- I mean, every time I get a chance, I’m home.”
  At the time, the gaffe fed into critics' narrative of Roberts as an absentee senator, one too close to Washington and out of touch with his state. 

• 4. 'A farmer from Iowa who never went to law school'

  

  AP
  
  While speaking at a fundraiser earlier this year, Rep. Bruce Braley, D-Iowa, was caught on tape dissing the state's Republican senator, Chuck Grassley -- and in one fell swoop, Iowa's farmers as a whole.
  Braley, a trial lawyer by training, appealed to the attendees, "if you help me win this race, you may have someone with your background, your experience, your voice." Braley, referring to Grassley, said the alternative is: "you might have a farmer from Iowa who never went to law school, never practiced law."
  Not exactly the kind of thing you want to say in Iowa.
  After the tape was made public, Braley apologized to Grassley and to anyone he may have offended. He lost the election to Iowa state Sen. Joni Ernst.

• 5. Biden: 'I mean, these Shylocks'

  

  AP
  
  Biden had another doozy while speaking at an event in Washington, D.C., in September.
  Recalling how when his son was serving in Iraq, troops spoke about the tough housing market back in the U.S., he said: "People would come up to him and talk about what was happening to them at home in terms of foreclosures, in terms of bad loans ... I mean, these Shylocks who took advantage of these women and men while overseas."
  Shylocks is considered an offensive term for Jews by some groups. Biden later apologized for the remarks.

Republicans prepare for battle with unions in 2015, after midterm gains

Republicans in statehouses across the country are plotting a tough new campaign to check the power of labor unions and chip away at their political influence. 
The GOP lawmakers, buoyed by sweeping midterm victories at the state level, are weighing so-called "right-to-work" bills in several capitals once new legislative sessions start in January. The measures, already in place in two-dozen states, generally prohibit unions from forcing workers in the private sector to join and pay dues. 
"The accumulated gains by Republicans in state legislatures will certainly increase pressure on, and within, the GOP caucuses to expand right-to-work laws," Louis Jacobson, state politics columnist for Governing magazine, told FoxNews.com. 
Wisconsin and Ohio are considered among the mostly likely to back the legislation, as Republicans control both chambers of those legislatures and the governorships -- though those governors seem lukewarm to the idea. Colorado, Missouri, New Hampshire and New Mexico also could see battles over union power next year. 
Once again, Wisconsin is expected to be at the forefront of the union drama. 
Republican state Rep. Chris Kapenga plans to propose a right-to-work bill for private-sector workers. And state Sen. Scott Fitzgerald, the Senate majority leader, claims his chamber will act quickly to pass such legislation. Gov. Scott Walker, though, repeatedly has suggested he doesn't want the legislature to tackle the issue right now. 
"As he has said previously, Gov. Walker's focus is on growing Wisconsin's economy and creating jobs," spokeswoman Laurel Patrick recently said. "Anything that distracts from that is not a priority for him." 
The stance might seem unusual for Walker. 
In 2011, he pushed a law through the legislature that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public-sector workers and included right-to-work language for those workers. Walker's move -- prompting weeks of massive protests and a failed recall effort -- raised his national profile to the point that he's considering a run for president. 
But with a 2016 decision looming, he likely wants to avoid another potentially extended and perilous state-level fight, Marquette Law School professor Paul Secunda said. 
Kapenga told FoxNews.com that he and others are working on the union legislation but declined to speculate on what Walker might be thinking. 
"I don't want to put words in his mouth," he said. "My job is to lay out a compelling case. But I plan to sit down with him." 
Meanwhile, big labor is gearing up for a battle. 
"We'll fight this every step of the way," said Phil Neuenfeldt, president of the Wisconsin AFL-CIO. The private-sector union also is reportedly planning similar efforts in other states. 
Twenty-four states already have right-to-work laws, including Michigan and Indiana. 
Supporters say the laws give workers more freedom since they aren't required to join unions or have dues deducted and argue such laws help attract businesses. 
Opponents -- including Democrats and the labor unions that often support Democratic candidates -- argue the laws are bad for workers, hurt the economy and are designed to weaken union power and political clout. 
Both sides likely would agree the battle would impact a relatively small and dwindling percentage of workers. 
Roughly just 11.3 percent of private- and public-sector workers were members of unions last year, based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics figures. The number is down from 20.1 percent in 1983 and a record high of nearly 35 percent in 1954. 
In Ohio, right-to-work legislation died without a vote this year and failed in a 2011 referendum that was backed by GOP Gov. John Kasich. 
The issue is expected to resurface in 2015. But Kasich, who won reelection this fall, has not said whether he would sign such legislation. 
He told a Gannett newspaper editorial board in September that companies appear willing to come to Ohio despite no right-to-work laws. 
However, political observers suggest Kasich, who during his first term presided over an improving state economy, didn't want to jeopardize that success or his reelection bid by alienating pro-union voters and others. 
Jacobson said that while GOP state lawmakers may move toward pressuring the unions, "in 'purple' states, the governors may feel pressure to quietly downplay such efforts, especially if they have aspirations for national office." 
In New Mexico, Democrats have control of the state Senate. But in November, Republicans won the House majority, which could give them their best opportunity in decades to pass such a bill. 
"This time could be the time we get it through both houses," Senate Minority Leader Stuart Ingle, a Republican, said just days after the Nov. 4 election. 
GOP Gov. Susana Martinez appears to support right-to-work legislation. But she did not make the legislation a big part of her successful re-election campaign, and whether she would sign such a bill remains unclear. 
In Missouri, the measure narrowly failed last year. But Republicans this fall added to their two-thirds-plus majority in both legislative chambers, which means they would be able to override vetoes by Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon. 
In New Hampshire -- where a right-to-work bill died earlier this year -- a Democrat kept the governor's seat, but Republicans won control of the state House and maintained control of the Senate. 
Republicans also passed such a bill in 2011 when they controlled both chambers, but it was vetoed by then-Gov. John Lynch, a Democrat.

'The Interview' release marked by capacity crowds

Hundreds of theaters made special arrangements for the highly-talked about comedy depicting actors James Franco and Seth Rogen assassinating the North Korean dictator to be shown in its theaters Christmas Day.
Tt turned out to be a mega hit.
Sony Pictures received a lot of backlash for initially calling off the release of the controversial film, “The Interview,” but the turnaround made the movie available on digital platforms and in more than 300 theaters on Christmas making it a special event for families around the nation.
"We are taking a stand for freedom," said theater manager Lee Peterson of the Cinema Village East in Manhattan, where most of Thursday's seven screenings had sold out by early afternoon. "We want to show the world that Americans will not be told what we can or cannot watch. Personally, I am not afraid."
At Atlanta's Plaza Theater, a sell-out crowd Thursday hailed the film's release, washing down popcorn with beer and cocktails and uniting for a boisterous sing-along of "God Bless America" before the opening credits.
"This is way more fun than it would have been," said Jim Kelley of Atlanta, who waited outside with his daughter, Shannon. The elder Kelley added, with mocking sarcasm, "This is almost dangerous, like we're living life on the edge."
Theater security was light as the movie industry took the threat of a 9/11-style attack more seriously than the government. Homeland Security shot down and credible threats in a statement last week.
Meanwhile, Darrell Foxworth, a special agent for the FBI in San Diego, said Wednesday the agency was sharing information with independent movie theater owners showing "The Interview" out of "an abundance of caution" and to educate them about cyber threats and what help the FBI can offer.
Kim Song, a North Korean diplomat to the United Nations, condemned the release Wednesday, calling the movie an "unpardonable mockery of our sovereignty and dignity of our supreme leader." But Kim said North Korea will likely limit its response to condemnation, with no "physical reaction."
Decisions to show the movie through the Internet could open up companies to hacking. Xbox and PlayStation's online gaming services were down Thursday afternoon but the cause was unclear. Meanwhile, YouTube and other Google products were not having any disruptions. A Microsoft spokesman confirmed the Xbox outage but declined further comment. Sony PlayStation representatives did not immediately respond to inquiries.
In Little Rock, members of an Arkansas family who say they otherwise would have never seen "The Interview" were among the first patrons at the Riverdale 10 theater. Kay Trice and her husband drove an hour from Stuttgart, Arkansas, to see the movie with their daughter and appreciated "the freedom to see it."
"It should be shown in this country and somebody in North Korea should not have the right to scare us out of seeing this," Trice said.
The threats and controversy ultimately did not stop moviegoers from seeing the movie. However, some attendants cautioned movie buffs about the politics of the movie.
"No one should go into expecting it to be a serious commentary on politics," 34-year-old Derek Karpel said. "But it's fun. People should go."