Is this Joseph R. Biden a Plagiarist?

Have we a plagiarist in this Joseph Robinette Biden? Well, do we? 

Let's look into the plagiarism accusations that preceded his dropping out of the 1988 presidential election race. Quick point of interest first: In contrast to Biden now being the oldest president ever, he would have been the second youngest ever had he been elected in 1988. He was famous for his one-liners. For example, Rudy Giuliani was a candidate in that race, and Biden quipped, "There's only three things he mentions in a sentence: a noun, and a verb and 9/11."

Biden became a fan of British Labor Party's Neil Kinnock, and cited Kinnock in several of his campaign speeches. Then, along came a debate in which he used similiar lines about being the first person in his family to attend a university. (Of note, in describing this, I am using pretty much identical language that is provided by Wikipedia. Am I a plagiarist?)

Other revelations also came out: He had previously used language reflective of that of John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey. One of his opponents, Jesse Jackson, apparently did not find fault. Jackson reportedly called Biden and told him that he, as well, had used the same material from Humphrey.

What did Kinnock make of it all? What was his response?

“Joe is honest, he’s courageous, he’s well-informed and experienced, and most of all, he’s rational, all things that Trump isn’t. One of Joe’s greatest strengths, I think, certainly a natural attribute is that he’s normal. He really is the well-informed guy off the street and in an age when voters are looking for authenticity, he is the real thing.” (Quote from Kinnock taken from an article in The Guardian.)

Also from The Guardian article (it credits Jeff Wilser’s biography, The Book of Joe): Whereas Biden had cited Kinnock on previous occasions, on this occasion, as he rushed through his closing statement, he overlooked doing so. As he sat down, one of his campaign workers leaned over and whispered, "Pssst, you forgot to credit Kinnock." Biden has lamented that if he had just inserted two words ("Like Kinnock"), his whole career would be different.

I forgive Biden for his failure to cite Kinnock. He made a mistake. His history of having cited Kinnock on past occasions lends me to believe he shouldn't be classed as a liar or plagairist based on that incident. People are mortal, and, yes, sometimes they make errors. They guy is 81 years old. Dig deep for dirt and you can find some mistakes. With 81 years of life, yes, you are going to find some imperfections.

But, what of his plagiarizing JFK, RFK, and Humphrey? It would be good if we had the quotes from each sitting side-by-side with those of what Biden said. We don't. Biden responded that "politicians often borrow from one another without giving credit" (again, I'm using Wikipedia language).

I collect famous quotes. Sometimes, when I read a meme with an unattributed quote, I feel whoever said it should have been given credit. So, I try to trace down who said it. Often, I have turned to a website called the Quote Investigator. The Quote Investigator will often say, Well, this guy said that in 1935 (or whenever) and this guy said it in 1941 and this lady said it in 1952 -- each without attribution. So, I do not think Biden is wrong when he suggests speakers borrow from each other without giving attribution.