Bill Clinton: Take a Vacation
If ever someone needed to take a vacation and leave the campaign trail it is the former president of the United States Bill Clinton.
If the Democratic Party wants to have any hope of being a united party in November party leaders -- other than the leader of the party -- Bill Clinton -- need to tell Hillary's husband that he is doing much more harm than good to the Democratic Party by his remarks against Obama.
If the two term former president wants to keep his excellent post-presidency reputation intact he should go back to his philanthropic activities and his business at his presidential library and the Clinton Initiative programs.
If the first serious woman running for president of the United States wants to prove she can win the White House on her own merit she should tell her husband to move to Sweden or some other country far away from upcoming primary states.
If the Democratic presidential contest is not to drift down to its lowest level about who was friends with what slum landlord or who was on this or that board of directors of unpopular corporations then Bill Clinton should find a hobby other than politics.
If Democrats don't want to give away their high ground -- after all they are not the party with the unpopular president currently in the White House -- they should all encourage Hillary's husband to exit stage left.
The overall tone of the Democratic presidential campaign has gone downhill since the 42nd president of the United States started taking such an active--and mainly, negative role--in the campaign.
The discussion has gone away from the key issues of the day from Iraq to solving the housing crisis and other economic ills to name calling and arguing over really nothing at all in order only to score political points.
William Jefferson Clinton is an astute politician, probably one of the best political minds in the past fifty years, who appears to have lost his exceptional skills campaigning for his wife.
It now looks as if President Clinton's remarks and actions are helping his wife's main opponent, Senator Obama. It is very unfair for Obama to have to respond to two Clintons these days. After all, it is Hillary that is the one running for president. This is rapidly being lost as the former president continues to give talks discussing the "glory days" of his presidency.
If Hillary and the others are using the the word "change" in every other sentence having your spouse talk about going back to the days of his presidency in the 1990s certainly is not change. And, it is not experience to talk about your husband's presidency either.
Hillary is being overshadowed by her husband on the campaign trail. We are not going to be voting for a return to a Bill Clinton presidency. Hillary has to explain how she will provide "change" for the country. Having a spouse talking about the past isn't going to do it for her.
And, having a spouse who is taking away from her message on the economy and foreign policy issues is petty and demeaning for a former president of the United States.
Watching the Clintons one wonders how much they really want power to help the country or how much they really want power to have power again.
Now that the former president has interjected himself front and center in the campaign of his wife it is time for voters to ask what role will he play in her White House if she is elected.
America actually can survive without a Bush or Clinton in the White House. Voters realize it is time for a change -- hopefully both Clintons will wake up to the fact that we aren't voting for a restoration of Bill's presidency but voting for a candidate with new ideas of his or her own.
Bill, go to Sweden or Hong Kong or somewhere far away from the campaign trail and let your wife run for president on her own. The other candidates seem to be doing just fine running on their own. Hillary, go out on the campaign trail without Bill and battle Obama and Edwards on your own.
Hillary, if you can't win against your Democratic opponents on your own how do you hope to beat your Republican opponent in the fall if you get the nomination.
As a voter, I want to vote for only one person for president--not a husband and wife team to occupy the Oval Office!
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Hey guess what? Obama's people have been working a negative spin on the Clinton's for months. If you don't believe that than you're not paying attention. It's called campaigning.
Obama supporters had no problem when Oprah helped him just before the Iowa caucuses but now they cry foul when Hillary uses her husbands support.
Do you really think that HRC should be the only candidate that can't use her spouse on the campaign trail?
"It is very unfair for Obama to have to respond to two Clintons?" Oh the poor baby. Obama supporters don't seem to realize that their continual whining about the Clintons makes their candidate seem weak? If he does win the nomination the Republicans will be locked and loaded with lots of lines about "how can he stand up to Al Qaeda when he can't even stand up to the Clintons?"
In 2000 the Bush campaign at the direction of Karl Rove was able to label Al Gore as a liar, suffering serial mendacity, a "Pinochio" problem. It was based on intentional misrepresentations coupled with the viral effect of a Media only too willing to propagate the myth. In 2004, Kerry was swiftboated, stripping him of the deserved honor for his service to the nation. He was then deemed by Bush et al as a "flip-flopper." Again the main stream media were only too willing to facilitate the spread of damaging, if untrue information about candidate Kerry.
What is happening now regarding Bill Clinton and the Hillary Clinton campaign is exactly the same. Rather than address the substance at the core of the Clinton positions regarding Obama, the Obama campaign have used these “crazy Bill” mischaracterizations as a strategic distraction. And the main stream media, has been all too willing on this point, to give the Obama campaign a pass.
AS a result we are bombarded with media stories about Bill unhinged or "Bill:Take a Vacation" stories instead of demands from Obama to actually respond in substance instead of in unfounded accusation.
The Rezko Obama relationship needs explaining. The disconnect between anti war Obama and Senator Obama needs explaining. The "present" votes in Illinois need explaining. The strategy by the Obama campaign to ferment racially charged accusations against the Clinton campaign needs explaining. The cocaine use needs explaining.
And most importantly the Obama campaign needs to raise the level of discourse and allow Obama to respond in a manner which allows his candidacy
to be truly vetted.
Think of this as a preview to the next four or eight years if Hillary becomes president. The Bill and Hillary Show II.
Once again our political scene will be reduced to tabloid fodder, with the right wing echo machine off in high gear, while Bill makes the rounds shilling and Hillary goes into donor payback mode. What a sham. I'll vote Obama to get a fresh start, new blood and send all these old hacks off to pasture where they belong. Another eight years of Limbaugh, Savage, Hannity, Orrin Hatch, versus the Clinton machine while America rots. I don't think so. Get me the f*&^ out of here.
The spectacle of a former President assuming the role of a Hit Man for his wife’s primary campaign is a repulsive disgrace. In the recent South Carolina debate Hillary Clinton attempted to dismiss the enormous influence and power of a former President’s advocacy by making the ridiculous assertion that each candidate had a passionate spouse supporting their cause.
Bill Clinton’s “passions” have been painfully well documented and have nothing to do with Michelle Obama. Senator Obama is committed to ending the partisan divide that has debilitated Washington and build a broad based, inclusive majority to drive change. In contrast, the Clintons are lusting for the opportunity to fan the flames of scorched earth politics, perpetuating the dysfunctional status quoi.
The Clinton machine will do whatever it takes; pander, distort, triangulate, fabricate, smear, lie, and pretend to cry, in order to hold onto and expand their power. As a former supporter of Bill Clinton, I will sit on the sidelines in November, as will millions of other Obama supporters, if his wife prevails in the Democratic primary. With 87% of Republicans strongly disapproving of her, she would energize their base to a degree that would be beyond Karl Rove’s wildest fantasy, thus ensuring another loss for the Democrats.
The country faces enormous challenges and can not afford to continue the twenty year Bush/Clinton infighting and gridlock that has polarized the country in a Red state/Blue state mentality. Barrack Obama will build a diverse coalition to bring people of every persuasion together in pursuit of the common good. In addition, he is uniquely suited to restore our nation’s tarnished global image and give an eloquent, inspirational voice to an America that we can once again be proud of. It is time to have the courage to elect Barrack Obama as the next President of the United States.
I'm sure the Obama fan club at the Huffington Post are wishing Bill Clinton would take a vacation.
Typical Obama hero-worshipper who thinks he's astute enough to give Bill Clinton political advice.
I'm all for people supporting the candidate they want but the ugly, vicious, demeaning way the majority of Obama's people are attacking Hillary is a real turn off for me. I don't hear Hillary supporters using those tactics against Obama. Which candidate is using Rovian tactics? It's obvious to me.
I don't even want him on the ticket anymore because of you. He has divided the party with HIS claims of racism. It seems that every time a black candidate gets behind out comes the race card, even against the Clintons. I'm sick of it.
I completely disagree.
I hear a lot of regular-type people who think that Bill is funny, still has the charm, and are amazed by how he's willing to campaign and take the heat on her behalf.
Now, the pundits all seem to find this bad.
I've yet to see exactly why they think it's so "disrespectful of the role of a former president."
Why?
Where's this mysterious rulebook?
i completely agree!
Mr. Guttman --
An excellent post. I, too, have lost all regard I formerly had for Bill Clinton -- he is an abomination to me now -- and a looming tragedy for the Democratic Party if they don't get their act together and force him to shut up.
This is a classic example of an individual (two, if you include Hillary) who suffers from an extreme case of narcissism. He, and she, are willing to risk the destruction of the political party that put them in power, just to satisfy their own selfish whims.
Their use of dirty politics against Obama, the lies and distortions they employ, the whispered racial slurs and enuendos, and the rigging of caucuses and primaries to their advantage are all symptoms of two people who are deeply disturbed (mentally) and deeply flawed in their characters.
We already have that in the WH. We don't need to repeat our mistakes by replacing one unstable person (two, if you count Dick Cheney) with another. And I don't think Bill is even qualified to give advice anymore, because he's acting like he believes his own press clippings -- that's scary!
If the Clintons want to redeem themselves with the American public, Hillary should drop out of the race today. And Bill should do as you suggest.
>"William Jefferson Clinton is an astute politician, probably one of the best political minds in the past fifty years, who appears to have lost his exceptional skills campaigning for his wife."<
Ever think he is still astute and wants to make sure she doesn't win? He's got nothing to gain from her winning. She might do a better job than him. He'd be having every move looked at again for at least the next four years. There is just no upside for him if she wins. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
I think Bill succeeded in doing just what he set out to do. He has made the national conversation about him -- and thus about his wife. And the press and broadcast media just went there. It's news for them, and for us, well, it's either we have seen the future (literally) or it's a McCain Whitehouse and there goes the Supreme Court.
By the way, there is one above-the-fray candidate out there who has led on ideas and policy (Hillary copied his healthcare plan) and frankly on decorum and it's John Edwards. And his economic plans have been praised by thirty of the top progressive economists in the country.
Instead, here we are, talking about Bill.
Poor Hillary. The disaster of one Bush following another is being unfairly applied to the Clinton's. Whereas with the Bushes we had one lousy presidency followed by a even lousier one. With the Clintons we could well have one good presidency (sans Monica) followed by another.
The fear of having one brillian person running our government supported by an equally brilliant spouse is exciting as opposed to one neophyte with little experence who has been a long time patron of an indicted slum lord.
Maybe the days of singular presidencies is a thing of the past. Hillary is head and shoulders above all other candidates, but throw in Bill and we may be able to overcome the carnage left by George Bush.
I haven't seen Bill Clinton do or say anything inapropriate during this campaign. He's advocating for his wife as he should be, not his fault the media reports every single word he says like it the event of the day. I hope they keep it up in the general, it would be nice to win the Whitehouse again before I die. Bill's out doing what he does best, same as Michelle and Elizabeth, I've heard both of them say some pretty disgusting things, the media just doesn't shine such a spotlight on them.
The Clintons attack, then say they're being attacked. They throw mud, then claim the other side it doing it too, only worse.
What Bill told reporters the other day is a good example. "When he put out a hit job on me, at the same time he called her the senator from Punjab, I never said a word."
Of course the news ran with it. Why wouldn't they, Bill Clinton getting all red-faced again? That's a no-brainer; something like that ends up on the tube. The only problem is it's a bunch of hogwash.
Obama never called Hillary the Senator from Punjab. That was from a memo last June, which Obama disavowed. And as for the "hit job"...who knows what he was talking about, it was never explained. But it doesn't matter. As long as the Clintons are able to get the average Joe sitting on his couch to think: "boy, Bill looks realy pissed about Obama slinging mud."
The Clinton campaign strategy is transparently insulting.
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