Bill Clinton Rallies Rural America Through Wal-Mart and Pundits
ABC News’ Sarah Amos reports: Former President Bill Clinton has always been a prominent subject in the media’s coverage of the Democratic primary. In the past week however, Clinton has found himself the topic of even more articles than usual — many dissecting his role in courting the rural vote.
Lately, Clinton has been choosing not to ignore these often critical articles. Instead, he has found good use for his daily clippings in the past week, weaving a few choice ideas into his stump speeches.
In Oregon this past Saturday, Clinton told the crowd about an Associated Press article he read about his trip to rural parts of the state.
"There’s an article, I just read an article in The Associated Press that quotes a Reed college political science professor who says that my coming to see you wont work. Now listen, he said that Hillary’s decision to reach out to rural Oregon was — quote — ‘old politics,’" Clinton told a crowd in Junction City, Ore., making sure to hammer home the point that Hillary Clinton cares abour rural America, no matter what others might say.
Today, in Elkin, N.C., Clinton had a different article to talk about — but the same message to deliver.
"I love my duties in this campaign because I’m basically the ambassador of Hillary’s campaign to rural America, to small-town America," Clinton told a cheering crowd in a gymnasium. "And a lot of the political and press elites that haven’t been for her from the get-go have made fun of this. I noticed some fellow wrote an article making fun of me campaigning places lilke Elkin and he said, ‘Next thing you know, Bill Clinton will be taking Wal-Mart greeters to the polls.’ See, now he thought that was a put-down. You know what I thought? I thought that was a good idea, why didn’t I think of that? That would run our totals up."
There was one problem with Clinton’s re-hashing of the article. The New Yorker story he referred to actually took the Wal-Mart quote from a Clinton advisor, who joked that Clinton’s Pennsylvania election day plans were "leading a caravan of Wal-Mart greeters to the polls."
But that error meant nothing to the small-town crowd before Clinton, many of whom reacted as though Clinton’s comments were proof that the Clinton campaign really cared about them — no matter what the political pundits might think.
Whether the former president takes offense at these articles is not always clear. There can be a mixture of insult and indiference in Clinton’s delivery.
What is clear is the rallying cry the former president is attempting to build with such remarks. As Hillary’s "rural hitman," Bill Clinton is out to prove that his wife is the candidate who really cares about the issues and people in rural America.
If the people in these crowds want a president "who is a tough enough politician to make her husband escort Wal-Mart greeters to the polls," they should support Hillary, according to Clinton.
And with seven stops across rural North Carolina planned for Wednesday, it is surely a point he isn’t going to stop touting anytime before next Tuesday’s primary.
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Absolutely, Bill! Take Wal-Mart greeters to the polling booths! Obama’s too elitist for Wal-Mart, K-mart, Target, or any other “common” retail store.
Posted by: Emily | April 29, 2008, 11:37 pm 11:37 pm
Go Bill!
Posted by: LOM | April 29, 2008, 11:38 pm 11:38 pm
ultra liberal democrats don’t care
about all of baracks baggage:
-James Wright’s “god damn America” sermon,
-Antoine’ Rezco, jailed political fixer
-domestic terrorists Ayers and Dorhn
these guys blew up 25 bombs in the US
-bitter small town Americans, clinging to religion – like a pacifier
-HAMAS in the church bulletin
-he admitted smoking crack / cocaine
but mainstreet democrats do:
see PA OH (hillary clobbered obama)
and if the media exposed the real barack earlier, he would never have won the early states he did…
for 16 months hillary got hammered and obama got a free ride… after some of his skeletons are out of the closet he gets clubbed like a baby seal in PA and OH…
obama smells like mcgovern and dukakis and gore and kerry..
the republican swiftboat machine has baracks number.
Posted by: indy idiot | April 29, 2008, 11:50 pm 11:50 pm
Emily:
Wasn’t it Hillary Clinton that was
on the Wal-Mart Board of Directors?
Oh no Hillary’s not an elitist!
It is true you Hillary supporters are
uneducated and misinformed!
Posted by: reaganfan | April 29, 2008, 11:53 pm 11:53 pm
Rural america is truely the backbone of this country and Bill is doing a great job of getting Hillarys voice heard.
Posted by: D | April 29, 2008, 11:55 pm 11:55 pm
The Clinton’s are the biggest Democratic elitists that there are in the party. For some reason they feel that the presidency is “owed” to Hillary. They are wrong and Obama is going to prove it one week from today.
http://www.politivine.com
Posted by: Cory | April 30, 2008, 12:00 am 12:00 am
Obama is unelectable. The whole point is that Obama cant just give a ‘speech’ again, that will just contradict every speech he gave before.
Wright has been consistent. He is the same guy he was on those tapes 7 years ago. 10 years ago.
He was the same guy all along. Obama suggesting he is OUTRAGED only now, but not over the last 20 years is literally impossible.
There are liberal media who still thinks he will be the next president, and I can tell you nowhere near as many people today think he will be as they did last week or 6 weeks ago.
They will STILL try to spin it for Obama.
Now we know why all the Obama supporters tried to FORCE Clinton out after Ohio and Texas, when they were SURE Obama would win those states and knock her out.
But next week. The week after. swift boat after swift boat. The democrats cannot possible INSIST Obama is the nominee.
The wright situation will NOT go away.
He sat in the pew for 20 years. You cant wish 20 years of your personal life away with a speech.
Posted by: tomdavie | April 30, 2008, 12:07 am 12:07 am
@ reaganfan:
You’re appallingly obnoxious and uninformed. Why don’t you do some actual homework about Obama and Michele’s association with Wal-Mart.
Posted by: Emily | April 30, 2008, 12:07 am 12:07 am
reaganfan — She was on the Wal-Mart board for six years. Do you have any clue of the things she was able to accomplish during her tenure there? Do you know that she pushed an agenda of equal rights in the work place for women and minorities? Do you know that she created a energy efficiency program? She was not Sam Walton’s first choice, but she did make the company better in the end as the only female director on the board. Are you just slinging the name “Wal-Mart” with no substance to your argument?
Posted by: LOM | April 30, 2008, 12:09 am 12:09 am
Emily — I think your proposition is a very good one that is lost on a lot of people here. I call it the flinging p00 methodology where people just state lies with no research and/or proof. I will say that many Hillary supporters are not absolved of this affliction either, just to a much lesser degree.
Posted by: LOM | April 30, 2008, 12:12 am 12:12 am
@ LOM: Amen to that.
BTW, I always read your posts with enthusiasm!
Posted by: Emily | April 30, 2008, 12:18 am 12:18 am
It is time for Mr. Obama to withdraw his candidacy
for President. His campaign is sending race relations back to the dark ages and this is only the beginning.
Just wait for ‘interested parties’ to begin quoting from Mr. Cone’s book. It will make Mr. Wright sound like a peacemaker.
The damage to the Democratic Party is now nearly fatal. The only hope is for Obama to withdraw. He can then try to heal his credibility for a later run for higher office.
-unaligned
Posted by: Paul | April 30, 2008, 12:25 am 12:25 am
Emily — Thanks!
Posted by: LOM | April 30, 2008, 12:30 am 12:30 am
Paul,Emily , LOM
I totally agree with your posts.
Obama peaked back in late February with his super MEDIA SHIELD that was so obnoxious they did a saturday night live skit on it.
I have never seen in my life the media that is supposed to bring us the news RIG the news and shape it to benefit ONE candidate.
Obama owes his delegate lead to MEDIA HYPE, and superior organization in caucus states.
I still watch CNN and the folks (outside of Lou Dobbs and Wolf Blitzer) outright STUMP for Obama 24 /7.
The last two days their entire broadcast has been about brainstorming to HELP Obama get thru this latest devastation.
They literally STUMP for Obama the entire time. They got some pretty SOUR looks on their faces these days.
I dont even go to MSNBC anymore. Im sure there is outright PANIC going thru the entire network.
I can tell you that if Obama gets the nomination somehow, it will be the first time in history someone got the nomination who LOST all the major primaries.
Posted by: tomdavie | April 30, 2008, 12:31 am 12:31 am
Rural America should not forget that thjis man is the one that had sex with another lady over and ove again without carrying about what his wife think.
Posted by: Sato | April 30, 2008, 12:38 am 12:38 am
tomdavie — The MSM has become the biggest joke in this election cycle. Obama’s frontrunner status is based on a series of events in early February. He has not done well since and enjoys the frontrunner status because of it. That’s fine…he won those contests. He had the big MO working for him and it was fueled by the MSM. Now that things have slowed down and he has failed to close the deal on numerous occasions, folks are starting to wake up to the fact that Obama has a serious electability issue. If he didn’t, this would have been closed long ago. He won a lot of traditionally Red states which won’t mean squat in the GE for democrats. I don’t see how he can get the nomination at this point if the Dems want to win the White House in the Fall.
Posted by: LOM | April 30, 2008, 12:42 am 12:42 am
@ tomdavie:
One of the primary reasons why MSNBC’s news casters is so perversely partial toward Obama and biased against Hillary is because their parent company is General Electric. Many GE execs have contributed substantially to Obama’s campaign. Hence the love affair with everything Obama.
Posted by: Emily | April 30, 2008, 12:56 am 12:56 am
…and when Obama becomes the nominee and it’s back to Dems fighting Republicans, will you all be posting about why McCain is so awful and Obama is so wonderful? and with the same passion?
Posted by: Pogo | April 30, 2008, 1:06 am 1:06 am
It is convinced that a bonehead, once proclaimed, will always be a bonehead. BO has demonstrated his boneheadedness again in his speech today. He will say anything to deceive people to win an election.
Posted by: jr | April 30, 2008, 1:29 am 1:29 am
I think the republican media will LAMBASTE Obama for pandering in his rejection of Wright. It being Impossible to be true.
The corrupt liberal media will try to SPIN SPIN SPIN it for Obama . Somehow suggesting that giving a (4th or 5th) speech can wipe out a personal history with the guy for 20 years.
Then Obama will lose Indiana, which he said he HAD to win. He will not win North Carolina by 10 or even 5.
In fact, Clinton has a real play there now.
Then the SPIN masters will BLAME it on Wright so Obama has an EXUSE why he couldnt win Indiana when he SWORE that it was the tie breaker. Blah blah blah….
But the fact is, Wright isnt going away anytime soon.
If Wright announces that Obama knew and agreed with all of wrights rhetoric during those 20 years, then obamas political career is over.
Posted by: tomdavie | April 30, 2008, 2:43 am 2:43 am
Obama must be desperate to have accepted the charade of a fallout with Rev. Wright. He accepts Wright’s words for twenty years, asks him to marrying him and Meichelle, Baptized his two daugthers and just when this is affecting his campaign suddenly he is enraged? Obama must think very little of American voters if he thinks we are going to buy this.
Posted by: libre | April 30, 2008, 3:11 am 3:11 am
You are all right! It’a a battle of the sorts this time around. Not between Reps and dems; Not between Obamas and Clintons; but between the hard-working, back-bone of Americas Vs. AC-Room Ridden media experts. It’ll be fought of veracity vs. deception.
Posted by: John Rambo | April 30, 2008, 5:38 am 5:38 am
He was great in Mount Airy NC he still draws the crowds about eight hundred in the little town friends of mine who live in NC are trying to go to as many rally’s from backs of pick ups to high schools they both Hillary and Bill are drawing the crowds, GO Hillary OH and by the way Fox had a black Minister on who said this is how Wright has always been and Obama has known for a time he should have broke ties . The point is they have many tapes out there and some more to come.
Posted by: Bishop | April 30, 2008, 8:21 am 8:21 am
Meanwqhile Obama is holding another college cult gathering.
Posted by: geevill | April 30, 2008, 8:38 am 8:38 am
I wonder if George Orwell is smiling or cringing from the grave. But for the Clintons to attach their Democratic Party “opponent” as elitist can only be characterized as Orwellian.
By the way, opponent is in quotation marks because the word might imply there’s still a contest afoot, which there isn’t.
Posted by: Paul | April 30, 2008, 8:39 am 8:39 am
Hillary worked for Wal-Mart, they are anti union! way to go Bill…
Posted by: Joe D | April 30, 2008, 8:49 am 8:49 am
Bill Clinton is the great campaigner ! whereas in PA last week Barack to borrow one of his phrases looked like it was “silly season” prey tell what is that a code word for in ultra liberal speak? Anyway Obama just looked ludicrous out thee hes no Abe Lincoln or Kennedy etc etc etc
Posted by: staniam | April 30, 2008, 8:52 am 8:52 am
Hillary is doing it the hard way but she will win!
Posted by: staniam | April 30, 2008, 8:56 am 8:56 am
Bill Clinton is an impeached president clinging to the throne.
Amazing how he works people with his spin and makes them forget all the Clintons lies. wow.
Posted by: Indiana voter | April 30, 2008, 9:06 am 9:06 am
Impeached but not convicted
Posted by: staniam | April 30, 2008, 9:22 am 9:22 am
Rev. Wright’s comments have been consistent throughout his 30-year career in the pulpit. It is Obama (who sat in the pews for 20 years) who is flip floppin’, twisting, and blowing in the wind for political gain.
Obama is a flimflam man with nothing but empty rhetoric!
Posted by: HoosierSue | April 30, 2008, 9:37 am 9:37 am
Bill had humble beginnings – he really was raised by a single mother – and Hillary’s roots are in middle America too. They’ve never forgotten what we term “the common man” and have worked their entire careers to make America better. No talk for them – they just roll up their sleeves and get to work. They aren’t wimpy like Barack or bitter like Michelle!
Posted by: HoosierSue | April 30, 2008, 9:41 am 9:41 am
Do you folks know that Walmart is against unions and wants to keep their employees at as low wage a possible? I worked at Walmart, I know. And Hillary was on the board and voted to keepthe unions out….WAY TO GO HILLARY…keep those peons down!!!
Posted by: catcall | April 30, 2008, 9:43 am 9:43 am
Hoosier….where so you think Obama went after college instead of working in a high priced law firm?
Posted by: catcall | April 30, 2008, 9:45 am 9:45 am
Folks, the Clintons support for the class is just part of the illusion and part of their politics….Why anyone would believe these folks are sincere about anything given their track record for truthfulness is beyond me.
Posted by: indy_voter | April 30, 2008, 9:48 am 9:48 am
Judgment, where is his judgment? BO has been mistaken for 20 years, being mentored by his good Rev. Wright, without a fool sense of clue? Either way, he is not fit to the job he is seeking. What if he selects another fool to be the NSA, only found out he was mistaken again?
Hypocrite is hard to trust or to understand what he will do.
Posted by: Boneheaded, Chicago | April 30, 2008, 9:48 am 9:48 am
I can’t stand the Clinton’s! I wonder what how they go forward now. I would LOVE if Obama were to debate her NOW. Her NEGATIVE and HATEFUL ways will be on display for ALL of Amer. to see.
See, she doesn’t really want to debate. She just wants a national stage and audience to throw around names of people he knows. She, much like the press, can’t find anything directly related to the man so she has to go after the people he knows…and say “well what about your association with this person…”
Well, the media isn’t doing the job fast enough for her so she drops Farakhan, Ayers, Rezko, etc. names on national tv. She doesn’t spend ANY time talking about the issues UNTIL asked. She BRINGS this stuff up out of the BLUE….She pounces on ANYTHING NEGATIVE that comes out about him. Yet, he doesn’t do that regarding her AT ALL.
Then she has the nerve to say John McCain should do more regarding the Rev. Wright ads airing in NC? Please what can he do? Doesn’t matter, her intention in doing this is to KEEP the issue alive and well. To secure up votes…to scare and intimidate voters…..Now, after Obama denounces the man they say: He praised him a year ago?! Memo Hillary, he praised him just last month, you don’t have to go back that far. Another memo Mrs. King of negativity, it’s not what you did in the past, but in the present! The man just severed his ties! That is what you should be commenting on, if you say anything at all!!! This is proof she is BEING NEGATIVE AGAIN. People will see her SNIDE comments and tactics as divisive and conning.
She doesn’t want to bring anyone together. She doesn’t want to be a candidate of change. And, if she gets the nomination by tearing down someone who has YET to point out her MANY flaws she will not win. Period.
Signed,
Onelessvoteforanotherclinton
Posted by: Onelessvote | April 30, 2008, 9:57 am 9:57 am
I wish this guy would go away. This group vs. that gruop. Us vs. them. It is all pathetic and not productive; especially if Dems. want to win the WH! I am really thinking of leaving the Dem. party after the spectacle of this primary. I am disappointed in the party as a whole….
His wife IS FAST losing my support for the primary. Will I vote for her next Tues? I will sleep on it and get back to you all at 3am. One thing after another. I expected far more from her an her campaign and have gotten far less. Less substance and more grime…no thank-you.
Posted by: Wylie | April 30, 2008, 10:09 am 10:09 am
I agree with several of the posts regarding the media’s bias for Obama / against Clinton. It’s sickening! At least FOX News hates BOTH democratic candidates as opposed to MSNBC which loves Obama and crucifies Hillary for daring to run against him. And Keith Olbermann (Of MSNBC’s Countdown) has completely unraveled since jumping on the Obama bandwagon.
As for the “Pastor Disaster” – give me a break. 20 years and you are just now offended? The NY Post has a quote from a source close to Reverend Wright who states that Obama knew of Wright’s views a LONG time ago yet stayed in the church, contributed $30,000 to the church and kept this lunatic as his “spiritual advisor”. They prayed together the day that Obama announced his presidential candidacy. And his daughters sat in the pews and were exposed to this nut – great judgment on Obama’s part!
Posted by: ch | April 30, 2008, 10:54 am 10:54 am
Go Bill! Thanks for the 22 million new jobs, the lowest unemployment rate, the raise in the minimum wage, the budget surplus, health care for low income kids, Family/Medical leave, the successful mission in Bosnia and the respect we had around the world.
But most of all, thanks for the greatest first lady ever – Hillary!
Posted by: ch | April 30, 2008, 10:58 am 10:58 am
The truth is, the Clintons were responsible for NAFTA, and while Hill can say “I was secretly against it back then,” the reality is, it was the signature of the Clinton years. And it was her own campaign head, Harold Ickes, who as part of the DNC rules committee, stripped FL and MI of their seats. She agreed with him until she started losing, and she’s trying to spin the fact that she wouldn’t allow people who had voted GOP in the first MI vote to vote Dem in the revote as promoting a legitimate revote, when it’s not b/c a lot of people knowing the original wouldn’t count had switched over. And when people talk baggage, it’s funny- Bill was almost impeached, Hill is being arraigned in a few months (not someone she knows but she herself)in the Paul v Clinton case, objects were stolen by the Clintons from the White House when they left, documents went missing, Hill obtained a criminal pardon for her brother’s criminal friends, Vince Foster was murdered, Monica, Jennifer- the list goes on. It’s just that Obama wanted to keep it clean so he didn’t mention any of these, but the reality is nobody has more baggage and shadiness than the Clintons. The Clintons had even bombed Iraq, if anybody cares to remember. It was not a rainbow and unicorns peaceful time. Even Hill’s claim to be active in the administration was proven false by the records; she started out strong, but when her health care efforts failed, she became another tea and tourist first lady. People even forget her outrageous lies and her constant smearing with the absurd excuse of preparing Obama for Republicans, as if that were her job. A former governor’s wife and then the president’s wife, Hill has 100 million dollars in her pocket and grew up well-off, to become a member of the head board of anti-Union Walmart- yet she pretends now to have any semblance of connection to grassroots America. From moving to NY, a state she never lived in, to take advantage of an easy election that would put a big state in her hand come 08, to her episodes of tears, to her whining about speaking first in debates and her willingness to put McCain above Obama, Hill has shown that she has been planning a long time for the throne that was her birthright. The only reason that the 90s was prosperous was because there was a computer, internet and technology boom which is now over. Even the concept of a president’s wife now becoming president is inherently ridiculous- it smacks of royalty. Now, her campaign, badly managed, is in debt, and she’s had to fire 3 top campaign strategists. She didn’t even bother to read the Iraq intelligence reports when she voted to send our boys to war. There is simply, absolutely nothing that would make her qualified.
Posted by: sally | April 30, 2008, 11:34 am 11:34 am
geevill: It’s not a “college cult
gathering”!
It’s called speaking to educated and
intelligent voters!
You Clinton supporters really are dumb,
and you resent anyone who has
worked hard an obtained a college degree! You’re pathetic like your
candidate!
Posted by: reaganfan | April 30, 2008, 1:34 pm 1:34 pm
Candidate A -Speaking at colleges like the U of I to mostly non-productive young people with little or no responsibilities, on a stage, using a teleprompter.
Candidate B -going to small towns meeting with adults with responsibilities instead of giving whoop-de-do speeches offa teleprompter.
Vote for B.
Posted by: geevill | April 30, 2008, 2:46 pm 2:46 pm
The Clinton’s have a lot of ungrateful ex proteges who work against them and try to blame Obama’s problems on them. It would be interesting to see how the Obama camp will find a way to blame the Clinton when Obama loses the nomination.
Posted by: hrao | April 30, 2008, 3:33 pm 3:33 pm
When Bill Clinton was president he governed from the center and did take a middle of America approach…I believe that Hillary cares too…The thing is that most of their efforts both personally and politically have been for common people. Bill Clinton has had one of the largest world wide philanthropic efforts to help all kinds of people that cannot help themselves. Remember Hillary’s book…”It takes a Village to Raise a Child”? Well her record reflects years of helping people and trying to give back.
I believe that regardless of how much money they made they have given back in time and charity donations to a foundation that funds AIDS research, Katrina reconstruction, and gloval warming initiatives. …The Obama’s primary charity for 2007 was Rev Wright’s church.
In short the Clintons do care about people.
Posted by: Jackie | April 30, 2008, 10:42 pm 10:42 pm
Rural america is truely the backbone of this country and Bill is doing a great job of getting Hillarys voice heard.
————————————–
You left out the words “Republican” and “white.”
Hillary is, after all, the Republican candidate for the Democratic nomination.
Posted by: kevinbgoode | May 1, 2008, 6:34 am 6:34 am
Don’t you think the media could just save this country a lot of money and declare McCain the winner now? It seems to me that we could at least end this charade of pretending the public isn’t being manipulated by the media for their vote.
Posted by: kevinbgoode | May 1, 2008, 6:36 am 6:36 am
Am I the only one who is glad that young people care about their government and their country again? That they are actually getting out and voting? What is wrong with you people, hating and disrespecting the youth of our nation? Their voices are equal to ours, they are our future, they are going to take care of us when we are old. Give them a little respect please, no matter who they choose to vote for!
Posted by: louielouie | May 1, 2008, 6:02 pm 6:02 pm