You Say 'Colombia,' I Say 'Colombia'

April 10, 2008 — -- Bill and Hillary Clinton's marriage has survived eight years in the White House, three presidential campaigns, two gubernatorial terms, two Senate races, a sex scandal and an impeachment trial.

So a disagreement over a free-trade agreement with Colombia probably won't upset things too much at the Clinton homestead.

The Clintons' public dispute on the issue -- a Bush-backed trade deal awaiting congressional approval that would reduce tariffs on Colombian imports and U.S. exports -- does, however, shed light on when, if ever, spouses should take a public position that differs from their politician husband or wife.

Bill Clinton is, of course, an exception to the rule about what a political spouse should look and sound like. As a former president he is expected to have opinions on things like trade agreements, but in the fight for the Democratic nomination where every vote counts and every sound bite is mulled over, a small spat could have real consequences, analysts told ABCNEWS.com.

"It is rare for a spouse to disagree with her politician husband," said Russell Riley, a presidential scholar at the University of Virginia. "Normally, if there is a disagreement between say the first lady and a president it is not over a major issue, but instead one of those special areas where first ladies have purview -- the arts, education."

"But when it comes to the Clintons we're in completely uncharted waters here. You can hunt and fish for historical precedents but there has never been anything like a former president campaigning for his wife's presidential bid," he said.

The Clinton campaign was quick to chalk up the dispute -- he's an avowed free trader, she's not -- to the sort of quarrel married couples are wont to have.

"Sen. Clinton is the candidate for president and she is a clear and firm opponent of the Colombian free-trade agreement. Like other married couples who disagree on issues from time to time, she disagrees with her husband on this issue. [Former] President Clinton has been public about his support for Colombia's request for U.S. trade preferences since 2000," said spokesman Jay Carson in a statement.

In recent political history Elizabeth Edwards made a public break with husband John over same-sex marriage.

In June 2007, while the former North Carolina senator was still in the Democratic race, Elizabeth Edwards told a gay rights group in San Francisco, "I don't know why somebody else's marriage has anything to do with me. I'm completely comfortable with gay marriage.''

Citing religious reasons, John Edwards, who dropped out of the race three months ago, was only willing to support civil unions for gay couples and not marriage.

"It's frustrating, I know,'' she told the Alice B. Toklas Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Democratic Club, "but it's a long distance from where we are now to the pews of a Southern Baptist church. So, John's been as honest as he can about that.''

If any first lady had a reputation for being outspoken it was Eleanor Roosevelt, but even she never publicly disagreed with husband Franklin D. Roosevelt.

"Eleanor Roosevelt had very strong views that were often in disagreement with FDR. She felt he could be moving further and faster on civil rights. Though she had a daily column in which she wrote about civil rights, she was never anything but supportive in public," said Robert Shrum, a senior fellow in public policy at New York University and an adviser to John Kerry's 2004 campaign.

As first lady, Eleanor Roosevelt advocated for change in the status of American blacks, publicly calling for civil rights advances in "My Day," a daily newspaper column she wrote for nearly 30 years.

Though she never publicly condemned her husband's positions, she privately chided him for being unwilling to take action on the issue, criticizing his unwillingness to support a congressional bill to ban lynching.

While a dispute may be perceived as a political liability in some cases, an astute political couple could use their argument to their advantage, Shrum said, citing George H.W. and Barbara Bush.

"And you are pro-choice?'' ABC's Barbara Walters asked Barbara Bush in 1994 interview.

"That's right, and that comes as no surprise to George Bush,'' said the former first lady, who didn't speak her mind publicly on the subject while her husband was in office.

While Barbara Bush admitted to supporting abortion publicly only after her husband left office, her sentiment had long been an open secret in Washington.

"They disagreed on abortion. The dispute may not have been strategically designed, but it was strategically deployed," Shrum said. "It was known while he was running for president that she was pro-choice, it was known among pro-choice Republicans, Democrats and suburban women, and that was the point."

Though Americans might not list the Colombian trade deal as a top priority, voters -- especially blue-collar types like those in Pennsylvania -- are worried about cheap imports leading to a loss of U.S. jobs.

Pennsylvania is holding its primary April 22.

Any hint (even from her husband) that Hillary Clinton might take a position other than the pro-labor stance she has continuously avowed could scare voters off, said Tori Clarke, an ABC News political consultant and Republican strategist.

"Given that he's a former president and still influential, anything he says has an impact," she said. "In a state like Pennsylvania where things are close, a disagreement over trade could scare voters off."

Though Bill Clinton has long avowed free-trade policies and he does not want to appear to backtrack, his primary concern right now is getting his wife elected, Riley said.

"[Bill] Clinton's embrace of free trade exceeded what the more liberal wing of the Democratic Party would bear. Hillary is much more cautious," he said. "Bill's principal mission is to get his wife elected. He has already shown that he has not been as cautious about protecting his legacy as some would expect. In the years since he left office he was greatly respected, partly because of who followed him and partly because of the good work his foundation does. But in the past six months he has stepped down from the pedestal he erected for himself by aggressively campaigning for Hillary."