2012: Is Bill Clinton Already the Star of the Campaign?

1992-2012: For Bill Clinton, it’s been 20 years since his ascension to the country’s top political post. And he has no desire to abandon his role as a star senior consultant. He travels the country and gives his very personal opinions on … everything. It’s also a way for him to be the Robert Redford — the “whistle blower” — or horse whisperer — to Obama, and to make his voice heard as a recognized political advisor.

And to remind Obama that the subject of debt is very political/Washingtonian, very far removed from ordinary people. Who just want jobs. In short, he works in politics, not silent films.

For Bill Clinton, there is no shortage of topics. And since this year he doesn’t have his daughter Chelsea to marry off, he has all the time in the world. So why not make Republicans and Democrats grind their teeth by showing interest in Michele Bachmann’s campaign. Then we have his analysis of Republican attitudes toward the debt ceiling, his disagreement with the Democrats’ weaknesses over possible spending cuts for health care reform and his critique of plans for bad laws. You begin to feel like the star host of the summer festival for the 2012 campaign launch has decided to go for an Oscar.

He finds that Michele Bachmann is a better candidate than he thought she’d be, and he says so to Politico. And he praises Republican Mitt Romney who is trying for the third time. Describing Romney, he speaks like a conscientious student who will never go very far, “Romney’s a MUCH better candidate than he was last time.”

Since his famous “it’s the economy stupid!” Bill Clinton has been working his magic formula. And this time, he has said that the hype about spending cuts serves to cover up the sins of Republicans who quadrupled the debt in 12 years with the Bushes. So he wants us to acknowledge and talk about real issues — in other words, unemployment and jobs are bouncing back too slowly. Shame on you, Republicans!

In June, Clinton told the Bloomberg channel that it was crazy to make spending cuts because spending was needed for investment. He especially does not support cuts in the health reform budget, which will remain a major argument for the presidential candidate. No cuts for two years. And he has used David Cameron’s England as an example of what not to do: Cutting development consequently cuts jobs.

Also, Clinton has squashed the attempts of some elected officials to pass a law preventing some convicted felons from voting. He compared the law with Jim Crow laws, which the South used at as a racist tool at the end of the 19th century to eliminate certain people’s right to vote. Along the lines of these laws, he says, can we curtail the political expression of people who have paid their debt to society? We love it like this, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama can thank him, too: He’s giving fresh energy to this campaign that has so far started out … very dry.