Vice President Joe Biden's oldest son, who is Delaware's attorney general, made progress Wednesday as he recovered from a mild stroke and hopes to return to work in the near future, his office said.
Beau Biden, 41, was being treated at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, a renowned neuroscience hospital in Philadelphia, a day after suffering the stroke.
"He will continue to follow standard protocol and receive medical therapy over the coming days, as is typical for any patient recovering from an event like this," the Delaware Department of Justice said in a statement. "He looks forward to returning to his duties as Attorney General in the near future."
The vice president and his wife, Jill Biden, were in Philadelphia on Wednesday, but he returned to Washington to host a dinner for Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Wednesday night. Joe Biden is one of the Obama administration's major voices in setting Afghanistan policy.
Biden said his son was doing well.
"He's doing great, thank God," Biden told reporters before heading into the dinner at his official residence in Washington. He had shouted the same thing to reporters outside the hospital that afternoon, holding up a Philly cheesesteak.
Thomas Jefferson hospital officials declined to comment, referring questions to the vice president's office.
In a statement issued Tuesday through the White House, Christiana's Dr. Timothy Gardner said Biden was in good spirits and was talking with his relatives. The doctor said Biden was fully alert and in stable condition and had full motor and speech skills. The vice president's office said Gardner would not comment beyond the statement and would not take questions.
Beau Biden returned last year from a yearlong deployment to Iraq with his Army National Guard unit. He was a captain and military lawyer in the 261st Theater Tactical Signal Brigade. He had considered running this year for the Senate seat his father held before becoming vice president but decided instead to run for re-election as attorney general.