Joe Biden tops Clinton team's State Department wish list

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 (UPI) -- Hillary Clinton's transition team is eyeing Vice President Joe Biden to serve as secretary of state in a would-be Clinton administration, according to reports.

While her campaign refused to comment on the reports, both Politico and CNN said anonymous sources familiar with the thinking of her transition team said Biden would be their first choice to present to Clinton if she wins the election.

Prior to serving as vice president, Biden served for six terms as a senator from Delaware, serving on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee for many years, as the ranking minority member beginning in 1997 and, on two occasions -- 2001-2003 and 2007-2009 -- as chairman of the committee. He is considered to have a deep well of knowledge of U.S. foreign policy and foreign affairs and has personal relationships with foreign leaders in capitals around the world.

Biden has said he is looking forward to his post-election private life and has considered writing an autobiography that covers his four decades in public service.

Though Clinton has had a working relationship and personal friendship with Biden dating back to her husband's administration in the 1990s, they were not always on the same page while serving as two of President Barack Obama's most trusted advisers.

Clinton generally staked out more hawkish approaches to several key foreign policy and military questions in Obama's first term. She advocated for 40,000 more troops in Afghanistan while Biden cautioned against escalating the conflict. She advocated arming Syrian rebels in their fight against President Bashar al-Assad; Biden did not. She advocated for a bombing campaign directed at forces loyal to former Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi; Biden did not. And in perhaps the most significant decision of Obama's first term, Clinton was seen as an advocate for approving the raid that eventually killed Osama bin Laden, while Biden was reportedly more skeptical. Biden has disagreed with that characterization and said, in private, he counseled Obama to go ahead with the raid.

Clinton and Biden were nearly rivals in the 2016 campaign, but Biden announced in October of 2015 that he would not run for the presidency, citing the recent death of his son, Beau Biden, as one reason.

Clinton's campaign refused to comment on the story and has said she remains focused solely on winning the election. Both Clinton and Donald Trump have transition teams already in place considering how their candidates should move forward if they win.