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Bill Defends His Legacy, Offers Interesting Interpretation of Obama's Words

February 09, 2008 8:47 AM

So much of former President Bill Clinton's passion, shall we say, on the campaign trail these last few weeks is not just when he's discussing his wife, but when he's defending his legacy as President.

It's very clearly that in his view, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, belittles the Clinton legacy. (And in fact the Obama campaign has put out a mailer, see it HERE arguing that the Clintons were bad for the Democratic party in the 90s.)

ABC News' Sarah Amos reports that in New Orleans Friday before a crowd of 300 at Dillard University, Clinton said the following:

"You have a pretty clear but a difficult choice in this election for many people. Two gifted compassionate public servants.  One who argues that the best way to change America is just to change the personnel, and to make a new beginning with people who have not been involved in the fights of the past --even an explicit argument that the '90s weren't much better than this decade. I don't know about you but I think the nineties were a whole lot better than this decade."

???

"An explicit argument that the '90s weren't much better than this decade"?

I don't think Obama has come close to saying that -- though probably to the former President it feels like he has.

Obama did say that Ronald Reagan "changed the trajectory of American in a way that Richard Nixon did not, and in a way that Bill Clinton did not"....but I believe he was talking about a president getting a sweeping mandate from the American people. And that was the 80s, anyway, not the current decade.

Still, that comment, you could tell, got under Bill Clinton's skin, so much so that he started telling crowds that Obama "said President Reagan was the engine of innovation and did more, had a more lasting impact on America than I did."

("Engine of innovation"??)

Obama has certainly had praise for the 1990s and the Clinton presidency.

Surely more modest praise than Bill Clinton would make, but praise nonetheless.

I can't say that I've ever seen him make "an explicit argument that the '90s weren't much better than this decade."

"So there is going to be a change, alright, if we Democrats win," Clinton went on last night at Dillard. "We're going to change from what happened in the last seven years. But I don't think we'll make very good changes if we pretend that everything that happened in the '90s didn't amount to much."

I'm posting this on Saturday morning. I have reached out to the Clinton and Obama campaigns for some explanations and clarifications and will update when and if they come....

Happy Saturday!

- jpt, Bangor, Maine 8:47 am ET

UPDATE: As requested, here's the Clinton campaign's backup for the former president's claim, followed by Obama campaign-provided comments of the senator praising Mr. Clinton.

Despite President Clinton's claim, the campaign was not able to provide any evidence that Obama ever made an "explicit argument that the '90s weren't much better than this decade."

Here's what Obama HAS said, however:

-- Obama said he would tackle problems 'that were there long before George Bush took office. "'We have the chance, maybe for the first time in a generation, to come together and start tackling problems that George [W.] Bush made worse but that were there long before George Bush took office,' Obama said in another swipe at Clinton, who often invokes her husband's presidency as a model." [politico.com, 12/26/07]

-- "Americans of all parties, Obama declared in Waterloo, 'have lost their trust in their government and want to believe that we can do great things again. That is why this is a moment both of great challenge but also great opportunity. I think our politics is up for grabs right now. I think we have the chance -- for maybe the first time in a generation -- to bring the country together, to form a working majority and finally tackle problems that George Bush may have made far worse, but were festering long before George Bush ever took office.'" [Salon.com, 12/18/07]

-- Obama said he would tackle problems 'that festered long before George Bush took office' "The six leading Democratic presidential candidates showed up for the Iowa Democratic Party's big Jefferson Jackson Dinner on Saturday night, and five of them gave very good speeches... Obama took another dig at the Clinton era when he said 'we have a chance to bring the country together to tackle problems that George Bush made far worse and that festered long before George Bush took office.'" [Des Moines Register, 11/15/07]

-- Obama said the Bush administration's 'divisive' politics was not new to the city -- 'They didn't invent it' "'Obama even took swipes at Clinton while bashing President Bush. He said the administration's 'divisive' politics was not new to the city - 'They didn't invent it. It was there before they got to Washington,' Obama said." [The Hill, 9/4/07]

-- Obama said problems like those surrounding health care have been around before Bush 'through Republican and Democratic administrations.' "Problems such as those surrounding healthcare have been around before Bush 'through Republican and Democratic administrations,' he added, apparently referring to Clinton's healthcare battles of the 1990s as first lady. 'We need to turn the page. We need to write a new chapter in American history,' Obama said." [The Hill, 9/4/07]

-- Obama said that health care, energy, and education were 'problems that predate the Bush administration.' "We all agree that the last six years have been disastrous for America, both at home and abroad. But the fact is that the big challenges we face, whether it's health care or a bold energy strategy or schools that aren't producing young people that can compete on the global stage, those are problems that predate the Bush administration. They're not just Republican problems. They're Democratic problems and American problems." ["Quotes from Democratic debate," Associated Press, 8/19/07]

......And here are some comments Obama made praising President Clinton, provided by Obama's campaign.

-- Obama Praised Bill Clinton For Focusing The Democratic Party On The Middle Class, There Are "Good Memories Of His Economic Policies Of The 1990s." The Concord Monitor reported, "Obama gave credit for that consensus to former President Bill Clinton. ‘He helped refocus the Democratic Party on the middle class, on getting things done, he shook out some of the excesses of the Democratic Party, because he was the right person at the right time.’ He acknowledged the formidable opponents he faced in both Clintons, calling the former president ‘an extraordinary politician’ who helped his wife gain ‘a network that was built over 20 years...There's a lot of fondness for him in the Democratic Party and good memories of his economic policies of the 1990s,’ Obama said." [Concord Monitor, 12/22/07]

-- Obama Said He Admired Bill Clinton And That He Did A Lot Of Fine Things As President. Obama said, "I admire Bill Clinton, I think he did a lot of fine things as president and he's a terrific political strategist. What we're more interested in is in looking forward, not looking backward. I think the American people feel the same way. They are looking for a way to break out of the harsh partisanship and the old arguments and solve problems...Change can't just be a slogan. Change has to mean that we're not doing the same old thing that we've been doing." [AP, 7/5/07]

-- Obama Praised Bill Clinton For Campaigning Across The Whole Country. Obama said, "One of the problems for the Democratic Party is we've been overly reliant on the courts to yank us out of some of our electoral problems. I have confidence we can win elections. A great example is our avoidance of "red states" during presidential campaigns. The fact that we don't actively campaign in the South makes no sense to me. We may not win every one of those states, but it makes a difference that we don't even bother competing there. Why shouldn't we take our message to Mississippi or Alabama? That's part of the reason Bill Clinton did well, his attitude was, there's nobody I can't talk to."   [The Nation]

February 9, 2008 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (73)

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American political life and the parts played by it's citizens in it have long been observed and commented upon with ridicule all over Europe, Asia and Africa.

Over the past few decades, especially after the Vietnam war, Americans are viewed generally as ignorant of the world around them. That may be a fact, but the ramifications of it are good and bad. Good because such ignorance truly comes out of the vastness/isolation/independence of the USA which enabled it to become the dominant economy in the world by the turn of th elast century.
This nature was also created and engendered by a 'republican' (in the true sense of the word, and not in anyway resembling the conservative core of your blue party) tradition of fairness and equality which your great country taught bastions of the old world in Europe.

Bad, is this ignorance because the world of today and the future is a global village, knitted closer together by technology, ( I am posting this to you from a locality in West Africa where Per Capita Income is about $2/day and I barely make 3 times that) and one in which increasing numbers of the disenfranchised/unfortunate are getting better educated, better informed, more involved and opinionated, so much so that the global roles of America's bad past and present elements can be magnified/distorted/twisted and 'propaganded' beyond reason by new and illusive antisocial enemies of global peace to even drown out the global roles of America's excellent past and present elements.

Barak Obama's mission should be the mission of all Americans. Get back to such a socio-politico-economically puritanical message that re-places your great country back heads and shoulders above the rest of the world AND STAY THERE!

Yours is really God's own country. Of course, quite naturally, paradoxically, most of you don't really know why! Most of us outside, from near-enougfh God forsaken countries as most in Europe, Asia and Africa come from, KNOW TOO WELL WHY YOURS IS GOD'S OWN COUNTRY -

It is the closest and best place on earth wherefore dreams, truly great dreams, true dreams, the stuff of gloriously stark reality, are played out in the lives of ordinary people - where boundaries and barriers of class, age, colour, etc are continually and systemically being worked against and brought down, BUT, where one distinction has reared its ugly head since the 'fall' of FDR - the CASH barrier.

The 'experience' and 'connections' of teh Clintons refers in reality to only one thing, big business and the old politics that it needs to maintain its grip on the middle and lower economic strata.

Barak's 'CHANGE' simply means - America's greatness is built on teh fact that you will continuosly fight against oppression of all kinds wherever and whenever it rears it sugly head.

LET ME GIVE YOU SOME POIGNANT THOUGHTS.
Over the last few decades, you have been letting it slip. Gone is the day when a lippy little boy from Loiusville defeated the government on a simple point of principle and nowadays, young blacks posture and follow 'role' models that glorify and worship CASH, CARS, JETS< & JEWELS!!!!

Even well broughtup downright poor kids from my locality look down at this monstrously misfitting anti-culture and wonder why black American youth are so confused so as not to realise what damage they are doing to theri generations unborn, by taking the bait of the collapse of their 60s revolution.

The more fortunate Americans are not fairing much better - look at divorce rates, high-class individual sexual & violent crime rates, etc, all down to the cancer of misplaced CASH priorities!

Yours is a great country, where Oprah can become who she is, able to galvanise this unlikely lad, who may well, if enough of you realise it and get behind him, become a symbol of global change, FDR/JFK rolled into one American gift to the world.

Inexperience? That's what the forever divisive Tories and Leftist Labour said about Tony Blair when the Labour Party were about to pick him - look what a bloody nose he gave them all!

As I said in a separate blog issue - America has a lot to thank Bush Snr & Colin Powell for - they have created a ffresh political powerhouse aimed at eradicating the cynical old-school-in-fighting-while-big-business-continues genre which capitalises on focusing you locally alone, and replacing it with a new all-inclusive-can-do-globally-aware-confident-proudly-American-youthful spirit that takes all the good aspects of change and new knowledge and couples with the power of your traditional ideas and character to avert apathy and change the world!

The Clintons aren't going to do any more than the did with their last 8 years - fiddle about with personal/compromising issues, irrelevant old-school yard battles with the blues, while teh big business continues and the hawks prepare and a horrendously worse and more illusive global enemy of peace emerges out of the smoke and time wasted to take us back another few decades!

Barak Obama 2008 America.

Posted by: Taj | Feb 11, 2008 6:30:53 AM

Whoever takes Bill and Hillary Clinton serious will believe any thing when 'is' does not mean is to them.

I DID NOT HAVE SEXUAL RELATION WITH THAT WOMAN, MONICA LEWINSKY. THAT'S THEM - THE CLINTONS OR BILLARY.

Posted by: Kizeem | Feb 11, 2008 2:26:37 AM

First, I believe both candidates are a world better then anything the repub's will throw at us.
On Obama. I can not dog him for havin a dream of change from the old ways, the old players , the past and into the future and all BUT all of this just does not happen because a person gets elected president. What America has created for itself,that, as he states predated Bush era ACTUALLY is a product of our american political system. A product of a nation in the process of growing up and living and learning and maturing.Yes in this process of evolvement there were positives and negatives. There were suCcesses and Failures. We all know that without FAILURES we have no real success. It is through fallin down that one learns how to get back up. It is only through humility that one really actually learns, grows and heals. I wholeheartedly believe that as a nation we have put ourselves into a situation where we have experienced much pain. I believe that as a nation we have grown and learned that there is a better way.That our decisions resulted in much negativity to America on the world stage. At this point in time to point a finger, to make efforts to blame, to discard the past as if not acknowledging the past will somehow take us to some heavenly place is rather naive. To disregard, to deny that Experience such as what a Hillary has would be like a rebellious teenager who goes off early in life only to come back later in life after gettin hammered into submission, a reasonableness that one learns from gettin hurt enough. The USA needs to change it desposition to the rest of the world , specifically to the middle east. This will NOT only require inspiring words, energy but more importantly EXPERIENCE WITH THAT INSPIRATIOn. hERE THEN IS THE LADY WHOM WE KNOW AS HILLARY.HILLARY WITH THE LIKES OF OBAMA TOGETHER WOULD BE A DREAMTEAM THAT WOULD NOT ONLY INSPIRE BUT HAVE THE SUBSTANCE RIGHT OFF RUNNING ON VERY FIRST DAY OF A DEMOCRATIC ADMINISTRATION. oBAMA AT HIS AGE WOULD BE IN THE MOST PERFECT PLACE TO CONTINUE THE DREAM OF SHAKIN AND MOVIN AMERICA TO ITS RIGHTFUL PLACE. A PLACE OF HONOR, LEADERSHIP AND AND ATTRACTION RATHER THEN THIS AGGRESSIVE PROMOTIONAL TACTIC OF IMPOSING DEMOCRACIES ON THIS PLANET. wE WILL THEN LEAD AND ATTRACT RATHER IMPOSE AND ANTAGONIZE OTHERS.
i HOPE AND PRAY THAT hILLARY AND oBAMA WILL DO THE RIGHT THING FOR THE SAKE OF OUR PARTY, OUR COUNTRY, OUR CHILDREN, OTHER COUNTRIES AND LAST BUT MOST IMPORTANT OUR PLANET. AMEN.

Posted by: AscencionCastaneda | Feb 11, 2008 12:07:31 AM

ann429, you don't know what the other campaigns are doing. In the same way that no one knew or knows that campaigns loan money to themselves and it's normal, because they are not scrutinized the way the Clintons are by the Right Wing Owned 24 hr News Media.

Posted by: irma | Feb 10, 2008 4:53:13 PM

Bill Clinton's only legacy was
an intern in the Oval Office named Monica. He disgraced the office and this nation. He was impeached and disbarred.

Bill Clinton's presidency was one lie after another with "I did not have se.... relations with that woman", "What Is The Meaning of Is", and "Oral S.. isn't se.... relations".

I saw him the other night on a CNN interview where with cold, steely eyes, he very carefully stated he would only be a "part time" consultant to Hillary and carry out "specific assignments" she requested him to do. I don't think I have ever seen such cold caclulating eyes. It made me shiver.

Now I'm not a great judge of body language but I'm telling you it wasn't even a human moment.

Posted by: What Is the Meaning Of Is | Feb 10, 2008 1:29:00 PM

Religion affects someone who believes. Politics does that too and to what profit, it depends. It is easier to make the more educated by school and books not those educated by life itself to band wagon with someone advocating change from the status quo in general. That idea is what the activist are fighting for and in old school.. when you are in your twenties and early thirties it is right to be an activist, fight everything you do not think right and give your all but in your forties and henceforth you have to weigh and pray to have the courage to change the things you can as the prayer of St. francis goes, serenity to accept the things you cannot change and to know the difference. To want a change for something that you cannot change and wanted it badly is what leads to fight and war. Hence ,if someone is promising change and a big Yes We Can, it has to be specific or it might lead to chaos.

Posted by: with open heart | Feb 10, 2008 4:19:07 AM

No one is saying that Michelle , or McCains wife or Huckabee wife or any of the candidates are being pimped because they are not out calling super delegates or the ladies of the view saying please vote for my mom. They are doing the things we've seen potential first ladies do for years; have interviews, give speeches and pose for photo ops.

And look at the various definitions of the word pimped....'

1. pimped

1. To utterly destroy your competition
2. To be way tight and decked out in expensive stuff.

1. Dude, you just got pimped.
2. Man that Escalade is totally pimped out! Look at those rims

2. pimped 29 up, 12 down

to have been used and abused

You've been pimped and don't even know it!


3. pimped 19 up, 9 down

To go all out on in a fashion manner.

whoah that dude got himself all pimped out in the black and pink

4. pimped 9 up, 13 down

1. To take easily, without force or additional coaxing.

Ant: Thugged

Duquila just gave me 'bout $3.50 (tree fiddy) when I asked her.

I pimped Duquilas's tree fiddy.

Posted by: ann429 | Feb 10, 2008 3:03:57 AM

The version of this report we got here on West Coast showed a clip of President Clinton's speech. He says that Obama thinks that the ninties (Clinton years) weren't all that good....
Then the the reporter ended by saying that Obama never made a remark like that.
I'm so glad I came to this website and read the update posted by J.T. I interpreted Obama's speech clips the same way Bill Clinton did. Many Obama supporters (too many to list all here) have affirmed by their comments that they understood what Obama was saying and gave reasons why they agree with his "meaning". (Jeremy, Wanda, Reb, et al.)

I am sorry that so many ABC National News viewers only heard the reporter's comments and now believe that Bill Clinton was lying.

If anything, I think Obama should be faulted for being deliberately vague--five times.(see update)

Posted by: Sue | Feb 9, 2008 10:31:56 PM

The reason the Clintons will not be put back in the White House is because their message is muddled and chaotic. 1) They claim Obama is inexperienced, but he's more seasoned then Bill Clinton was in 1992. 2) The Clintons' original message of "readiness", has swerved to become a message of "change" (after they realized that Obama had keyed into the pulse of the electorate). At the same time, the Clinton campaign is one of restoration, not change. 3) Clinton claims to have a superior command fiscal policy, but she busted the budget on the micro-level of her own campaign. In the 90s, the Clintons were truly formidable, but they are showing that they have lost their touch this time around.

Posted by: Donna Schultz | Feb 9, 2008 9:30:38 PM

Why can Chelsea call super delegates and celebs and the CLintons can use this situation to their advantage, embodying Schusters comments (why issue a letter when Schuster was suspended already?) however they won't let her talk to the press. Quacking duck folks.

Posted by: Can I Get Trick | Feb 9, 2008 6:43:19 PM

If this is America; its a disgrace. Say anything about the candidates, but to say a candidates daughter was pimped out is unforgiveable & he should be fired. Does anyone comment on Michelle or Obamas two daughters... NO or McCanns wife or children... NO or Hukabees wife & his children... NO - Why Hillary, Bill & Chelsea?????? What a disgrace of a country. HILLARY HAS MY VOTE even more so now. Think about this AMERICA; if someone said this about one of your children. What would the Mother or Father of that child do? Think about it. This really has gone too far now. ABC, NBC, CBS... what is it about the Clinton family that you need so much negative reporting. I am sure you can find 100's of nice things to say about the Clintons as you find to say about other candidates. Is it that you would like someone else to win instead? NEWS STATIONS REALLY NEED TO BE NEUTRAL, not support one candidate.

Posted by: Fran | Feb 9, 2008 6:21:14 PM

God forbid Bill Clinton stands up for himself. How long before Oprah's Media Machine spins it out of shape and calls him a racist for standing up for his presidency?

Posted by: ThinkNow | Feb 9, 2008 6:12:21 PM

Wow. Just read the comments and I am amazed at the negativity of some opposing Obama. When Obama talks about "change" he's got a track record to back it up. Check out his work on ethics and lobbying reform in both the IL and US Senate, for starters. He's actually delivered more and better legislation over his career than Hillary. There's nothing wrong with being enthusiastic about a candidate. You know they say that "democracy has to be reborn with every generation". We've had decades of youth apathy and to cynically call the enthusiasm for Obama "cultish" is really bad. I think it's a great thing for our country for young people to be enthusiastic and inspired!

Posted by: Jeremy | Feb 9, 2008 6:01:27 PM

Obama is right. Balanced budgets and such are nice, but they are just indications of competency. Clinton did not change the trajectory in this country, as evidenced by the Rep dominance of our discourse and dominance at the polls from 94-04. Furthermore, the Clinton presidency failed to achieve change in regards to festering problems like climate change and health care, to mention just two. For what it's worth, I actually think Hillary could even be a better president than Bill, but to pretend the Clinton presidency was anything more than competent is ridiculous. He did not change the trajectory. We have a chance to really change the trajectory in this country in a progressive direction and I think that Obama has the credibility to take our case to the American people more so than Hillary, who I respect but find competent not inspiring.

Posted by: Jeremy | Feb 9, 2008 5:54:49 PM

Just more denial, misinformation and outright lies from Bill Clinton....I don't know why any one would give him the benefit of the doubt or believe anything he says....I've lost respect for him....

Posted by: Mageya Castedo | Feb 9, 2008 5:23:23 PM

Hillary Clinton is a lady who decided to forgive her husband his infidelity.He didn't seem to realize that oral contact was sex. It seems that many of our young teens feel the same way! I was a Clinton supporter who elected him to a 2nd term and if he could have ran for a 3rd term, I support him.
Now I feel that of the two, Hillary is definitely more capable of being President of our great country.
I will do every thing I can to support her.
I truly doubt that she can overcome the fact that many dislike her,
Now as to lies, Have you not been watching our current Chief make a mockery of the truth and also a mess of the English language.

Posted by: wanda joyce spraggs | Feb 9, 2008 5:16:37 PM

Is or was this country better off after 8 years of the Clintons? First of all, it was because of them that the dems lost the house after 40 years of control, and then lost the senate. NAFTA, was that good for the country? Look at all of the jobs this country has lost since NAFTA. I don't understand how blue collar workers and the unions can support Billary after NAFTA. The scandals, 8 years of petty bickering and fighting with the Clintons and the Clinton haters. Impeachment, he lied under oath, he lied about all of the women. Do we really want this back in the white house again? It's time to turn the page America.

Posted by: Carolyn Grace | Feb 9, 2008 4:16:05 PM

NAFTA was originally fast-tracked by Bush senior and later signed into law by Bill Clinton. Also, keep in mind that Bill Clinton was a conservative Democrat who promoted pro-corporate neo-liberal economic policies-policies that have helped make the U.S. the wealthiest nation on Earth with the widest gap between rich and poor of any industrialized nation

Posted by: REB | Feb 9, 2008 4:12:52 PM

Bill Clinton was the worst thing that happened to blue collar workers: how do you spell NAFTA?

The last time the Clintons got elected they did it by making boat load of promises to the working people of this Country. Once they got in they flushed their promises down the drain of NAFTA and GATT with the help of Gingrich's Congress.

What makes the working class they are going to keep their promises this time around?

This is as bad as Mitt Romney going to Michigan to promise to bring back the jobs he helped export in the first place!

Why should we believe them this time around?


If you think she has a chance against McCain when all this comes out, you are dreaming.

Posted by: Ben | Feb 9, 2008 4:09:44 PM

Barack Obama is the son of a pretty white woman from Kansas and a black man from Kenya. Ya gotta love that. He is a decent, intelligent man, with a great sense of justice, and is worthy of being the next United States President. He is a symbol of hope in the country and in the world. Sail on, Mr. Obama! May a fair wind be at your back.

Posted by: Joan | Feb 9, 2008 3:55:28 PM

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