Bill Clinton Defends Hillary Clinton Who Defends Him For Defending Her

The campaign of New York Senator Hillary Clinton is now displaying more defense than the San Diego Chargers football team.

First, former President Bill Clinton went out on the hustings and defended his wife. That led to some criticism, so now she’s defending him for defending her (and this site will probably have to defend itself for running a post about her defending him for defending her):

Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton on Friday defended her husband, former President Bill Clinton, for defending her on the campaign trail in Iowa.

And, no, this isn’t a modern version of the Abbott and Costello’s classic “Who’s On First” comedy routine.

Welcome to Political Reality 101 where the seemingly-seamless campaign of the New York Senator suddenly showed some seams and was put into defense/offense mode:

With Hillary Clinton’s campaign having hit a rough patch lately based on a rocky performance at a October 30 debate with her rivals, the Clinton camp sent Bill Clinton out to Iowa to try to rally support for her in the early voting state.

The former president took on the task with gusto. In one speech, he cited a survey by a Canadian pollster that said many people in France, Germany, Britain, Italy and Canada preferred Hillary Clinton to be the next U.S. president.

“In every country, without question, if you take out the undecided, she had the absolute majority,” Clinton said, according to Politico.com. “They like her, they respect her.”

The statement was quickly pounced on by the Republican National Committee, which said it sounded similar to a comment in 2004 by Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, who said some foreign leaders wanted him to defeat George W. Bush.

“It is deja vu all over again,” said RNC spokesman Danny Diaz. “First the Kerrys, now the Clintons.”

A larger issue seems to be rumblings among some Republicans (and Democrats) that suggest former President Clinton is injecting himself too much into the campaign. But relatives of candidates have done this before. For instance:

–George Bush 41 has recently defended his son’s Iraq policy. He has also defended his son from criticism from Arab critics.

–Laura Bush has defended her husband’s stem cell policy. She also defended her husband’s low poll numbers, blaming it on the news media.

But all of this defense of Hillary by Bill has put Hillary….on the defensive:

New York Sen. Clinton was asked about her husband in a conference call with reporters on Friday arranged to announce that she had received the endorsement of Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, an important development in a critical battleground state in the November 2008 election.

Was she comfortable with Bill’s role in the campaign? she was asked.

“Absolutely,” Clinton said. “I am so happy to have his help in this campaign. He obviously counsels and advises me every single day.”

“I’m thrilled to have his support and look forward to being able to call at him in every capacity I can imagine,” she said.

So the criticism is coming only from Republicans?

Hardly:

Arianna Huffington, editor of the liberal blog, Huffingtonpost.com, was not impressed by the former president’s efforts recently.

“He’s becoming a liability,” she told MSNBC. “Send him to Africa.”

And, indeed, it seems to be a ticklish operation.

On one hand, Bill Clinton is detested by many rock-ribbed Republicans. If he’s fighting his wife’s battles too extensively, questions — unfair or not — will likely be raised by Ms. Clinton’s foes about whether a Hillary Clinton Presidency will be unduly-influenced and shaped by the former President. GOPers will likely make an increasingly-outspoken Bill Clinton an issue. And Bill Clinton could embitter parts of the Democratic Party that favor candidates who are more overtly progressive than his wife.

Yet, on the the other hand, Bill Clinton remains perhaps the most gifted politician of his generation. He still enjoys highly positive poll ratings. Many Americans (excluding Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity, of course) felt his presidency was a happier time for America. He knows how to frame an attack, how to mount a defense and reportedly has an almost breathtaking knowledge of the tools and techniques of political electioneering.

So, more likely than not, Bill Clinton will continue to venture out into the political fray or be sent out there to play defense.

Which will bring more charges from foes…and mean….more defense.

Etc.