'I am not a racist,' ex-President Bill Clinton asserts

[phk]

'I am not a racist,' ex-President Bill Clinton asserts

Former presidents get a whole lot of leeway in what they say in public. But former President Bill Clinton just violated one of the prime rules of political communications: Never say what you are not.

"I am not a crook," said Richard Nixon, which, of course, raised or confirmed the issue in the minds of millions during the long-running Watergate scandal that forced him from office. And provided a historic sound bite.

Clinton, who is supposed to be a major surrogate campaigner for Barack Obama this fall and speak at the DemocratEx-president Bill Clinton and his wife Senator Hillary Clinton during her recent unsuccessful presidential primary campaignic National Convention later this month, gave a fascinating and revealing exclusive interview to ABC News in Monrovia, Liberia, over the weekend.

Under some prodding and questioning, he showed an edginess that belied his denial of holding any anger about anything.

His jaw, his body language and lack of that warm, winning campaign smile added to the impression. Clinton spoke about several things, including his role in his wife's presidential primary campaign and what he regretted about it.

Asked if Obama was ready to become president, a readiness point Hillary Clinton hammered hard throughout the campaign, Bill Clinton clearly dodged the question, saying he doubted....

... anyone was ever ready for that job, that he had learned a few things in his early White House weeks in 1993.

Then he added, Obama "is smarter than a whip, so there's nothing he can't learn."

Asked about regrets over his sometimes polarizing role in his wife's unsuccessful campaign, he first said he wasn't going to talk about it, then proceeded to do so. "I got bad press," Clinton said. "Why? Because I told the truth that there was a different standard applied to the finest candidate I ever supported."

Asked specifically about his role in Sen. Clinton's campaign, he suggested the media check the voting results where he had campaigned in places like South Carolina, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, implying the results were positive for her where he had campaigned.

Then he added, "There are things that I wish I'd urged her to do. Things I wish I'd said. Things I wish I hadn't said. But I am not a racist. I've never made a racist comment and I never attacked [Obama] personally."

At one point the reporter referred to Rep. James Clyburn, who remained neutral in the primary struggle before jumping to Obama. She called Clyburn a longtime friend of Clinton's. "Used to be," snapped the ex-president.

"I'm not and never was mad at Sen. Obama," Clinton told the reporter. "You know he hit her hard a couple of times and they hit us a few times a week before she ever responded in kind. The only thing I ever got mad about was people in your line of work pretending that she somehow started the negative stuff. It's a contact sport."

The interview was broadcast on "Good Morning America." You can watch the entire video here. On a scale of four, we give it three Ticket punches.

Oh, and, by the way, Politico.com reports Sen. Clinton will be flying solo -- no Barack, no Bill -- when she campaigns for Obama in Nevada on Friday.

--Andrew Malcolm

[Keystone Phil]

I will never get over that this man was so loved by the black community, so much so that he was considered the "first black President," and now he must defend himself from accussations that he's a racist. What a world.

[MarkWarner08]

Isn't the usage of the word "asserts" an example of opinion journalism? That author is clearly casting doubt on Clinton's statement.

[ChrisFromNJ]

One of the most discouraging aspects of this election was how the Obama campaign pushed forward the narrative that Bill Clinton was a racist and the MSM ran with it.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Isn't the usage of the word "asserts" an example of opinion journalism?

Yes

[Beet]

One of the most discouraging aspects of this election was how the Obama campaign pushed forward the narrative that Bill Clinton was a racist and the MSM ran with it.

It seemed to be coming a lot harder from the MSM than the Obama campaign, though. That journalist was clearly goading him in SC. What it really comes out of is the MSM's predetermined wish to believe the worst about him.

[TomC]

He's an opportunist, and an equal opportunity opportunist at that: he'll disparage anybody to get ahead.

[??????????]

He's an opportunist, and an equal opportunity opportunist at that: he'll disparage anybody to get ahead.

Yeah, Obama is a real piece of work.

[opebo]

I think any white person who denies they are at least somewhat latently racist is lacking in self-knowledge.

[Lunar]

I think any white person who denies they are at least somewhat latently racist is lacking in self-knowledge.

Bill is simply stating that racism was not the deciding force for any decision he made during the primaries.  I do not think he said "I have never made a preemptive negative judgment upon anybody on the basis of race ever in the history of time"

[Franzl]

I think any white person who denies they are at least somewhat latently racist is lacking in self-knowledge.

fixed

[Хahar 🤔]

I think any white person who denies they are at least somewhat latently racist is lacking in self-knowledge.

fixed

True. That said, Clinton is less racist than average.

[NDN]

I think any white person who denies they are at least somewhat latently racist is lacking in self-knowledge.

fixed

True. That said, Clinton is less racist than average.

I don't think everyone is necessarily racist, but people generally have some sort of prejudice or preconceived notion about some group.

[Bleeding heart conservative, HTMLdon]

"I am not a crook" - Richard Nixon

[Хahar 🤔]

I think any white person who denies they are at least somewhat latently racist is lacking in self-knowledge.

fixed

True. That said, Clinton is less racist than average.

I don't think everyone is necessarily racist, but people generally have some sort of prejudice or preconceived notion about some group.

Which amounts to racism. I'm certainly not free of it.

[NDN]

"I am not a crook" - Richard Nixon

In fairness Nixon didn't really do anything that his predecessors didn't. He was just crazy enough to incriminate himself.

[NDN]

Which amounts to racism. I'm certainly not free of it.

No, because that's too broad of a definition. For example I generally do not have a favorable opinion of evangelicals. Does that mean that I'm racist towards them? No.

[Хahar 🤔]

Which amounts to racism. I'm certainly not free of it.

No, because that's too broad of a definition. For example I generally do not have a favorable opinion of evangelicals. Does that mean that I'm racist towards them? No.

Because evangelicals do not amount to a race. But we all do have prreconceived notions about races.