VP Joe Biden's daughter marries doctor in Delaware

WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Vice President Joe Biden's daughter Ashley married a Pennsylvania doctor at a ceremony in Delaware, the vice president's office announced late Saturday.

A news release from Biden's office says 30-year-old Ashley Blazer Biden was married Saturday to Dr. Howard David Krein in Wilmington.

She is a social worker for the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth and Their Families. He is a New Jersey native and a facial plastic and reconstructive surgeon at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, according to The News-Journal of Wilmington.

The newspaper reported that the couple was exchanging vows at the same church where she was baptized, St. Joseph on the Brandywine, in a joint Jewish-Catholic ceremony. It was being followed by a reception at the Biden residence in Greenville. The guest list numbered about 200.

Vice President Biden and his wife Jill issued a statement saying the couple's close family and friends attended the private ceremony.

"We're happy to welcome Howard into our family, and we wish them all the best in their new life together," the statement says.

Jill Biden told The News-Journal in an interview before the ceremony (http://delonline.us/KFNmji ) that Krein's plans to ask the vice president for his daughter's hand in marriage were delayed when his train to Washington broke down. He finally got there at 1 a.m.

"He asked for Ashley's hand and of course Joe said yes," Jill Biden told the newspaper.

The bride and groom were introduced in late 2010 by Biden's son, Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden. Krein proposed about a year later, at sunset on a cliff at California's Big Sur.

Jill Biden said the couple are passionate about helping the less-privileged, and that Krein spends two weeks a year in Belize performing reconstructive surgery on children with facial deformities.

"Howard is the perfect guy," Jill Biden said. "He's perfect for Ashley."