Hillary's campaign couldn't help but notice the negative press that her husband is attracting, and how she completely bombed in South Carolina this past weekend. It was known for a while that she'd lose the Palmetto state, but never by the greater than two to one margin that we saw on Saturday. Now the nasty Bill (or at least that is how he is being portrayed) needs to go away and the nice (or pre-Iowa caucus) Bill is about to return.
From The NY Times:
After a week of all-out campaigning by Mr. Clinton in South Carolina, where Mrs. Clinton came in a distant second to Mr. Obama, there is also fresh concern among some advisers that Mr. Clinton’s visibility has dented her argument that she has the best experience for the job.
These advisers expressed concern that the specter of a co-candidacy and co-presidency could bring back elements of the Clinton history that many Democrats would just as soon leave behind.
Representative Charles B. Rangel of New York, a leading supporter of Mrs. Clinton, said on Sunday that Mr. Clinton was going to pull back. “He’s got to,” Mr. Rangel said. “The focus has got to get back on Hillary. For all that he cares about his wife, this has to be her election to win, and it’s become too much about his role.”
The problem for the Clintons' campaign (was that a grammatical mistake? oops) is that the damage may already be done. Ted Kennedy was reported to have endorsed Obama specifically because of Bill's remark about Jesse Jackson. Now he'll actively campaign for Barack. The endorsements have racked up in the last few days for Obama, from authors like Toni Morrison and another Kennedy named Caroline. Of course no one knows how this will play out a week from tomorrow when California, New York and many other states conduct their primaries, but this can't help the Clinton campaign at all.
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