Bill Clinton’s role in his wife’s campaign is one of the most fascinating stories of the election, as evidenced by this NYT article. He’s been a pretty consistent newsmaker on the campaign trail, as one would imagine. Oftentimes the news he’s made has revolved around two criticisms:
- He is more campaigning for his legacy and his ego than for his wife;
- His periodic angry outbursts have made him a liability.
I have to say, I’m skeptical of both of these criticisms (which is not to say I’m skeptical of the media’s ability to convince a lot of people the criticisms are well grounded). For all his real and perceived faults, there has always been general agreement that Bill Clinton is a masterful politician. He has weathered many storms (most of his own making) to endure as one of the most popular presidents of the 20th Century. Given that, is it really likely that he has lost his grip on the pulse of this country so quickly that he’s fallen into two such obvious traps? Or might it perhaps be more likely that he is willing to throw himself into the middle of the campaign and expend a little of his political capital and reputation to do these things:
- Remind people how happy they were when a Clinton was president;
- Emphasize his legacy as a candidate of populist change and then point out how it his is wife and not Barack Obama that is rightful heir to that role;
- Act as the most well-respected attack dog any national candidate has ever had.
Maybe it’s true that Bill Clinton is like some kind of punch-drunk heavyweight who has sadly stumbled on to the national stage again to pathetically embarrass and hurt his wife’s campaign. Or just maybe, the president who only ten years ago managed to sidestep a sordid sex scandal and leave office with sky-high approval ratings, actually knows what he’s doing.
2 comments:
There is no doubt that when it comes to political savvy, Bill Clinton is as well-endowed as they come. But hasn’t he also demonstrated with great clarity his propensity for narcissism. Couldn’t it be that BOTH of the scenarios you present are true. Concreting his own legacy and sincerely using his skills to campaign for his wife certainly don’t seem mutually exclusive to me. If anything, I think the campaign flubs the media is reporting (accurately or not) are illustrative of Hillary’s weakness as a candidate. The best jockey in the world would look like a jackass riding an old nag at Churchill Downs.
I'm sure you're right; that this is a guy who thinks he is THE GREATEST and wants to make sure others think so too. I just believe that this portrait of him as some has-been who doesn't know what he's doing is ridiculous.
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