Bill Clinton as Second Lady
Mr. Clinton is Unlikely to Follow in the Footsteps of Lynne Cheney
May 23, 2008
In the past few days, it has become increasingly clear that Barack Obama is about to become the presumptive nominee for the Democrats for President of the United States. This will be an historic first, as a man of African-American heritage becomes the first candidate of a major American party for the job.
This is of course a great relief for the Obama campaign, that has waged a very long and hard fought campaign against the mighty Clinton political machine, which at the beginning of all this was considered the inevitable victor. Obama has likened himself to the biblical figure Jonah, but in this respect he more closely resembled David who is about to defeat Goliath.
So the question now becomes, for the benefit of the party, will David add Goliath to the ticket? This is actually being considered in the corridors of Democratic power, and as announced by no less than George Stephanopoulis on morning television, this so-called dream ticket is being advocated by former US President Bill Clinton.
So, if we are to examine this through to its logical conclusion, Barack and Hillary would run, and according to the plan they would together lead the Democrats to victory and in January of 2009, Mr. Obama would be sworn in as President and Hillary Clinton as Vice President. That would make Michelle Obama the First Lady, the role Hillary Clinton once had, and Bill Clinton the second -- laddie.
Speculating further, there would be a bit of a duel for power and influence. President Obama would get the Oval Office, but who would sit where in the West Wing? Dick Cheney occupies that space now, but in the Clinton years it was Hillary Clinton who dominated that part of the building. So presumably Michelle Obama, a political force in her own right, and Hillary Clinton would sort of share that space in the Obama Administration. Maybe Hillary would ask for her old office back.
And then we come to the problem of what to do with Bill. The office of Vice President was somewhat ill defined for a long time, although in the Bush Administration it has since morphed into what some have called the second highest office in the country. That is probably a stretch, but Dick Cheney has definitely expanded the role of that office well beyond anything it had approached historically, and one might expect Hillary Clinton to want to continue that tradition, although the relationship would be much different. Meanwhile, the role of First Lady has recently been redefined as more of a power base, due in large part to Mrs. Clinton's own experience and effort. One can envisage a similar situation emerging in Obamaland. But if there is any formal role that is really undefined within the governing structure of the United States, it is definitely the role of Second Lady.
If one reflects on it, its really hard to define what exactly is the role of Second Lady. Lynne Cheney has put her own stamp on it, and in a way her role as Second Lady has in some ways been reminscent of how the First Lady used to work in the past - which is to say loyal supporter of her husband, defender of the family from the press, and of course occasional surrogate for the Vice President in ceremonial duties. Lynne Cheney's own daughters actually came up with an acronym for this role: SLOTUS for Second Lady of the United States. What is unique about Mrs. Cheney, however, is she was not content to have this be her only role, and she is the first Second Lady to actually have a day job, as a Senior Fellow of the American Enterprise Institute, which is a conservative think tank based in Washington.
So, would Bill Clinton, the first male SLOTUS, follow in Lynne Cheney's footsteps. This is unlikely. As a former President it would be completely natural for him to be drawn to the center of power, and want to carve out a role for himself there. One President in the White House is plenty. Three is too many. Even if Bill had a day job, there is no way he could be effectively relegated to a ceremonial role. This isn't consistent with his programming. He is a political operator right down to his DNA.
A far better choice for everyone would be for Barack Obama to pick a non-Clinton as his running mate, and for Hillary Clinton to return to the Senate and try and get the job currently held by Harry Reid. She has already self-identified with Lyndon Johnson during this campaign, and any student of US political history knows that Lyndon Johnson was first of all a master of Senate politics, and that was where he derived the most satisfaction of his career. Former President Clinton could then continue as he has over these past few years, as an Ex-President who before this campaign had begun to rise above the fray. Both President Obama, should that come to pass, and Senator Clinton could give him any number of interesting assignments, which could even, potentially, be good for both him and the republic.
