2016 Postmortem
Related: About this forumWhen it comes to subtly shading President Obama, Bill Clinton just can’t help himself
"Earlier this week, while speaking at a Hillary Clinton campaign rally in Washington state, former President Bill Clinton asserted that a vote for his wife, Hillary, would help America put the awful legacy of the last eight years behind us and the seven years before that, where we were practicing trickle-down economics with no regulation in Washington
Beg your pardon?
Within hours of its first report, Angel Urena, a spokesperson for the former president, said that Clinton was referring to Republican members of Congress who made it their number one goal to block Mr. Obama at every turn. By the first days end, Clinton supporters on social media were citing Urenas explanation as if it was the actual quote.
The problem with Urenas defense is that Bill Clinton is a brilliant former lawyer, policy wonk and orator.
As a trial lawyer, I know that the best orators rarely slip-up rhetorically, rather, each word is carefully measured even when coming off the cuff. As such, I suspect that this was either a Freudian slip or a bold declaration of his true feelings."
And this is what I said from jump.
"The problem with the right wing conspiracy theory is that the words came from Clintons mouthperiod. Clinton very easily could have said the awful legacy of eight years of Republican obstruction. But he did not say that and the very fact that he continued by also chiding the seven years under George W. Bush could lead one to conclude that deep down inside, Clinton is still unhappy about the results of the 2008 Democratic Primary where the upstart Barack Obama defeated not only his wife, but his own legacy."
http://thegrio.com/2016/03/23/bill-clinton-obama-comments-campaign/
HassleCat
(6,409 posts)Bill Clinton is blaming the Republicans, no doubt, but he's also implying that he was better at dealing with GOP obstructionism than Obama.
NWCorona
(8,541 posts)He's a fellow lawyer and breaks it down very well. I just think that Bill not Hillary, has a case of sour grapes in regards to Obama.
revbones
(3,660 posts)Hillary has started to pivot a little more rightward on some things. It can be seen in her nuanced answer about being pro-choice where she was basically muddying the waters to make it easier for some on the right to vote for her.
I think Bill's comment dovetails with that theme and we'll see a lot more of them subtly shifting to appeal to those on the right that would not prefer Trump.
I think this would be ramped up significantly in a huge rubberband snap back to center-right if Bernie is actually eliminated from the race.
NWCorona
(8,541 posts)Cenk touched on that with Bernie a bit ago. Her supporters don't see it or just don't care.
ibegurpard
(16,685 posts)Of being unable to help himself.