Still Standing By Her Man

Over the weekend the Washington Post ran a story about how Hillary Clinton's campaign has let the word out after the Geffen flap — trashing Bill will not be tolerated. Next to the story was that famous photograph of Bill Clinton on Impeachment Day, flanked by all those miserable Democratic congressmen he dragged to the White House, and of course his wife. Oh, she may have been miserable too, but she had eaten her words six years after telling 60 Minutes in their 1992 campaign interview that she doesn't "stand by her man" like Tammy Wynette. I don't know if Tammy Wynette wears a black pant suit with a mandarin collar but there was Hillary Clinton, standing firm and standing by her man.

The whole sorry affair, and I mean the dalliance combined with impeachment proceedings — soup to nuts — sent Hillary's poll numbers skyward and ultimately positioned her to run for the Senate in a state she wasn't from. All these years later Hillary is the fabulously powerful senator from New York, reelected in November in what she herself characterizes as a "landslide." She has announced for president and hit the trail to tout not only her accomplishments and her potential, but the record of her husband as well. The crowds in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina purr at the mention of his name, they still love him more than Hillary, more than Obama, more than Gore.

As Hillary wisely takes a few rides on Bill's Magic Carpet to win the race to the Democratic nomination, she should strap on her seat belt. She should accept that no matter what she dictates from her high perch of invincibility, her opponents will never agree to take Bill Clinton off limits. They have no choice. They don't have the greatest talent in Democratic politics working for them, and she does. Hillary can look back to 1998 to recall that in standing by Bill she was transformed in the eyes of many. Back then she didn't know he would be her best asset, but this time she does.

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