Bill Clinton Sets It Up, Can Obama Hit It Out Of The Park?

Former President Bill Clinton hugs President Barack Obama after addressing the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C. (AP)

Democrats were (predictably) bowled over by former President Bill Clinton’s speech last night. But long-time Republican strategist and former Romney aide Alex Castellanos also said, “This will be the moment that probably re-elected Barack Obama… Bill Clinton saved the Democratic party once. He did it again.”

Ryan Williams of the Romney Campaign saw things differently. He wrote that Clinton’s speech “brought the disappointment and failure of President Obama’s time in office clearly into focus.”

Guest:

Taylor Batten, editorial page editor for the Charlotte Observer
Rick Klein, senior Washington editor for ABC World News and co-host of the network’s webcast Top Line

We welcome comments from all of our listeners. Post below. Please stay on topic and be civil. Comments may be moderated by us, but you are solely responsible for the content of your comments.

Thinkin5

I think another question to ask is: Why should the Republicans get 4 yrs after the condition they left the economy in in 2008?!! And, after the total obstruction on every effort of the President to get the economy moving? They have NO accomplishments to run on from the right.
http://openid.aol.com/rlupodimare RAOUL

I don’t get it. I’ve heard President Obama’s explanation on all of the social and economic issues and I get it. Yet the media keeps hammering the same old statement that the people don’t get it. What we don get is why the the media keeps stating the same old junk; it’s like an attorney leading a witness in order to obtain the answer he or she wants. In short, President Obama has and still does explain just about anything very well. So what is the difference between Bill Clinton and Mitt Romney explanations? Bill Clinton is the Elvis Presley of politics. He has a fantastic charisma matched with brains along with a 6000 Gigabyte memory that none of the Republicans can match. Mr. Clinton also has a natural heart break cracking folksy voice that people of all parties love to hear’……. a sort of Mark Twain delivery using intelligent simple wording that one hangs on to and wishes to hear more of. Love him or hate him Bill Clinton will go down asone of America’s great presidents. And no one, no one looks better in suit than Bill Clinton. When one listens to Mitt Romney, Paul Rand Ryan or the Republican right wing attack dog Reince Priebus, it is down right embarrassing this is why these people use the same old degrading right wing Grover Norquist slogans or the Mitch McConnell one word Mitch knows and that is “NO”. Obstruction politics is not democracy. America gets it regardless wether the explanation comes from President Obama or Bill Clinton and certainly don’t get it when no sense explanations come from Mitt Romney and Paul Rand Ryan. One thing that is glaring during the Democratic Convention, Democrats have great male and female orators and this is what diversification does and why diversification works and produces.
Geoffrey Chambers

Gee, I’m so surprised Ryan Williams was not impressed by Bill Clinton’s speech. Here I thought he was going to go to bed last night depressed by the long list of abuses Clinton nailed to Romney’s and the GOP’s door and get up this morning and concede.
Ann Hedonic

Hello Robin. I have liked you for a long time. You have lovely voice and a great sense of humor. That said, I heard your piece at noon while driving to get my lunch about how the Democrats had done nothing to convince the undecided voter. And on Wednesday, I recall you saying something like this – that some say the DNC was a little too diverse!

I immigrated here 35 years ago, I am a political junkie, and I have watched every DNC starting in 1980. This one has been the most inspiring because of their clear, unapologetic support for women, for immigrants, for diversity, for healthcare, for the social safety net, for public education, to name just a few things. Usually they are mealy mouthed and apologetic, trying to pretend they are Republicans. I LOVE the convention this year. I have enjoyed the speakers, several of them *very* much. I have enjoyed the enthusiasm of the crowds. The convention seems very lively and appealing to me. My husband says the same thing. I think they are making an excellent case for voting Democratic.

You, one of your colleagues, the professor you were going were going to interview ALL seemed to maintaining that the Democratic convention was lackluster and unconvincing. I SIMPLY DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU ALL ARE LOOKING FOR. What magical words need to be said to you, educated and knowledgeable people that you are, that makes you have this unrelentingly negative take on the Democrats?

As for the undecideds, I truly think they are idiots. If they are ordinary Americans, with regular American problems, why on earth would they ever vote for this version of the Republican Party? What are they still confused about? To a certain extent it is up to these people to get a clue.