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Hernando Today

'We Are The President'

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JOHN REINIERS, Special to Hernando Today

Published: December 15, 2007

During the government investigation of the Clinton Whitewater scandal (difficult times for them - 15 of their colleagues/friends were convicted of Whitewater crimes), Hillary Clinton responded to questions regarding the possible release of Whitewater documents by saying "I'm not going to have some reporters pawing through our papers. We are the president." (Underscoring that her co-presidency was a reality.) Similarly, her response, when Gennifer Flowers said she had a 12-year affair with Mr. Clinton: "We have to destroy her." Or when she said, "God bless the America we are trying to create." (Relegating God to approving their intended creation.)

Fast forward to Nov. 6, when appearing on CNN commenting on immigration, she observed that "The federal government should be making immigration policy and that's what I'm going to try to do as president again."

Even Mr. Clinton was quick to say about his wife during the 1992 campaign, "Buy one, get one free." She often would remind audiences, "People call us two-for-one; the blue-light special."

She uses this theme of having "White House" experience to burnish her credentials, but it brings up the larger question: If Mrs. Clinton had special, unelected status as co-president, what on earth can we expect Mr. Clinton's role to be when she is elected president? This former president is a heavyweight and expects center stage. It is a serious question and deserves serious thought regardless of your political affiliation.

Democrats surely realize that Mrs. Clinton has enough baggage of her own, without adding the various scandals of her talented philandering husband. Surely, this has been carefully analyzed by the Clintons and their political machine - the best in the business.

Another potential pitfall: Her husband gives new meaning to the term charisma. He lights up a room. Put the two of them together and he will outshine her every time. Men, women and our overseas allies love him. She is cold, aloof and gets high negatives from men. (Her strength is the female vote. It's hard to imagine some feminine group - or anyone for that matter - introducing the two as "The next president of the United States and her lovely husband, Bill.")

In my view, the game plan will be to continue to use Bill Clinton after her nomination, but have them appear separately. The danger is that he will misspeak as he did on Nov. 27 while campaigning for his wife, and trying to appeal to the anti-war Iowa vote. (Mrs. Clinton never apologized for her vote for the war.) With a straight face, he unabashedly said that he "opposed Iraq from the beginning," thus glossing over the truth and rewriting history. But that story had no legs, given the media's bias. The next day he was gently criticized by the media - reminded of the truth - end of story; not the relentless and never-ending media attacks that we see on issues that would cast a Republican in a negative light.

Bill Clinton will want to continue to be a player in Mrs. Clinton's administration - and make no mistake about it; he will be a player after her election - cabinet appointments, attendance at cabinet meetings, the international agenda, etc. I'm sure he told his wife her presidency will be payback time for him. He can't help himself. He has a huge ego, enormous talent and is too young to retire. After her election, he will be more than a roving ambassador or a trouble-shooter. At the very least it will be a true co-presidency. But there is a very real possibility that he will, like Russia's Vladimir Putin, who is also term-limited by Russia's constitution to two terms, reinvent himself politically and constitutionally as the senior co-president for her administration. He would be useful in the male-dominated cultures of the Middle East and the Far East, where he would not be expected to appear in public wearing a head scarf. Since he is a dominant male and subservient to no woman, he would be well received in the United Nations as a spokesman for Mrs. Clinton's administration.

Think about it. If Mrs. Clinton said, "We are the president," why would Bill Clinton think he would be anything less? And why not something more?

John Reiniers is a regular columnist for Hernando Today. He resides in Spring Hill.

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