Bill Clinton offers help to Obama
Senator says support from couple essential
Former President Bill Clinton, who has been noticeably reticent in his backing for Barack Obama, finally offered his endorsement yesterday, issuing a one-sentence statement through a spokesman.
Relations between the last Democratic president and the candidate who wants to be the next one are frosty - they still have not spoken in the aftermath of the long, bitter fight between Hillary Clinton and Obama. Bill Clinton's first comment in support of Obama since his wife conceded the race and offered her "full support" to Obama on June 7 came in a single sentence from spokesman Matt McKenna: "President Clinton is obviously committed to doing whatever he can and is asked to do to ensure Senator Obama is the next president of the United States."
It is not known what kind of campaigning Obama might ask him to do, though the former president was effective in rural areas with lower-class white voters, among whom Obama struggled. At this point, Clinton is not scheduled to appear with his wife and Obama at their first joint rally of the general election campaign, Friday in Unity, N.H. McKenna said the former president is in Europe this week.
Obama told CNN yesterday that he will need the help of both Clintons to win the White House. "They're going to want to campaign actively on behalf of the Democratic ticket," he said. "I am going to need them."
He called Bill Clinton "one of the most intelligent, charismatic political leaders that we have seen in a generation and he has got a lot of wisdom to impart."
In the CNN interview, Obama said Hillary Clinton is "going to be a force to be reckoned with not only in the Senate, but hopefully if I'm successful in the White House she's going to be one of my key partners in making sure that we're moving forward on issues like healthcare that she cares so deeply about."
She made a triumphant return of sorts yesterday to the US Senate, where she arrived for the first time since ending her presidential bid.
Walking into the Capitol, she was greeted with cheers and applause, and stopped to shake hands with interns. Inside, she was hugged by close supporters. And at a closed luncheon with fellow Democratic senators, applause and the clinking of silverware carried far into the hallway. Clinton gave a short speech saying she was glad to be back and planned to do everything she could to help Obama win the White House and Democrats win races across the country.
When Clinton emerged from the luncheon, she dismissed a question about the likelihood that she would be Obama's running mate. "I am not seeking any other position. . . . This is totally Senator Obama's decision and that's the way it should be," she told reporters. "My role is to be the very best senator I can be and represent the greatest state in our country."
Asked about attempts by Republican John McCain to attract her supporters, Clinton said, "Anyone who voted for me has very little in common with the Republican Party."
"If you care about the issues I care about and the future that I outlined in my campaign, then you really have to stay with us in the Democratic Party and vote Senator Obama to be our next president," she added, according to MSNBC.
She is being more of a party loyalist than Bill Clinton, who was a vociferous supporter of her and an outspoken critic of Obama during the primaries. He said Obama's opposition to the Iraq war was a "fairy tale" and raised questions about whether the first-term Illinois senator had the experience to lead the country. Clinton accused the Obama camp at one point of playing the race card against him. During one debate, Obama snapped at Hillary Clinton, "I can't tell who I'm running against sometimes."
She struggled for most of the campaign with how exactly to use her husband, who seemed to upstage her at times and whose angry outbursts tarnished his image.
Democratic consultant Mark Kornblau said the benefits of having Bill Clinton's help outweigh the negatives for Obama. He said Clinton could travel to economically struggling states such as Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Michigan and talk about the prosperity under his presidency and promote Obama's vision.
"He can connect in parts of the country where Senator Obama may need some help, like the Rust Belt, and it will help in further unifying the party after a fractious primary," said Kornblau, who was a spokesman for Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards. "The downside, as we saw in the primary, is that it's a little roll of the dice. But I think it's worth the risk." 