VP Joe Biden Doesn't Close the Door on Running for Office Again

— -- Upon the inauguration of the next administration on Jan. 20, Vice President Joe Biden will, for the first time in 46 years, not serve in a public office.

But don’t expect him to disappear from public view.

“I don’t plan on saying goodbye,” Biden said in an interview with ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos. “My dad used to have an expression … ‘It’s a lucky person who gets up in the morning and puts both feet on the floor, knows what they're about to do, and thinks it still matters.’ I still care deeply about so many things.”

The vice president told ABC News he will remain committed to advancing the issues he cares about: fighting cancer, advancing foreign policy, combating domestic violence and reforming the tax system.

To those who say he should “just retire,” Biden said: “I always judge people who spend a lot of time in public office, say they care about things, and if the day after they leave they no longer talk about them, then I don't think they cared much about them.”

Biden was elected to his first position in 1970, serving on the New Castle City Council in Delaware for two years before moving on to the U.S. Senate, where he represented his state for 36 years. He became vice president in 2009.

So might he run for office again?

“I don't plan on that,” Biden said, “But, you know, I’ve learned a long time ago, you don't say anything for absolutely certain.”