Bill Clinton: Helping and Hurting Hillary

Washington Post staff writer Lynne Duke was online Monday, Dec. 18, at Noon ET to discuss her Sunday Style piece about the ways in which former President Bill Clinton can both help and hurt Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's prospective presidential campaign.

Duke reports that several analysts have said that with his huge political stature, wild popularity and fund-raising ability, Bill Clinton is an undeniable asset. But he carries the baggage of scandal from his White House years and lingering questions about his personal behavior that could prove damaging to his wife's presidential prospects.

A transcript follows.

____________________

Harrisburg, Pa.: Earlier, the Washington Post printed an article about the possiblity of a Clinton-Clinton ticket, based upon a question a reader submitted to Gene Weingartner. I think that whole discussion missed a different scenario, and that is another Democrat-Bill Clinton ticket. What better way to unite the Democrats than to nominate an "anti-Hillary" Democrat for President and Bill Clinton for Vice President? Plus, how could anyone argue Bill Clinton's qualifications for the office?

Lynne Duke: For Bill Clinton to become a vice presidential candidate on a ticket other than Hillary's, that would surely be perceived as an effort to get another shot at the presidency.

_______________________

Madison, Maine: Why is it so important that the media focus on Bill and less on Hillary? When any male candidate runs for office the press does not center their attention on the woman, yet in Hillary's case she is doomed by her husband.

Granted, I recognize the uniqueness of this situation but I become irritated when the focus on anything she does has mention of her husband.

Chris Matthews implied she would not even considered being a senator was the result of Bill's behavior. I disagree, I think politics have always intriqued her but recognizing that our society has taken the longest time accepting women in the political arena made her decision to wait probably the better one.

I am sure you can enlighten me as to why the focus is always the male counterpart and not the woman. Times are changing but apparently the slowest when it comes to a woman in power.

Lynne Duke: It is true: the rise of women in power has been slow, especially considering that women are, I believe half of the U.S. population. But surely you can see why a discussion of Hillary Clinton's rise cannot be divorced from her husband. Her political evolution, from First Lady to Senator, was directly tied to his career. And we shall see if American voters are ready for a woman to lead the country, if she does indeed run.

_______________________

Yellow Springs, Ohio: Are there ideas being examined for what Hillary could say that could help neutralize impact of her husband's sins on her campaign, such as, "I forgave him, so why can't America?" He is like John Kennedy's religion, present but not decisive.

Lynne Duke: I suspect that Hillary Clinton's camp would rather not put itself in the position of some kind of reconciliation commission to foster understanding of Bill.

_______________________

New York, N.Y.: Why is the media so obsessed with the Clintons?

Lynne Duke: Well let's see. He's a two-term president who faced impeachment. She's a First Lady turned Senator turned possible presidential candidate. The Clintons are fascinating political figures who have had a huge impact o the country. They are an incredible political story, so of course the media is more than a bit interested in them. and hold on to your hat - there's nearly two year to go till election day 08!

_______________________

Arlington, Va.: Bill has a very wide and vast popularity, so I don't think he'd hurt Hillary's chances. I think Hillary might hurt her ownself because she lacks the charm of Bill. Although Barack is inexperienced, he's got the charisma and tenacity this country is lacking in its leaders.

Lynne Duke: On the subject of charm, it is said by people who know Hillary Clinton and who spend time with her one on one that she is quite charming, has an infectious laugh, and really has a nice human touch. These are things voters might be looking for as they ponder her as a possible president. During her first Senate campaign, her personal charm was apparently quite affecting for those New Yorkers who were skeptical. She swayed voters in numerous small parties and campaign events across the state - not something she's likely to be able to do in a national race. But I raise it because people do say she has a charming side.

_______________________

Upper Marlboro, Md.: Bill does not seem to be a hindrance for Hillary. His negative actions were never directly related to her causes (health care, civil rights) and will not affect her possible run for the presidency. Besides, those personal actions didn't have a negative affect on the surplus we experienced during his tenure. He was a popular president and would make for a popular "first man."

Lynne Duke: You make a good point. With her own skills and her own formidable knowledge of policy issues, Hillary Clinton has become a politician in her own right. If she runs and if she wins, Bill Clinton as First Man would be an incredible historic twist on the spousal position and on his own political life. People would watch him more than any First Lady ever has been watched - perhaps even more than Hillary Clinton was, too.

_______________________

Atlanta, Ga.: In terms of the woman for president question, this is complicated by her marriage. In her Senate campaign, a candidate ran an ad with a woman making dinner on the phone saying, "On the screen, a woman making dinner in a kitchen talked on a phone, her tone angry: "We started out at the bottom and worked our tushes off to get somewhere. No, but Hillary, she wants to start at the top, you know, the senator from New York." The fact is a lot of hardworking professional women feel like it's more appropriate for a woman politician to get love and support than tons of connections from her husband.

Lynne Duke: The fact is, Bill and Hillary Clinton have been a political team going back to his days as Arkansas governor. His connections are very much hers as well. She was not walled off from his politics; she was very much a part of it. Their friends say they rely on each other as sounding boards on policy and political issues; that theirs is kind of a think tank marriage, ie they share a passion for policy and politics as well as, apparently, for each other. So it's not as if he's handing her connections she didn't already have.

_______________________

Washington, D.C.: Constitutionally, how would it work if Hillary became president and then something happened and she could not continue her presidency due to illness or death, would Bill Clinton again become the next President of the United States? Could that legally happen?

Lynne Duke: Constitutionally that cannot happen. Hillary Clinton's vice president would be next in line.

_______________________

Columbia, Md.: Bill Clinton absolutely cannot run as vice president. One of the requirements of a vice president is the ability to become president. Bill has already served his two terms.

Lynne Duke: Glad we've got the experts joining in.

_______________________

Grand Forks, N.D.: Why are people discussing the possibility of Bill Clinton's appearance on a ticket? He can never be a VP candidate. The 12th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states "But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States."

Lynne Duke: So there you have it.

_______________________

Bill can't be Veep: Veep candidate has to meet all the qualifications of presidential candidate (Constitution, Article II). And presidents can't serve more than two terms (Amendment 22). The courts haven't ruled on this, but it seems pretty obvious that a retired two-term president can't run as veep.

Lynne Duke: More Constitutional citations

_______________________

Falls Church, VA: You've picked a good topic. HIS personal behavior and HER reactions to it tell us a lot about her own personal values -- chief among which is the relentless objective of POWER. The latter perceived value colors much of how the electorate sees Hillary Clinton, including how they will interpret her supposed shift to a moderate stance in her Senate career (i.e., don't buy it; Hillary is still a liberal but will change stripes if necessary to achieve her political power goals).

Thank you.

Lynne Duke: That's a very interesting observation. Let's see what others think

_______________________

Arlington, Va.: Do you think it is possible that Hillary Clinton might conclude the country is not ready for a female president named Clinton? Or do you think there will be a decision that nothing is possible if not attempted?

Lynne Duke: A lot of people believe the conventional wisdom that every move she has made points to a presidential run. Her life, her politics, her sense of politics as a service - all that points to a presidential run. But I really don't know. It is interesting, though, that this country lags behind numerous others when it comes to putting a woman at the helm. Perhaps the time is right. We shall see.

_______________________

Phoenix, Ariz.: Why does the media repeatedly portray Senator Clinton as a "polarizing figure" without pointing out that her approval rating is substantially higher than President Bush's rating and that most of those who voice "strong disapproval" of Clinton are Republicans who would not vote for a Democrat for president in the first place?

Lynne Duke: You are right. People who strongly disapprove of Hillary Clinton are not going to vote for her. But even within the Democratic Party, there reportedly are whispers of concern and anxiety about whether she can win the nation. And as for being polarizing, well, whether fair or not, it's a fact. People have incredibly strong opinions about her - oftetimes opinions laced with deep and offensive sexism. I received emails from some of these folks in response to the article.

_______________________

New York: Last year, the NYT published an article about the Clinton's marriage by checking both schuduling logs and the writer counted how many days and weeks they were together. It was not that much and the Clintons complained it was irrelevant. Did you interview the Clintons?

Lynne Duke: Unfortunately the Clintons declined to speak with me for my article.

_______________________

Hilton Head, SC: You said he'd be more watched than any First Lady. Almost any first lady ... probably not quite as much as Eleanor Roosevelt.

Lynne Duke: Yes, so true. Eleanore Roosevelt was very popular. But the age of television had not yet begun, so we didn't have the saturation-coverage effect that would ensue if indeed Bill Clinton becomes First Man.

_______________________

Germantown, Md.: With respect to Bill as VP -- the pertinent part of Amendment 22 is "No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice ..." Election to the VP slot is not election to the Presidency -- and taking over the Presidency due to resignation, death or other inability is also not election.

The actual interpretation of this would probably end up at the Supreme Court if it ever came to pass.

Lynne Duke: Well, I don't suppose we're going to hear from a Justice during this chat.

_______________________

Washington, D.C.: Lynne, thanks for observing smartly on their "think tank" marriage and how they have his and her connections. I sense from talking to people that they think all of the Clinton scandals (Whitewater, Travel Office, whatever) as Bill scandals, when Hillary was heavily involved. Even in the sex scandals, she was crucial in keeping party discipline together, like kindly telling Jim Moran to not stick up for her during impeachment times. Why do people think she's just a victim, and not a player?

Lynne Duke: Well, I would not agree that all of Bill's scandals were Hillary's as well. And I'm not sure she is still viewed as a victim. But back in the White House days, it was notable that her approval ratings soared when she appeared as the wronged wife after the Monica Lewinsky scandal. I wonder if that was because it was a gender role or a gender template with which people were familiar and thus it gave them a higher degree of empathy for her. I certainly don't think people view her as a victim these days. I mean, she's an incredibly powerful, polished and respected Senator.

_______________________

Falls Church, Va.: Do you sense that Hillary Clinton still loathes the media? And how does that media loathing not get in the way of her ambitions? Although the media don't seem to loathe her back ...

Lynne Duke: I wouldn't know if she loathes the media. She had reason, back in the White House years, when she and Bill were on the receiving end of all manner of probing and poking and analysing by the media. I think anyone would find that distasteful. Yes, even I, a media person, can see that. But she, like most very successful public figures, knows very well how to try to use the media to her advantage.

_______________________

Kansas City: What is your view of Hillary's personal faith and how that might factor into the '08 campaign? It has been reported that she is a member of a Capitol Hill prayer group with conservative Republicans.

Lynne Duke: I can't speak much on her faith, except to say that she is a practicing Methodist who apparently takes her faith seriously. I suspect her faith will be discussed, even dissected - along with everything else - should she declare for president.

_______________________

Germantown, Md.: Following up to my previous comment -- a slightly more likely scenario (not for the Clintons, but in general) is an ex-President as Speaker of the House who ends up as President or acting President. Again, not elected to the job for a third time but if we're in that deep of trouble, having an ex-president in the job would be a -good thing -- I think.

Not a lot of precedent for ex-presidents reentering the political election process though.

Lynne Duke: As you said: not a lot of precedent to draw from.

_______________________

Washington, D.C.: Why does Hillary engender so many strong feelings (whether extreme hate/dislike or blind support) when her husband was such a widely loved person? What are the intrinsic differences between the two that cause one to be a dividing force (Hillary) and the other to be a uniter (Bill)?

Lynne Duke: I think that is a fundamental and important question. And I am certain that gender has a lot to do with it; that she has faced a double standard. She's a tough, professional, and accomplished woman - and some people did not appreciate those attributes in a First Lady. The way she faced scandal also roiled the critics. But did she do anything that men haven't done for generations? In other words, women often are criticized for doing things that men are praised for. Those are just some general ideas.

_______________________

Richmond, Va.: Why is the success of the Clinton's marriage almost never discussed? They, like millions of other couples, had marital problems that included infidelity. We will never know what took place between them privately, but publicly she forgave him and they moved on.

Isn't that what's supposed to happen? Isn't that what conservatives want to see when someone strays in a marriage -- forgiveness and redemption?

Lynne Duke: The success of their marriage is dealt with in my piece. See the final quote, for instance.

_______________________

Manassas, Va.: Since media came up, may I ask -- do female reporters feel a rooting interest in a female president?

Lynne Duke: Among the women reporters I know, there is a debate: is the country ready for a woman president or not?

_______________________

Chicago, Ill.: I really dislike Hilary, but there is a segment of voters that she can gain ground in but Kerry/Gore performed pretty badly amongst. In the '05, Pew Typology, there's a group called pro-government conservatives. It's 10 percent of the electorate; it backed Bush by upwards of 60 percent, but 51 percent have a favorable view of Hillary. Think church-going, married, white blue-collar women.

Lynne Duke: Interesting.

_______________________

Arlington, Va.: Do you think Hillary might not suffer from Clinton Fatigue but from Dynasty Fatigue, that some voters won't want Bush-Clinton-Clinton-Bush-Bush-Clinton-Clinton?

Lynne Duke: There are so many other factors at play in voter perceptions of her that I think it would be hard to separate out something called "dynasty fatigue." Then again, I'm not a pollster. And as in all political races, any possible motivator will be teased our and parsed once the campaigns get going.

_______________________

Re Falls Church: This poster's attitude provides a stark window into the world of sexist attitudes toward female politicians. Now, when would a male politician be disparaged for seeking public office in order to obtain POWER? It is the essence of government service to be entrusted with power (not to mention the public purse)-- this is a large part of what voters vote on and what politics is about.

Lynne Duke: Well, yes. Rarely is a male polician called "power hungry." And yet, Hillary Clinton is ofted tagged with that label. It is what I meant, in an earlier response, about the ways in which gender can define how she is perceived.

_______________________

Lynne Duke: Thanks everyone. Those were great questions.

_______________________

Editor's Note: washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions. washingtonpost.com is not responsible for any content posted by third parties.