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Change Your Life! |
News analysis: Clinton’s tough assignment ahead |
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August 14, 2000
LOS ANGELES (AP) - For a president who loves to be the center of attention, Bill Clinton has a tough assignment at the Democratic convention. He needs to be good but not steal the show. Give a rousing speech but not make it too memorable. Stick to peace and prosperity and not call attention to his personal life. Then leave, get off the stage. But don't go too far. Spend the next few months raising money and energizing the party's core interest groups, blacks and organized labor among them. "He should know that he's the opening act and Gore's the headliner now," said Vanderbilt University political scientist Bruce Oppenheimer. "The opening act gets the crowd enthused, enjoying themselves, but doesn't step on the headliner." This is supposed to be Al Gore's big bash. Some Democrats are grumbling that Clinton is grabbing the attention and soaking up campaign cash that the vice president could use. Clinton and his candidate-wife Hillary arrived Friday for four days of Hollywood parties and tributes. To give Gore more of the spotlight, the president canceled a series of television interviews Saturday. Monday night the president will deliver a political valedictory, summing up his eight years with Gore and boasting about the longest economic expansion in history, tumbling crime rates, record levels of home ownership and the lowest rate of teen births in at least 60 years. Clinton's appearance is sure to ignite a wild celebration. It's crucial for Clinton to make sure the acclaim envelops Gore.
"The convention has to be about a transference from Clinton to Gore," said Cliff Zukin, head of Rutgers University's public policy department. "He can hurt him if he doesn't allow Gore to emerge as his own person. He can hurt him by being too much of a presence." In dozens of appearances leading up to the convention, Clinton has been calling Gore the most effective vice president in history. It's in Clinton's best interest to promote his understudy, since Republicans have been ridiculing the Clinton legacy and would like nothing more than to have voters repudiate his presidency at the polls. The president says Gore has an economic program that would keep the economy humming; that he is knowledgeable about science and technology and would lead the country ahead; that he is committed to diversity and making sure that everyone shares in prosperity. Crowds and applause are to Clinton what oxygen is to other people. Except for a two-year break, he has been in public office since 1976. After every speech, every outreached hand must be shaken. Sometimes he doubles back to grasp the same hands two or three times. Some associates believe it's futile to think Clinton will turn into a wall flower. Besides, as much as Gore needs to distance himself from Clinton's misdeeds and Clinton "fatigue" among voters, he needs to trade on the president's popularity. Clinton's job approval rating has hovered in the high 50 to 60 percent range for many months. Yet Clinton hurts Gore with some voters, particularly because of the Monica Lewinsky sex scandal. "I think he's been a good president but morally he's been inept," said Teresa Barton, a Democratic delegate from Frankfort, Kentucky. She said Clinton should not campaign for Gore in Kentucky. Clinton caused a stir Thursday when, in a meeting with evangelical ministers, he expressed remorse for his affair with Lewinsky - remarks that resurrected an episode that Americans would like to forget. It also stole headlines from Gore and his running mate, Sen. Joseph Lieberman. Some people believe Clinton purposely dealt with the issue before the convention to remove any need to address it here Monday night. Behind in the polls and still struggling to introduce himself to the nation, Gore needs a spark for his campaign. In a year in which voters say they do not like political rancor, Clinton has a freer hand than Gore to attack Republicans. "It would be a mistake to put him on the shelf," said Duffy. "He's too good. Yes, he's controversial but you're not winning on your own. Pick your spots where you use him. Certainly in Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia. Why wouldn't you put him in those big urban areas where you've got labor, where you've got blacks, where you've got some liberal progressive types?" EDITOR'S NOTE - Terence Hunt has covered the Reagan, Bush and Clinton presidencies for The Associated Press.
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