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Whether Bill Clinton's participation is harmful or helpful in Hillary's Presidential campaign can't be judged until the Democratic Convention chooses its 2008 candidate. As it looks after her double digit defeat in the North Carolina primaries and her squeaky-narrow win in Indiana, Hillary may not even survive until the convention.

If she decides to drop out early, many pundits will blame it on Bill Clinton's negative impact. On the other hand, if she goes to the convention and beats out Barack Obama for the nomination, Bill Clinton's image will turn from villain to hero. And if Hillary goes up against Republican John McCain and wins the Presidency, Bill's image will grow from hero to superhero.

Let's look at the entire Bill-Hillary picture. Many people believe that if she hadn't hooked up with Bill Clinton way back in the early days, today she'd probably be an obscure corporate counsel somewhere among the canyons of New York. She's a very intelligent and well-educated lawyer, and certainly could've made a lucrative career without Bill's help.

However, the basic fact remains that she did form an effective partnership with Bill as he won the governorship of Arkansas and went on to convince the Democratic Party bigwigs into nominating him for President in 1992. If there had never been a Bill Clinton Presidency, Hillary almost certainly wouldn't be looking for a ticket back to the White House today as the country's very first female Commander in Chief. Further, for the loyal spouse of a guy who spent his youth hating and avoiding anything to do with the military, it would be a strange situation for admirals and generals who'd have to deal with Hillary in the White House war room. That negative image, created by her association with Bill, is not helping her bid for the Presidency.

The most negative impact Bill Clinton has on Hillary's try for the Presidency is that he shamed her by his well-publicized sleep-around adventures during his Presidency, and even more so, when he lied during impeachment procedures. However, Hillary has had the courage, if not total forgiveness, to take effective speaker Bill along throughout her campaign in her attempt to win the Democratic Party nomination. Actually, he has worked hard to help her efforts, but his personal errors, both in the past and in the current campaign, have been rich fodder for critics and the late night comedians. If Hillary actually does win the nomination, Bill's personal antics have provided even richer material for John McCain to use against her.

Recently, official reports revealed that the Clintons had earned more than $109 million in the seven years since they left the White House.
Bill has had a very lucrative speaking career since leaving the White House. It isn't illegal nor unusual for an ex-President to make from $25000 to $100,000 per appearance on the corporate and political speakers' circuit. However, all that money earned by Bill may detract from Hillary's attempts to appeal to the blue collar and farm belt voter as one of them in spirit and advocacy.

Learn more about this author, Ted Sherman.
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