Skeptics may think Joe Biden's public comments on gay marriage were carefully orchestrated, but the White House insists it was just Joe being Joe. In fact, Biden apologized to the president the first time the two spoke afterward, reports the New York Times and Washington Post. (Both cite anonymous administration officials.) The apology came yesterday morning, hours before Obama offered his own public support for same-sex marriage.
Biden reportedly told the president that he didn't intend to force Obama's hand on the matter. In the Post's telling, Obama responded that he had no hard feelings because Biden gave an honest and heartfelt response to a question. In his subsequent ABC interview, Obama said Biden had "probably gotten a little over his skis" on the matter. In any event, it seems to have worked out fine for the vice president. (More Joe Biden stories.)