Bill Clinton Hits Trail in First Campaign Appearances for Obama
By Kristin Jensen
Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Five weeks before Election Day, Bill Clinton made his first campaign appearance -- for Barack Obama.
A former Democratic president stumping for his own party's nominee wouldn't usually be noteworthy, except that Clinton for months has been slow to praise Obama and quick to compliment his rival, Republican John McCain.
The complicated relationship between Clinton and Obama, who prevailed over Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination, has engendered ill feelings on both sides.
Yesterday, however, Bill Clinton told Florida voters that Obama offers ``better answers'' than McCain for America's ills.
``Better answers for the economy, for energy, for health care, for education,'' Clinton told more than 5,000 people at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. ``He knows what it will take to get this country back on track.
``It matters who the president is,'' Clinton said. ``It matters what the decisions are. It matters what the policies are.''
At times this year, tension between Obama and Clinton has been unmistakable. The Democratic National Convention featured several days of drama about soothing bitterness among delegates who backed Hillary Clinton and were reluctant to surrender.
Clinton supporters say Obama hasn't done enough to reach out to the former president, the only Democrat to win two White House terms since Franklin Roosevelt, and the last Democratic presidential candidate to carry Florida, in 1996.
First Foray
Obama's campaign praises Hillary Clinton's effort on his behalf. The New York senator has held more than 40 events and fundraisers for Obama since early June. By contrast, two Florida rallies yesterday marked her husband's first foray on the campaign trail for the Democratic ticket.
Since Obama wrapped up the nomination in June, Clinton, 62, has sent ambiguous signals of support. During an ABC News interview in August, Clinton avoided a question about whether Obama, 47, is ready to be president. ``You could argue that no one's ever ready to be president,'' Clinton said.
The day before Clinton's Florida rallies, McCain's campaign released a new commercial that featured a video clip of Clinton, saying Democrats bear some responsibility for the collapse of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Clinton avoided attacks on McCain during his campaign remarks in Orlando, instead making a case that Obama has the right prescription for the financial crisis. Clinton asked supporters to compare Republican George W. Bush's eight-year economic stewardship with economic prosperity during his eight years in office.
`Bar of Love'
Clinton's perceived ambivalence for Obama's candidacy prompted a parody on NBC's ``Saturday Night Live.'' The Comedy Central network's ``Daily Show'' show host Jon Stewart jokingly questioned Clinton last month about how he could show he had met the ``bar of love'' for Obama.
In a Sept. 28 interview on NBC's ``Meet the Press,'' Clinton talked about McCain's ``greatness'' and hedged when asked if he'd say the same of Obama.
``Look, I had my first conversation with him in my entire life in Harlem,'' Clinton said, referring to a Sept. 11 meeting at his New York office. ``When he becomes president, he'll be doing things for the American people and the world. And the greatness will then become apparent because of the good he'll do.''
Political Value
The awkward personal relationship aside, Clinton's potential political value to Obama showed in the fact that the former president's campaign debut was set in Florida -- where opinion polls show a competitive race for the state's 27 Electoral College votes, the fourth-most in the country.
Florida's electoral votes decided the 2000 election between Bush and then-Vice President Al Gore. Floridians backed Bush in 2004 over Democrat John Kerry.
In another potentially decisive political battleground, Ohio's Democratic Governor Ted Strickland advised Obama's tacticians to deploy Bill Clinton heavily in parts of the state.
In Orlando yesterday, Clinton focused on the economy. Obama's priorities, when consulting his economic advisers about the financial crisis, show what kind of president he will be, Clinton said.
``You know what he said? `Tell me what the problem is and how to fix it, and don't bother me with politics. Let's do the right thing, and we'll sell it to America,''' Clinton said.
Enthusiastic Support
Voters at the rally said Clinton seemed as enthusiastic as possible about Obama's candidacy.
``I've always believed in Bill Clinton,'' said Gaby Pena, 21, a University of Central Florida student. ``So for him to support Barack Obama the way he does makes me believe even more'' that Obama is the right choice, she said.
It's not clear how many voters Clinton won over in the hot Florida sun. Interviews with two dozen people before and after his Orlando speech found 24 people who already supported Obama.
Clinton has played a relatively small role in recent presidential elections. Gore, his vice president, chose not to appear with Clinton in the closing weeks of his 2000 campaign because internal polls showed independent voters were upset by Clinton's extramarital affair with Monica Lewinsky.
In 2004, Clinton underwent heart surgery and was only able to campaign for Democrats at the end of October. Still, a Philadelphia rally attended by Clinton and Kerry drew between 80,000 and 100,000 people.
In a Sept. 30 interview, Massachusetts Senator Kerry steered around the question of whether he was disappointed that Clinton hadn't done more for Obama's candidacy this year.
``I'd love to see President Clinton out there more affirmatively and loudly,'' Kerry said.
To contact the reporter on this story: Kristin Jensen in Orlando at kjensen@bloomberg.net.
Last Updated: October 2, 2008 00:01 EDT |
