That's Why They Call Him 'The Comeback Kid'

Sixteen years since that first Presidential campaign, and Bill Clinton still knows how to stage a comeback. During Hillary's campaign he seemed to take on the role typically filled by a Vice Presidential candidate. He hit her opponent over and over, hard - so hard, in fact, that it hurt Clinton's image among some Democrats and left scars of bitterness on the party's psyche.

After tonight, those scars will probably heal. After this speech, any lingering bitterness toward the former President will probably be replaced by a 'come home, all is forgiven' glow. Obama supporters may differ with Bill Clinton on somepolicy issues, but Bill Clinton has restored his position as the patriarch and elder statesman of the Democratic Party.

"That makes two of us," Bill said of his endorsement and Hillary's. "In fact, that makes eighteen million of us." That was the punchline, the payoff line, and it delivered the emotional wallop everyone was waiting for. Bill went much further than Hillary did in praising Obama, and it made all the past rumors of bruised Clinton/Obama egos feel like nothing more than a dramatic build-up to a satisfying denouement.

Bill may have also been putting out a little "this is how it's done" vibe toward his successor, too. He was the old master, nailing line after line. Well, fine. Obama's going to have to step up his game anyway to nail that 80,000-person crowd. He could do worse than to deliver a line like Bill's about showing the world "the power of our example and not just example of our power."

Bill Clinton endorsed Obama's ability as commander in chief in unequivocal terms, and he laid out a strong argument about his ability to fix the economy. Sure, we could nitpick. The line-parsers are already jumping on his praise for Biden's experience, although I thought that the balance between "experience" and Obama's "insight" was well-nuanced. I did think he was too soft on McCain, overpraising his independence and failing to note the flip-flops and reversals that have marked McCain's campaign.

But these are minor quibbles. Will this speech help Obama in the general election? Almost certainly, and Obama would be wise to draw on Bill extensively in the coming campaign. Will it help heal the Democratic Party? Definitely.

I suspect this speech will fully restore President Clinton's personal stature within the party. After a bruising and bitter campaign, Bill Clinton is on his way to once again being a unifying Democratic figure. The more he helps Obama, the more he will renew his own reputation.

Tonight Bill Clinton did what he had to do - for the party, for Obama, and for the Clinton franchise. You gotta hand it to him: He just made one more comeback.

For more Huffington Post coverage of the Democratic National Convention, visit our Politics @ the DNC page, our Democratic Convention Big News Page, and our HuffPost bloggers' Twitter feed, live from Denver.

Follow RJ Eskow on Twitter: www.twitter.com/rjeskow

Comments

[tipiglen6]

He hit it out of the park!

Won me back.

[recruitgal]

Me too... It was a joy to watch... but I wish John Kerry was getting more coverage, because if anything his speech was even better. I was sitting on the couch with my jaw hanging open. Impressive! Where the heck was that speech four years ago?

And (embarassingly) I will admit to getting a bit teary-eyed when Joe accepted the nomination. What a genuine guy. I'm willing John to pick Mitt for his VP choice. Ooh, what fun we'll have...

I'll probably be crying like a baby tonight! Go Barack!! Let's show them what Presidential looks like!

[Ebuka]

The Kennedys gave Obama the stamp of approval during the primary season. It made the difference and Barack Obama won the close contest between him and Hillary.
But the Clintons will win the White House for him!
The Clintons are masters at electoral contests. The fact that Hillary came so close at pulling this off was really remarble. They had their share of ineffeciencies but they can craft a message that resonates with people. Especially, Bill Clinton he single handedly provided the rational and logic that kept Hillary viable after Wisconsin primary when it became apparent that Obama had locked up his nomination. He kept selling Hillary and advanced her candidacy well past her dwindling options. Bill is good, the man is simply good.
Obama should do all that is need to get Bill on board every day, all the way to the election. It will be rewarding for both, Bill's legacy is under assault and Obama viability in the general election is at best worrisome. We need both hands to clap loudest.

[justobserve]

"the Clintons will win the White House for him":
Disagree! The Clintons would have LOST the WH for Obama in that they prolonged the primaries and divided the party deeply then encouraged their supporters keep on fighting. This didn't happen to Bill and he won 43% in 1992. Now Bill has redeemed by saying the truth, that people forgot after his two term presidency: the Repub had said "he was too young and too inexperienced" in 1992 but Bill won. Bill had used his talent for the right cause, for his country instead of his own self. Obama is also being portrayed by the Repub of being young and inexperienced. For being elitist even though Obama had worked for underprivileged people. The support that Bill and other presidential nominees enjoyed in the past to get Democrat into the White House ALMOST WAS DENIED TO OBAMA even though to many voters, if the "inexperienced Obama" had won the two most experienced Clintons then he is better than the best. Obama will win the WH by the PEOPLE"S POWER which, as in Bill's time, still have HOPE and want CHANGE.

[hotstuff]

Bil did great! Hillary did great! Biden did good! and Michelle hit it out of the ball park! Biden son did wonderful and did Chelsey! But, don don't credit away from Obama and give it to any of these folks! The Clintons will not win the white house for them! All of these people will HELP win him the white house, but don't be fooled! It's Obama who ran this campagne like a champion! It's wonderful and high tech. internet idea's that funded his campagne! It has been him day after day on that stump doing the hard work! While Bill Clinton is one heck of a politition, your looking at a unknown comeing out of left field who not only whiped out the clinton, But drew Millions of people to his side from a party that had been fractured, and rebuid them from the ground up. No one put Bill's legacy in jeapardy but himself and his behaviors. Now he is cleaning that up, and a credit to his name he will once again be the come back kid! Don't forget Kerry's wonderful speech, as well as others! They all need a round of applause! This wasn't about the clintons. It was about Obama and wakeing up the Demacrate party to unity once again!

[loax]

Bill did great. His poll numbers will go back up. Thank You, Pres,. Clinton

[scooterliberal]

I was very angry at times with Bill Clinton during the primaries. And I'm sick of the Clintons in general at this point. But I have to say I was proud as hell of him last night.

[islandgirl63]

The Clinton's job at this convention was not to seek "forgiveness" from Obama supporters, or to "restore their standing" in the Democratic party. Their job was to convince lifelong democrats like my 76 year old mother, a Hillary supporter who has continued to say she would not vote for Obama, that they have to vote for Obama. And you don't win those voters over by trying to convince them why Obama is so great, you have to convince them that we cannot in any way afford to lose to McCain this November. And the Clinton's, being the amazingly astute politicians that they are, know that praising Biden more that Obama is one way to do that.

If we don't bring the loyal Clintonites along, and as many swing and independent voters as we can, we risk losing this elections because of the Republican's continued underhanded shenanigans at the polls. Overwhelming voter turnout for the democrats, just like in the 2006 elections, is the only way to overcome that.

[PalmG]

I have to co-sign this article all the way. In my mind, all is forgiven with Billy. He showed why/ how he won the presidency twice. He is the consumate politician, he understands "people speak" and knows how to effectively weave in and out of plain talk and high-minded ideas. I just can't say enough about his performance last night. 5 stars, Bill. THANK YOU, from the bottom of my heart!

[Heidfeld]

Once again, a true leader shows how it is done. Hopefully Obama is watching closely and learns a thing or two.

For all of you that say you now "forgive" Clinton after the primaries.­.. save it. If you were fooled into thinking ill of Bill after some soundbites taken out of context, than you are hapless and hopeless.

What do you think of McCain's latest ads? Do you like the way he takes a word or sentence that Obama muttered amongst many others, and twist and manipulate it into giving a false impression? You should like it, because that is EXACTLY what the Obama campaign did to Clinton. And you fell for it.

So yeah, to all those who now view Clinton favorably again, I have to wonder. Where have you been? How neieve are you exactly?

[standard]

"Hopefully Obama is watching closely and learns a thing or two. "

Yes--and hopefully Mrs. Clinton was watching closely and learns a thing or two, as well. That Bill Clinton told the Convention with apparent conviction that Obama is ready to be President is excellent. She'd only being doing herself a huge favor to start saying that publicly, herself.

[Heidfeld]

You can't say what you don't believe right? Ok, well we know that politicians do that all the time (just look at Obama during the primaries).

But still, it has to be extra hard for Hillary. I mean, it is one thing to suck it up and tell everyone Obama is fit to be preisident. It is another when you are the person he tied in the contest, and were then passed over. When you were the choice, and you know you are obviously, completely, laughably, 1,000 times more prepared and capable than your opponent..­. it is hard.

[3fingerbrown]

It's better to have him on the inside of the tent pissing out than outside the tent pissing in.

[crutnacker]

Bill's speech was everything that Hillary's was not. It laid out why Obama was the better choice because of who Obama was, not because of who McCain was. I thought it also showed why many Bill supporters have issues with Hillary. Hillary seems to be more into winning for herself than winning for the party.

[janep576]

Bill and Hillary have withstood alot ,yet they have always been gracious and overlooked most of the insults.I know, I wouldn't have.They came through,as I've said all along, that they would do whats best for the democratic party.And Obama will be the next POTUS.

[BMS]

HuffPost's Pick

Thank you, President Clinton. I have to admit, given your disappointing behavior during the primaries, I didn't think you would step up to the plate and give a heartfelt endorsement of Senator Obama, but you proved me wrong. You did what was best for the party, and by extension, for the american people, and I thank you. I voted for you twice, but during the primaries I lost all my respect for you. Tonight you redeemed yourself. I believe it was painfully difficult for you to rise above the disappointment you feel on your wife's behalf, but you rose above. I also believe that your words will sway undecided voters to support Obama, and I believe that he will lead this country to a much better place. I hope that you and Mrs. Clinton will be on board for the ride to that better future. Welcome home.

[raye1]

Here , here! I second that!

[tlgeiger62]

Absolutely­...he was magnificient. It reminded me of how much I enjoyed listening to him when he gave a speech. He hit each and every point. Clarified every doubt the media had put out there for the past 3 days. Thank you Mr. President!!!! I even donated some $$ to Hillary to thank you both.

[boycottrightwingthings]

I cried when Bill Clinton gave his speech. I actually started crying when the crowd, who loves him as much as I do, gave him an over 3 and a half minute LOUD standing ovation. They never stopped loving him, they understood his love and passion for his wife and the deep pain that he felt seeing her fight so hard, only to lose. They were with him at hello. There is no division, a purely made up media thing, magnified by the constant saying of those lies over and over. He got the respect that he truly deserved for his successful presidency. he did what he had to do for Obama, and our country. he made us feel, that we can truly be great again! He was in perfect form, and then some.

[Rjchinook]

The Clinton's are back! At first I was a Hillary supporter until she started her very negative campaign and it appeared she would do anything to be the democratic nominee for President. I allowed the rumors about their non support of Obama to effect me and started to lose any respect I had left for them. Last night and the night before they proved they REALLY cared for us and this country and it's not all about them. Yes, the Clinton's are back!

[wilsonclan]

I continue to be amazed by the huge number of people who felt that something Bill or Hillary did during the primary election was something to be disappointed by. It just shows how gullible and swayable people are by the MSM. Why is it that all the campainging done by Obama and his surrogates that was nasty, mean and negative is put aside. While I was neither a Clinton or Obama supporter, as a Democratic I watched in amazement as Obama was allowed to frame the Clintons as racists. I believe them to be alot of things, but that isn't one of them. While the best candidates for President were being ingnored by the MSM to create a horse race between the "Woman" and "the Black man", out of context soudbites were repeated so that fools who refused to think for themselves suddenly believed the Clintons to be race baiters. Disgusting. By the way, it is not the Clintons job to get people to vote for Obama, it Obama's. If he loses this election he will have no one to blame but himself. For me, he took the first step in selecting Biden as his VP, although the ticket would be much better reversed, enabling Obama to get the experience he currently lacks and would better make it possible to win this year and maybe even put together a nice 16 year sweep. But it is what it is. Hopefully Obama actually can do the job if he wins.

[StillAmused]

"After this speech, any lingering bitterness toward the former President will probably be replaced by a 'come home, all is forgiven' glow."

Would that the hammerhead, narrative-drunk press hadn't done so much -- both by commission AND omission -- to gin up that bitterness, followed dutifully by a phalanx of adolescent political swooners more than willing to administer his "punishment", street-mob style.

The primaries have seen some of the worst detritus passing for "reporting", with the TV chat-gerbils (man, did Jon Stewart ever nail THAT one!) churning those droppings endlessly, just in case someone out there didn't get their daily serving.

That "'come home, all is forgiven' glow" is more like "we're getting our way now, so we can afford to be magnanimous hypocrites".

Clinton didn't change... the tide did.

Democratic primaries aren't a convening of the College Of Cardinals. They're COMPETITIVE. For synchronized swimming, there's always Minneapolis.

[nk007]

StillAmused,

It is really amazing, and amusing too, how people like you can say absolutely nothing while pretending to offer profound commentary. Is it not possible that there are many issues that unite Democrats than issues ( including personalities) that divide them? As for "synchronized swimming" in "Minneapolis" are you privy to some information that you are not sharing, but you want us to take your words for granted?

[StillAmused]

It's disconcerting -- and, perhaps, unseemly -- to batter a confused, clueless amateur, but you invite the indulgence when you gracelessly refer to "people like [me]... pretending to offer profound commentary".

If the analogy to synchronized swimming in Minneapolis completely baffles you, consult the RNC website for details on their upcoming convention, then stay glued to your 13-inch black-and-white Sony when the GOP rolls out its lineup of lockstep sockpuppets reciting their uniform talking points.

There... the secret's out.

[wilsonclan]

StillAmused
Couldn't have said it better myself. The press worked it's magic throughout this campaign to frame every moment in a manner that created "bitterness" and somehow set the Clintons up to be "racists". While a few Clinton supporters may have been poor losers, I see many more Obama supporters as very poor winners. So much so, it makes me tune them and him out. Hopefully, now that the "Obama" convention is coming to a close, we can finally get back to real issues and substantive matters of this nation and our party.

And no, I am not a Hillblazer, I finally got something out of this when Obama picked Biden as his VP choice. Biden was my 1st choice from the beginning, and he greatly helps Obama's chances in November.

[PanFx]

No way. No how. No McCain!

[nk007]

President Bill Clinton gave a good speech and went a long way in endorsing Sen. Obama. Sen. Joe Biden also gave an excellent speech. In my judgement, however, the best speech of the night, and for that matter of the entire convention, was that of Sen. John Kerry. I was watching MSNBC which did not carry it. I had to switch to C-SPAN to see most of the Speech. Thanks to bloggers on another site I was able to read the transcript and view the entire speech. From what I have seen of all the speeches, it was, by far, the most hard hitting and the most relevant and focused speech in contrasting Barak Obama and John McCain. I really hope John Kerry 's speech is circulated widely. John Kerry gets such a bum rap though he received more popular votes than either Bill Clinton or Al Gore. Any objective analysis shows that Bill Clinton in 1992, did worse than either Al Gore in 2000 and John Kerry in 2004. But, Bill Clinton won the presidency because of Ross Perot who took 19% of the vote, mostly from George Bush Sr.

[rckent]

Just wanted to say that I really liked this comment (assuming the data is accurate, which I'm not inclined to double-check but also not inclined to doubt).

[tlgeiger62]

Well said!

C-SPAN is, by far, the best I've found to watch everything - NO commentary, pundits, anchors, editorializing. Of course today's the last day but BETTER LATE THAN NEVER.

[boycottrightwingthings]

Ross Perot did not get 19% of the vote. i like how you make up facts to suit yourself. it was more like 7%, if that. Bill Clinton won the presidency TWICE, which mean that a lot more people voted for him than for the losers that ran against him. bill Clinton won the first race because the American people were then smart enough to spot a loser in George Bush the first (disaster) and voted in kind. Bill Clkinton got our so called Regan Democrats back on board. GW Bush won by the slimmest margin the second time of any resident. He stole the election from Gore, a known FACT.

[swift goat pet for truth]

Bill was really good tonight. I know he is still hurting, I saw it yesterday when he was watching Hillary give her speech. But Bill was at the top of his game. He hit his homer.

I really hope he is sincere in his promise to campaign for O.
If Bill and Hill do their best in the battleground states, I will feel a whole lot better about this race.

I think its close. I feel a top form Bill and a top form Hill could make the difference.

[Frenchy9]

I have this hope too ... and cross my fingers that both are sincere. They haven't done much so far, but ... they needed time to "recover" (and to se what were their best options).
So, maybe after BO accepts the nomination tomorrow, Bill and Hill will become the great surrogates Obama needs so much.

Again, this is in Hill interest too. It give her (and Bill) a good platform to maintain the relationship with their supporters, and also to prove wrong all the people who said that they were selfish and only about themselves.
Hillary, almost won with 18 Million supporters. So, it's understandable, they two try to get all all advantages they can from this success (saying they have a duty to these 18 Million, whether this is their main motivation or not).
As I have been proved wrong in my fears that Hill or Bill will foment some kind of revolt before the Convention, I don't want to entertain my fears that Bill was not more enthusiastic because he wishes that BO looses and that gives a great chance for Hill in 12. (Don't be mistaken, I love Bill, but I am still a bit paranoiac because he said too many good things towards McCain in his speech, and not enough about the National Security readiness of the Obama team).
In all ... I am optimistic. He as said enough: he cannot repeat his "Nobody is ready..."