This has got to hurt team Obama’s feelings.
Bill Clinton Will Reportedly Play Major Role At Democratic National Convention
Former President Bill Clinton will have a marquee role in this summer’s Democratic National Convention, where he will make a forceful case for President Barack Obama’s re-election and his economic vision for the country, several Obama campaign and Democratic party officials said Sunday.
The move gives the Obama campaign an opportunity to take advantage of the former president’s immense popularity and remind voters that a Democrat was in the White House the last time the American economy was thriving.
Well, let’s first look at this bit of reporting. It’s false to say that the Clinton era was the last time the American economy was thriving, but that’s leftist spin for you.
I could talk about the numerous run-ins pres Clinton and pres Obama have had, such as Clinton insisting Romney’s record at Bain shows he’s an effective business manager, or Clinton’s view on Obama’s soak the rich fantasy, but I think these are documented well enough to note the irony that Bill Clinton is now going to be Obama’s pitch man.
While it is true that Clinton remains very popular among Dems, one has to wonder about turning to Bill for help in this manner. Obama is going to try to ride Clinton’s coattails now? That imaginary ship sailed, already. The only thing this is going to accomplish for the Dems is to make the Dems nostalgic for a time when they had a politically deft and quick thinking president.
But, here’s the hysterical part of all of this —- Bill Clinton is the kiss of death for any other Democrat.
Now, before anyone starts to object to this notion let’s consider a few things. In the election of 1992, Clinton was swept into office. The Democrats retained and increased their majority in the Senate, 57-43, and they kept the majority in the House of Representatives 258-176, which they held since 1955. Two years later, in the mid-term elections, Clinton and the Democrats lost the majority in both houses! Again, they lost the House of Representatives for the first time in 40 years! Two years later, Clinton managed to get re-elected, but still couldn’t help the Dems gain control of either houses. And, he never would be able to.
Bill Clinton is a paradox. He remains the most popular Democrat president in my lifetime, but no one likes the people he surrounds himself with nor do they trust the people he endorses. Just look at Al Gore. Here was the vice president behind the popular Clinton for 8 years. When running for president, the economy appeared healthy and there really weren’t many major issues people could attach to Gore. This should have been a slam dunk for Gore. It is true he wasn’t very inspiring, but he didn’t make any major gaffes in his run. Yes, the election was very close, but it shouldn’t have been. Al Gore should have won, hands down. His problem was that he was associated with Bill Clinton. Which brings us to the last big campaign project Bill Clinton worked at, his wife’s. Again, this should have been a slam dunk. Hillary couldn’t even get her party’s nomination. Again, Hillary had numerous advantages in the primaries, and, of course the ringing endorsement of her husband. She made no huge blunders and lost to a nobody.
So today, that nobody, president Obama is in trouble. So, he’s turning to the last popular Democrat president for some help. But, Clinton’s popularity doesn’t transfer to anyone. I don’t know why people don’t know this, but Clinton’s popularity extends from his personality. It is uniquely Bill Clinton’s. And the only one who can benefit from Clinton’s popularity is Bill Clinton.
Clinton was not “swept” into office in 92. He won only 43% of the vote, as Perot took a huge portion. Indeed, the one thing that Obama can claim credit for is that he was the first president in over 30 years to win a majority of the votes. Clinton did not in either election.
But he is very well liked by the media. And Obama has made him more palatable with age such that the majority that have always opposed him are not so adamant in their opposition now.
Sorry, first paragraph should read “first democrat in over 30 years”