--- title: Bill Clinton Is Advising Hillary Clinton's Campaign description: Bill Clinton is providing low-key advice to Hillary Clinton's campaign for president, two top aides said Friday. canonical: https://time.com/3920153/bill-clinton-hillary-campaign-adviser/ author: Sam Frizell article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-06-13T01:10:50.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:47:57.804Z article:section: Politics og:title: Bill Clinton is Advising his Wife's Campaign for President og:description: "Let's major in the majors, not in the minors," he told staffers. og:url: https://time.com/3920153/bill-clinton-hillary-campaign-adviser/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt436c6069c28526b7/6988546aa988ca68136b302a/bill-clinton-speech.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 594 og:image:height: 334 og:image:alt: Former president Bill Clinton attends the Forbes' 2015 Philanthropy Summit Awards Dinner on June 3, 2015 in New York City. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Bill Clinton is Advising his Wife's Campaign for President twitter:description: "Let's major in the majors, not in the minors," he told staffers. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt436c6069c28526b7/6988546aa988ca68136b302a/bill-clinton-speech.jpg?branch=production&width=594&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Hillary Clinton Aides Shed Light on Bill's Role in Her Campaign > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, twice a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=ea96b300-902e-401c-a054-e4413422501c&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Hillary Clinton's Top 10 Political Moments [Watch (HLS stream): Hillary Clinton's Top 10 Political Moments](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/L3I0gpwt.m3u8) (1:49)  _Published 2015-04-09. Watch the top 10 moments from Hillary Clinton's career in politics._ by [Sam Frizell](https://time.com/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell Jun 13, 2015 1:10 AM UTC  Former president Bill Clinton attends the Forbes' 2015 Philanthropy Summit Awards Dinner on June 3, 2015 in New York City. Former president Bill Clinton attends the Forbes' 2015 Philanthropy Summit Awards Dinner on June 3, 2015 in New York City. Dimitrios Kambouris—Getty Images by [Sam Frizell](https://time.com/author/sam-frizell/) ## Sam Frizell Jun 13, 2015 1:10 AM UTC Bill Clinton is providing low-key advice to Hillary Clinton’s campaign for president, two top aides said Friday. Speaking at a panel discussion organized by _Politico_ in New York City, Hillary Clinton communications director Jen Palmieri and campaign manager Robby Mook discussed the former president’s role in his wife’s campaign. “He doesn’t come to every meeting we have, but he does join his wife often in some of our discussions, and I’m always fascinated to hear what his observation is going to be because it’s always something no one said,” Palmieri said. “We’re going to use him when we need him. He’s one of the most—if not the most—strategic political minds in the country.” The former president has not accompanied his wife on the campaign trail, and has rarely appeared with her in public since she announced her candidacy. In an interview with _Town and Country_ magazine earlier this year, Bill said that his role would primarily be as a “backstage adviser.” Bill Clinton’s campaigning for his wife backfired in 2008, when in South Carolina he seemed to attribute Barack Obama’s victory in the early primary state to his race. But the former president has a deep knowledge of the ins and outs of campaigning, having won large victories in both 1992 and 1996. That news that Bill is providing some advice to the campaign is consistent with what the Clinton camp has suggested in the past, but Friday evening’s discussion provided more insight into the former president’s involvement than ever before. “He’s a really helpful big picture sounding board,” said Mook. “Another thing I remember him saying at one meeting is, ‘let’s major in the majors, not in the minors.’ He’s a really brilliant communicator.” In early May, Bill Clinton’s chief of staff [told the Washington _Post_](http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/for-the-clintons-a-big-question-what-to-do-with-bill/2015/05/10/1f5b6212-f4db-11e4-bcc4-e8141e5eb0c9%5Fstory.html) that he is “not directly engaged in the campaign” but when his advice is asked for “he’s happy to give it.” Mook also dismissed recent poll numbers that suggest Hillary Clinton’s favorability numbers are slipping. According to a CNN poll published last week, 57% of Americans think the former secretary of state is not trustworthy. “A lot of the public polling is not very reliable,” Mook said. “I don’t pay a whole lot of attention to it.” Palmieri said that Clinton’s main goal in her campaign will be demonstrating that she is someone Americans can trust to fight for them and solve the big problems facing the country. Hillary began campaigning in mid-April but will hold her [first official campaign rally](http://time.com/3918339/hillary-clinton-launch-new-york-city/) on Saturday on Roosevelt Island, in New York, where she will lay out her vision for the country and her rationale for her presidential bid. ## Transcript You know, I'm not sittin' here some little woman standing here by my man like Tammy Wynette. I'm sittin' here because I love him, and I respect him. Now is our chance to beat the historical odds, and give the American people the health security they need. If there is one message that echoes forth from this. Let it be that human rights are women's rights and women's rights are human rights once and for all. The great story here for anybody willing to find it and write about it and explain it is this vast right- wing conspiracy that has been conspiring. Against my husband since the day he announced for president. I would be happy to, when you give me the signed letters. Well, right here. Right here. When you give me. Right here. Sign it right now. We'll shake. We'll shake on this, Ray. No, no, I want your signature, cause I think that everybody wants to see you signing something that you said you were for. You know, I have so many opportunities from this country. I just don't wanna see us fall backwards. Although we weren't able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it's got about 18 million cracks in it. The battle to stop Al Qaeda and its affiliates. Does not end with one death. What difference, at this point, does it make? It is our job to figure out what happened and do everything we can to prevent it from ever happening again, Senator. I took the unprecedented step of asking that the state department make all my work- related emails, [ MUSIC ] Public for everyone to see. 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