The Problem with Bill

Conventional Wisdom (CW) says that Bill Clinton is a huge asset to his wife’s campaign. CW says that he is the most brilliant political strategist in America today, that Democrats adore him, that the public believes the ’90s were the golden years. CW says that his wife is destined to win the third term he could not seek.

As Lee Corso of “College Game Day” would say, “Not so fast, my friend.” The CW is wrong. Husband Bill’s performance the last few days demonstrates the continuing problems he represents for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s (D-N.Y.) campaign.

Consider first that Husband Bill historically has not had coattails. The Democrats lost Congress for the first time in 50 years on his watch back in 1994. This was despite the fact that he campaigned tirelessly for Democrats from coast to coast. Despite a strong reelection victory in 1996, he failed to bring Democrats back to majority status, and he failed again in 1998. When this minority status is combined with the toll his impeachment took on his party, it could be argued that he has taken far more from the Democratic Party than he has given back, but that’s for another column.

While most Democrats blame Al Gore for flawed strategy in losing the 2000 presidential contest, the fact is that Husband Bill pouted that he was not being used more by the Gore campaign and went public with his angst. He never understood, or never cared, that to be a viable candidate in his own right, Gore had to step out of Clinton’s shadow and be his own man. Ronald Reagan understood when George Bush did the same thing. Husband Bill’s ego would never allow him to do that.

And that brings us to this year. Sen. Hillary Clinton has had a very bad couple of weeks. Her lead is shrinking in the polls. She turned in a bad debate performance and compounded her error by blaming everyone in sight — the moderator, the media, and yes, nasty members of the all-male presidential club who were ganging up on her. But she seemed almost immediately to recognize her strategic error, backed off the gender charge and tried to move on to other topics.

Enter Husband Bill. In a speech widely covered, he raised again the gender issue and intoned that “the boys” were picking on his wife. How chivalrous. Some commentators praised him for coming to the defense of his wife. Others chided the media for making a mountain out of a molehill and focusing on his offhand remarks.

This defense misses the mark. Husband Bill knew his remarks were being recorded. He lives for the adulation. He inserted himself into a debate that didn’t concern him because that is what he does. It’s what he’s always done. They’ll never admit it, but the Clinton campaign will constantly be looking over its collective shoulder and asking, “What is Bill up to?”

And that’s because with Bill Clinton, it’s always about him.