Does Joe Biden have the fire and swagger needed to seek and win the presidency? Oh, yes

Former Vice President Joe Biden visited The State for an interview with several reporters and editors — and here’s a two-word reply to anyone wondering whether Biden has the energy and intellectual rigor needed to win the Democratic Party’s nomination and face President Donald Trump in November:

Stop wondering.

Neither should be up for debate based on the levels of passion and acuity that Biden displayed during a conversation that saw him:

▪ Bristle with emotion while summing up the high stakes of the 2020 election.

“Character is on the ballot,” Biden said. “We have to unite the country, as difficult as that appears to be in everyone’s mind. The truth is that if we can’t, we’re in desperate trouble as a country.”

▪ Rattle off statistics — from exactly how many billions a Biden administration would raise by closing tax loopholes for corporations to the percentage of Americans in or at risk of poverty (44 percent) — with assured command.

“The middle class is getting clobbered,” Biden said, “working-class people are getting crunched (and) an awful lot of people are getting left behind.”

▪ Eagerly spar with The State reporters and editors as they fired pointed questions at him — yet do so in a way that didn’t sound defensive.

When asked if he was worried that young and millennial voters might view a 77-year-old longtime Washington insider as out of touch with their concerns, Biden fired right back

“I hear all this that everyone is concerned, but I don’t see any evidence of that,” Biden said. “Every time I walk on (a) campus, we draw great crowds.”

When asked if he was alarmed by a recent national poll that suggested African American voters were disillusioned with America’s direction, Biden fired back again.

“Remember what the rest of the poll said?” Biden asked. “It said I was the most popular person in America among African Americans — 77 percent. You left that part out, OK?”

Added Biden: “My message is that this time when we rebuild the middle class, we have to bring along all brown and black (Americans) across the board — which I’ve tried to do my whole career.”

▪ Strike a defiant pose — one hand cupped and fingers wagging back toward him in classic “Come at me, bro” fashion — when asked how he would respond if Trump began taunting him during a presidential debate.

“I’m gonna (tell Trump), ‘C’mon, stand here, man. C’mon, pal,’” Biden said.

“Why do you think Donald Trump’s campaign has already spent over $12 million going after me? He doesn’t want to run against me at all. This guy doesn’t want to run against me no more than he wants to fly. So I can hardly wait to debate Donald Trump.”

Over the course of nearly 60 minutes, Biden:

▪ Pounded the table.

▪ Cracked jokes.

▪ Raised his voice to emphasize some points — and lowered it to a whisper to drive home others.

▪ Overruled campaign staffers — in amiable fashion — when they said it was time to end the interview.

And after Biden did get up to leave, he breezily riffed on topics ranging from friends and acquaintances in Columbia to Clemson football while making his way back to his massive campaign bus idling in The State’s parking lot.

In short, the session with Biden was a masterclass on politics as much as it was an interview with a politician.

And it was a revealing glimpse into why the onetime Delaware senator and influential No. 2 to former President Barack Obama is: a) the heavy favorite to win next month’s South Carolina Democratic primary, and b) the candidate most observers still predict will be the Democrats’ eventual nominee.

“I’m the best equipped to beat Trump and to get something done, ” Biden said. “It’s just practical ... I’m used to bullies. I’m used to guys like him.”

There’s a long way to go before Biden will be in a position to truly back up that boast. And if the fierce field of opponents he’s battling for the Democratic presidential nomination have their way, Biden won’t ever get the chance to do it.

But here’s one question that can already be answered with a high degree of certainty: Does Joe Biden have the requisite swagger, fire and finesse needed to run for the presidency — and to win it?

Oh, yes.

Oh, yes.