Bill Clinton’s convention appearance seemed deliberately diminished, and perhaps even an obligation offered with clenched teeth
Photo: DNCC via Getty Images You’d probably have to go back to William Jennings Bryan to find a politician as closely identified with multiple national party convention addresses as William Jefferson Clinton. But this year, for the first time, . Identified with bad male behavior and outworn ideology, he was consigned to a lesser role than any he has ever had since 1988.
His first big convention effort was a actually a big mistake: a 1988 nominating speech for Mike Dukakis that went so far overtime that when he said “in conclusion,” the audience cheered. His two convention speeches as party nominee nicely encapsulated the messages he convinced Democrats to embrace, from 1992’s values-talk of “opportunity, responsibility, and community” on behalf of “the forgotten middle class,” to 1996’s pledge to “build a bridge to the 21st century.
In 2016, Bill Clinton had the complicated task of speaking on behalf of his charisma-challenged wife, magnifying her political gifts and her own record without overshadowing or undermining her. By most accounts he succeeded. The devolution of Clinton into something approaching a political pariah for his conduct toward women has been accompanied by a steadily deteriorating ideological reputation. His trade and crime policies are being regularly denounced by Republicans and Democrats alike, and Joe Biden in particularly needs to keep them out of sight and mind.
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