Former president reveals future president's plans for him

Isn't it just a wee bit early for President Hillary Clinton to be making such specific plans for how to use her once infamous now famous husband Bill in her almost-certain administration?

Yes, she's been planning this since before the moving trucks took her stuff away from the White House on Jan. 20, 2001. To be sure, right now 2008 looks like a pretty good year for Democrats given current polls, which won't be current for very long but who cares? And her well-oiled machine is running a meticulously safe campaign designed to appear inevitable, until maybe Barack Obama comes a little too close in Iowa or New Hampshire, where he's got nearly 100 staffers on the ground.

Yes, for now she seems to be building an even larger lead in polls over Obama. He's spinning his wheels at the moment trying to figure out how to rip into her ("How does experience as a first lady traveling to Kenya to visit a school and ride an elephant possibly qualify you to become commander-in-chief?") without tarnishing his nice, polite candidate of hope image. And fewer people are paying attention to that Carolina trial lawyer who's challenging everyone to do what he has to do, take public financing, when they don't have to.

True, polls--even unscientific ones like web surveys on LATimes.com--indicate that no matter how they feel about her (and there sure are a lot of feelings about her), an awful lot of people believe at the moment that Hillary Clinton will be the Democratic nominee.

And if she's lucky, James Dobson and his suicidal better-dead-than-red homemade church crowd will hopelessly run a third-party evangelical against a not-100%-pure Republican nominee and petulantly ensure that the next couple of Supreme Court justices are liberal activists.

But everywhere he goes now, allegedly hawking his new book or his initiative to save the world between closed fundraisers for his wife, the former president seems to be talking publicly about what his duties will be in his wife's administration. Somehow, the "if" seems to have disappeared from this discussion.

Last weekend President Clinton I repeated to Tim Russert and Martha Stewart and his former aide, George Stephanopoulos, "Whatever she wants me to do I'll do." Eighteen months before her presumed inauguration, President Clinton II was describing to campaign crowds how she'd use her husband as a roving ambassador sending him all over the world to rebuild the U.S. image. He's got Secret Service protection for life anyway. Why not put them to good use?

The Clintons work very hard controlling their image. Having blanketed American television on countless programs for the past several weekends and dismissing talk of political dynasties, the 61-year-old former president Clinton is over in London now, ostensibly promoting his book but actually doing more fundraisers and granting interviews.

He told the Guardian that his first assignment from the future president will be to "go out and immediately restore America's standing, go out and tell people America was open for business and cooperation again" after eight years of unilateral activities that he said have enraged the world.

For years now, according to Clinton's analysis, American politics and its media have been under the powerful influence of "the most ideological, rightwing element of the Republican party" and Americans are tiring of it. This, he says, has led to a national climate in which "three-dimensional reality" has been turned into "two-dimensional cartoons, and then [the rightwing media] try to get people to divide up on the basis of whether you like the cartoon or not."

The Guardian reports: "Mr. Clinton says his wife's image as a ruthlessly ambitious politician is unfair. 'Contrary to the image that has been cultivated about my wife, she's always been a rather reluctant electoral person,' he says."

Scanning the cross-country campaign travel schedules that the future president's staff efficiently distributes to media a couple of times a day, that might not be the impression an average non-rightwing person would take away.

--Andrew Malcolm

Comments

[rpl]

I'm less interested in Bill as First Lady and more interested in Al Gore's eligibility to be Barack Obama's VP. Has anyone researched this? It seems that another four or eight years in the White House would be good for Gore, good for America, and Constitutional. We all know that Gore and Hillary had a tiff around year six, after Al had been doing such a nice job. Hmm... those last two years weren't Bill Clinton's best, come to think of it.

[Phil]

Democrats couldn't believe an actor could beat a nuclear engineer. They got smug with Mondale when they thought Reagan was toast. The party ran Dukakis when the Republicans were believed out of ideas. Gore ran with all the finesse of a campaign managed by a bag of hammers. And now, because the intelligentsia continues to underestimate Dubya, everyone's feeling smug about Hillary, especially her. Get outside the primary voter population and Mrs. Clinton is not only deeply divisive, she lacks Bill Clinton's empathetic bridge across social divides. When the Democrats of the last 35 years begin speaking of inevitability, they tend to lose in the general election. Polls are low for GWB; they're lower still for the Democratic Congress. People will see Mrs. Clinton differently after the primaries, forced to imagine the next step as reality, and they'll balk.

[Jet]

It's like having 2 presidents if we vote for Hillary. With her experience and guidance from Bill this nation will be back to its glory days. It's really a great idea to fix our broken foreign relations. We should be the greatest nation in this world. The Bush administration brought down to a freefall the glory of this country and it's time to bring it back for all Americans

[chris]

no offense, but common sense says two is better than one, especially now....if we truly want to make America safer, a second President Clinton is our best bet....

[Carol]

The Democrats would be insane to run Hillary. She's the only Democrat who would make a Republican win possible.

[keith]

How about this nation's image doesn't need to be repaired? No one comes close as far as freedom and liberty is concerned. Reflect on what you have, the greatest society ever known so far. Be proud of it and count yourself privileged to be a part of it, it will stand for centuries as a step forward. This moment will never define who we are.

[carolyn cartier]

The press should be sophisticated enough to realize that calling Hilary Clinton 'ruthless' smacks of a certain sexism; and if she does have problems moving forward in the next 18 months, they will have contributed to that--not unlike the disservice they provided Al Gore.

(Ans: Actually, you'll note here this was a British newspaper using that word.-AM)

[joseph macucilli]

Hillary has changed her position on torturing terrorist suspects,voted against the Lee/Levin amemdment to extend the time to search for WMD's inthe lead up to the Iraq occupation,wants to extend H1 visas to India to take away white collar jobs just like NAFTA did to low kevel jobs,just gave this president more authorization to start a war with Iran and they are against the right wing?No the real guy all politicians fear is Obama who is running to change the system that clearly does not work for most americans,

[RonNV]

I figure if she gets elected taxes will go up 15% and the Dow Jones will go down 15%.

[tiredofit]

Just because we are the most powerful nation does not mean we need to be cocky or act like bullies on the playground. This is the way the Bush administration and Republican run Congress and Senate have been for six years. Any good feelings we had around the world when President Clinton left office and after 9/11 were thrown under the bus and said to be unimportant. It will be nice to have the Clinton's back and regain the respect we once had. I, for one, believe every world friend we make will make us a safer nation. Isolation and bullying only serve to make more enemies. We might be the most powerful, but if the little guys join forces we could be run off the playground.

[Andrew Eppink]

Hillary and her supreme court appointments - the new, permanent American Politburo, Soviet Union West. I hope enough people aren't crazy enough to do something like, this but a lot of people are. We'll see I guess.

[Don R]

Why the insult. If anything it would First Gentleman.

[peter alexander]

Dream on fools, Hillary is unelectable.

[Andrew Eppink]

Yeah, you in the media don't want to be doing anything to impede a Democrat, especially Hillary.

(Ans: Really? You think she'd like this item?-AM)

[Goldie]

Clinton is divisive. I hear it from the Democrats I know. They don't like her. Bill can't just dismiss that. He can't just smooth things over for her or she will always be in his shadow. That is a weak President. If she can't come up with her own way of connecting to people besides through him, she will fail, just like with her health care initiative. And I worry. That is why I am working hard for another candidate who can connect, who can bring people to the table, who is wise enough to know that a strong nation should not be afraid to talk with both friends and enemies. Hillary's "safe" campaign shows weakness and fear. I'm for Obama.

[Daniel]

Just understand this: we cannot continue to spit in the face of every other country in the world and expect the world to not despise us. The GWB administration rules with a dictatorship type style. We need a leader that puts forth the idealism of nation that values: compassion, ambition and strength. The ego that GWB exhibits is likened only to that of a bully that no one dares to challenge and everyone conspires to tear apart. The republicans need to get over the "democrats tax us" argument. The only people that get taxed are the wealthy. Do we care? They should get taxed to most since they are the ones that make the rules.

[Joe S.]

It is great sport to be snarky about a Clinton (two Clintons, in this case) and completely ignore just how bad things are for America today, both in the same article.

Senator Clinton seems to have a plan for Mr. Clinton. Mr. Clinton simply responds to questions asked of him. What's the problem, here?

Recent poll results seem to make the author a little cranky.

(Ans: The Clintons planning for their presidency now and talking about it at every opportunity is all part of the inevitability strategy. It has nada to do with Bush or anyone else. And we're pointing that out. Also pointing out it seems to be working on some like maybe you.-AM)

[Will Grossi]

The Clintons will bring the country back to its glory years? What is the author of this claptrap smoking these days? Slick Willy was too busy dropping his pants in the Oval Office to pay attention to affairs of state. Is Hilliary going to require that Willy wear a chastity belt while on his world wide travels?

[Will Grossi]

Are the Clintons going to return all the furniture they ripped off the White House?

[BeefMasterX]

The democrat strategists operating on Hillary's behalf are secretly working to put anyone in the White House as long as it is not The Clintons.
As long as Bangin' Bill is part of the deal, Hillary will not be electable.

[Daedalus]

Didn't Bill Clinton suggest First Laddie?

(Ans: He said some Scottish friends suggested that. Too cute for here.-AM)

[Keith]

Prepare yourselves for Hil not to take the brass ring. Her negatives with the public are huge and it won't take a lot to tear her image up, there's years of stuff to do it with. Her base doesn't help either, the left kooks are as big of a bunch of idiots as any neocon. It's time for a change, but not a change back to Clinton whoever. No more dubya, no more billary, done with all of them. Give Barack another 10 years to actually do something other than be nice and maybe he'll have a chance. I think the Dem ticket is shaping up to be awfully weak, unfortunately since the press does nothing but cheerlead, it's hard to see. I see Guiliani taking it handily, he's no slouch by any means, but is a well polished politician and formidable opponent.

(Ans: C'mon with the cheerlead stuff. Too easy. Is this Clinton cheerleading? We are equal opportunity offenders on this blog.-AM)

[C. largo]

I have no problem with Bill Clinton being a bridge of reconciliation
to countries around the world who are already familiar with his
good works. His popularity on the world stage comes from his
interest in humanitarian global issues, his ability to listen, and comprehend the needs of not only Americans, but, to others that
share this wonderful planet with us.
It's time for a Presidental Spouse to be put to good use, instead of just
being some beign arm candy in a formal dinner gown with a frozen smile.

[mnjam]

ANYTHING would be better than four years of another Republican turning the U.S. into a third world country.

[Lioness]

Thank you for this column. It is about time that a journalist made actual observations, as opposed to spewing Hillary propaganda so widespread that it almost makes her campaigning unnecessary.