Biden says he did not get VP-State choice

WASHINGTON, Jan. 19 (UPI) -- U.S. Vice President-elect Joe Biden was not offered a choice between vice president and secretary of state, a spokeswoman for Biden said Monday.

Biden's wife, Jill Biden, had said in an interview with Oprah Winfrey that the former Delaware senator had been given a choice between the two positions in an Obama administration.

"Joe had the choice to be secretary of state or vice president," she said, drawing gasps from the audience.

She said the couple discussed the options and decided the job of vice president would involve less travel and afford him more time with his family, Roll Call reported.

Joe Biden said he based the decision on how he could best serve the country and the Obama administration.

Elizabeth Alexander, a spokeswoman for the vice president-elect, said in a statement President-elect Barack Obama offered Joe Biden "one job only -- to be his running mate. And the vice president-elect was thrilled to accept the offer."

"Like anyone who followed the presidential campaign this summer, Dr. Jill Biden knew there was a chance that President-elect Obama might ask her husband to serve in some capacity and that, given his background, the positions of vice president and secretary of state were possibilities," the statement said. "Dr. Biden's point to Oprah today was that being vice president would be a better fit for their family because they would get to see him more and get to participate in serving more."

Obama nominated Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., as his secretary of state.