Spare Change?

Published February 5, 2008

Analyzing the Impact of Bill Clinton’s Prominent Role in the 2008 Election

By Peter Salerno

For some reason it feels like a vote for Hillary Clinton these days means a third term for husband and former U.S. President Bill Clinton. Even though Bill isnt officially on the ballot he is making more news on the campaign trail recently than his wife Hilary. I’m sure Hilary thought her husband’s status as a favorite amongst Democratic voters was always an asset she could count on, but since the New Hampshire Primary Bill has taken the campaign by storm.

Once Barack Obama won the state of Iowa the Clinton camp felt it needed a boost in its campaign. What better boost is there then calling on your husband who has actually served in the White House to help you sure up victories?

Bill stepped in during the New Hampshire Primary and began his vociferous campaign in support of his wife. All this alone would have helped him make headlines, yet what made him the headline was the slander he aimed at Barack Obama. On the night before the New Hampshire Primary, Bill made a speech in which he called Barack’s anti-war stance a “fairy-tale”, when in fact Barack has stood in opposition to the war since the very beginning.

Bill is a man with many passions-as his presidency revealed-yet the passion he will succomb to over all the rest is that insatiable need to be in the limelight.. The man enjoys nothing more than gaining an audience’s attention and playing the part of salesman. He basically took care of all the campainging in South Carolina for his wife, working as a de facto proxy in the state’s primary. Again in South Carolina his campaign tactics turned into an ugly mud-slinging effort aimed at Obama. He attacked the candidate’s opposition to the Iraq War again and other issues such as Obama’s commments on former President Ronald Raegan during an interview.

It is interesting to note these recent attacks in South Carolina were also based on racial themes and actually backfired. The man once hailed as the most successful white politician to ever unite both black and white voters has lost his touch. He was known for being able to converse with the black community without condescension and his track record shows his success. Yet his recent remarks have actually divided black voters and pitted them against the Hilary campaign.

Even more startling, it has forced a one time Bill supporter to come out and support Barack for those very same comments he made. Massachusettes Senator Ted Kennedy, along with much of South Carolina, was put off by the comments made. Now it seems that Bill is getting too much spotlight, that he may actually be hurting his wife, after all she seems to win without him and with him it’s a toss up. Maybe people are sick of Bill or maybe he just doesnt have that same talent for slinging bullshit anymore.

Sadly enough this writer believes that from the beginning this campaign has been as much about how much the voters liked what Bill did as it is about what Hilary will do. It’s not a stretch to think that Bill and Hilary are aware of this fact, but it seems they’ve placed all their political eggs in that one strategic basket. Honestly, though, for a country that is calling for change how can a presidential lineup such as Bush Sr., Bill Clinton, Bill Clinton, Bush Jr., Bush Jr., be capped off by another Clinton and still be called change?

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