Celebrity Retirement Scorecard: Bill Clinton
Filed under: Retire, Career, Wealth
Who is making it? Who is not? We've concocted retirement scorecards for some showcase retirees in entertainment, politics and sports. See the full list here.
Loser: William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton
Former occupation/notable position held: 42nd President, United States of America
Activities during retirement: Philanthropist, foundation head; public speaker; best-selling author; political albatross
Retirement Report Card Grade: D
In the heat of the Presidential primary battle, now presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama publicly mused that he sometimes didn't know which Clinton he was running against.
America agreed. It wound up hurting Hillary, badly.
The damage the former president was doing to his wife's campaign went high-profile at perhaps the worst popular time, following her unexpected, comeback victory in New Hampshire. His thinly-veiled invocation of race on the South Carolina stump turned a campaign just catching the wind into listing sloop.
No one would ever confuse Bill Clinton with a political or media trainee. So what's to explain his well-documented campaign travails?
It does wash if you look at Bill as a guy finding his way into a new phase of life – not traditional retirement, but a period that requires sublimating a Presidential-sized ego, and finding a new identity.
It can be tough work establishing a new persona when you turn the page. For many traditional retirees, the cocktail party icebreaker "what do you do" becomes loathed if the best they can conjure is, "I'm retired." Bill was in uncharted waters for someone used to having the spotlight trained solely on him.
Look at Bill's public-facing activities since leaving the White House, and you see a similar pattern: worthwhile pursuits, starring Bill Clinton as, well, Bill Clinton.
Bill Clinton as a brand is a good thing if it means getting desperately needed dollars to Africa, or delivering what Homeland Security could not to New Orleans. But Brand Bill didn't fly on someone else's Presidential campaign trail. Maybe it did early on, but not during the campaign's latter, critical phase.
The former president gets a "D" for this marking period, with big potential to return to his former, higher-scoring self.
A smart guy once said (paraphrasing) when you're President, they play music every time you enter the room. When you're not, the music stops. Bill would have done well by his wife by remembering these, his own words.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-28-2008 @ 9:32PM
Denise said...
Bill Clinton was the very best President we had. In the 8 years that the Clinton's were in the White House was the very best years of my adult life. We had prosperity for the middle-class. We had jobs available with liveable wages. We could food on our tables, pay for the roof's over our heads, pay for gas in our cars, and we could still save some money in our savings account. Now that is all lost, since the Bush/Cheney disaster!! I was a Democrat all of my life, now I have turned "Independent" . I will not let the DNC or GOP make me decide who they want us to vote for.
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6-28-2008 @ 11:28PM
Maria said...
Denise, you said it well. President Clinton was indeed one of the best U.S. Presidents in U.S, history.
And I do not think it will ever be the same.
His social conscience for the working class of this country cannot be surpasssed or even matched by
anyone else. His dignity, respect, compassion and concern for the average American was overwhelming.
I do not care what anyone says about him.
The media and the Bush mafia only portray him as
a failure because they were and still are so jealous
of his goodness and popularity. What childess pigs they are !
6-28-2008 @ 10:32PM
Tani said...
This is absurd. Bill Clinton was a great president, despite having to fight the Republicans at every turn. He now does a lot of humanitarian work, but he gets a D? The prejudice against this great man is disgusting.
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6-29-2008 @ 12:21AM
hank said...
To make it short, Micheal is full of it concerning Bill Clinton.
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6-29-2008 @ 1:59AM
Robert Dole said...
BILL CLINTON A REAL GREAT MAN. MEMBER EMERITUS TO THE ME GENERATION. SOCIAL VALUES- HMMMMM. AND HIS WIFE.... A TRUE CU.....
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6-30-2008 @ 1:51PM
Thomas L. Karp said...
Bill Clinton was the greatest president in recent times. He did give us just a darn good life. I was not always worried about my finances,my future, my recently taken away retirement by my company, my tumbling real estate appraisal on my home. In addition the outrageous gas prices and when he left office our "O" national debt.
These people who speak bad about him becasue of his personal life. I really don't care,,,leave it to these republicans to always monolopize on that. Once again my life was good. Tell me what good that idot George Bush has done for the citizens of this country.????Can you think of anything that is truly something that has made our lives BETTER!
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6-29-2008 @ 4:15AM
Sharif Graham said...
This D grade is grossly unfair! So he messed up campaigning for his wife. So what. Men almost always mess up when they try to help their wives' careers, because they are way too defensive and are seen as trying to advance themselves, both fatal in political campaigning. But he has a lot of solid accomplishments, not so many as president, but a lot since. He deserves a B-.
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6-30-2008 @ 8:48AM
Jim said...
Michael.. your writing reads as if you are 12 years old..not very mature,being a read reporter. What makes you think that your opinion is so correct as to be written so everyone can read your bilge. You probably don't really know Bill Clinton. It sounds like to me that you are just writing opinions that YOU have read in the past. Clintons presidency was truley a great run for the Democrats and especially for him as a world leader. He demanded and got respect from most of the world leaders. When he left office, he left the country in very good shape financially (trillion dollar surplus) and spiritually (low unemployment and good feelings about being an american). I wager that even YOU have talked badly about the current president more so than you did with Mr. Clinton. He built a lasting legacy in his stay in the White House, and will be remembered as a good leader. Only you idiots will put his sexploits in front of his leadreship. What will all of you critics have to say about Bush when he is finally gone from office (nothing good , I'm sure). So Michael, go find something else to write about that doesn't use your opinion. I and probably most of your readers don't give two sh--- about what you think !!!!!!!!!!
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6-30-2008 @ 8:56AM
Jim said...
By the way Burnham I give you an F !!!!!!!!
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7-28-2008 @ 7:35PM
Sandra said...
Who is writing these articles? I have never heard of you. For you to sit there and write about one of the smartest, most intelligent Presidents this country has had, only makes me wonder who the hell do you think you are? A loser for sure. As far as anything Bill Clinton said or insinuated about "RACE" in the primary was very true. The Obama people started the race thing and are still pushing it. Oprah made the first "racist" comments in her speech in Iowa. Just play back the part where she speaks about Martin Luther King and listen to her voice and how she changes her spoken word to sound like a down-south-uneducated black person. Then tell me who made the first racist comments. You must be a Republican. I have no use for you. You certainly learned how to twist the truth, and should not be allowed to write for any publication. You do not write the facts, but just your slanted version of what you think.
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7-28-2008 @ 8:43PM
Sandy said...
Bill Clinton didn't mess up when campaigning for his wife. The media just could not stop criticizing him. The media has made a mockery out of this election by it's overtly constant push for Obama. It's obvious to all Americans. If one wants the truth in news, one needs to watch PBS. American news networks have been taken over and may I point out, been allowed to monopolize the news media in numerous markets. Congress made Bill Gates sell off portions of his company, yet, have let media mogels buy up newspaper, radio stations and TV networks all in the same viewing market area. This is how they can continuously monopolize how the news is presented with their point of view. You think if you all say the same thing, on all the networds you control, back the same loser for President (you know the one, who has questionable friends, like domestic terrorists, slumlords, and a wife who just now decided she's proud to be an AMerican, oh, lest we not forget, the Pastor who mentored him in religion) yep, Obama, that Americans are too stupid to figure out what you are doing.
You and the DNC, The White House and Congress and the good ole boy corporations have succeeded in destroying this country in the last 8 years under the Bush/Cheney dicatatorship and are repsonsible for the failures in this country, not Bill Clinton. You idiots seem to forget, we had a major surplus when he left office. Now, under Bush we have become an almost third world country. You idiots must be on some kind of drugs.
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