Bill Clinton Auditions for the Role of First Guy

6 minute read

Of all the thankless tasks that a political spouse must endure, the ritual of the convention speech is perhaps the worst.

Every four years, in front of a crowd of thousands and an audience of millions, the candidate’s spouse has to testify to their essential goodness, weaving the most personal anecdotes with broader campaign themes.

The fact that Bill Clinton was a practiced convention speaker with nine speeches under his belt already did not make his task easier Tuesday. If anything, it made it harder.

Those speeches were more straightforward affairs, endorsing the party’s candidate, arguing for his own campaigns, serving as “Explainer-in-Chief” for the platform. To testify on his wife’s behalf, Clinton had to unlearn some of those habits, and as the first man in his position on a major party platform, he had no role models.

His job was to humanize Hillary Clinton, to turn her from a cardboard cutout—“the most famous, least-known person in the country”—back into something relatable.

In 2008, Michelle Obama described Barack Obama as “the same man who drove me and our new baby daughter home from the hospital 10 years ago this summer, inching along at a snail’s pace, peering anxiously at us in the rearview mirror, feeling the whole weight of her future in his hands.”

In 2000, Laura Bush recalled that “Hop on Pop” was one of George W. Bush’s favorite children’s books, and told the Republican National Convention that “George would lie on the floor and the girls would literally hop on pop, turning story time into a contact sport.”

Read More: Bill Clinton Has Spoken Over 35,000 Words at Democratic Conventions

But Bill Clinton had a trickier task. He could not paint the first female presidential nominee as an anxious new mom without risking reducing her political stature. And he could not make broad proclamations about building a better future without sounding like he was running himself.

Instead he had to perform the kind of rhetorical alchemy that only a gifted speaker could pull off: turning the story of her success into the story of their love.

The crowd was largely silent as Bill Clinton cast his spell, conjuring up the image of a bright young go-getter and the hapless fool who fell for her. Bill dwelled heavily on the couple’s early courtship, painting a picture of a good-hearted, idealistic Hillary Clinton who swept him off his feet. She wore a flowered skirt and had big hair. He followed her to register for classes, even though he had already signed up. She took him home to Illinois to argue about the Bears and Cubs with her two brothers.

He also credited her—perhaps too much—for his own ambition, arguing that she had believed in him and pushed him into office. Through her work helping children and migrant workers, he said, “Hillary opened my eyes to a whole new world of public service by private citizens.” Whatever he had accomplished, he seemed to imply, was largely thanks to her.

“Let’s get back to business,” he said after he finished listing early examples of her do-goodery to return to his grandfatherly reminiscences. “Meanwhile, I was trying to get her to marry me.” The first portion of the speech focused not on any jobs or campaigns, but on his three marriage proposals to Hillary. He managed to spin an image of Hillary Clinton as both a superhero and an ingenue.

Then he elided more than a decade, skipping over his own presidency so that he could drill into her stints in the Senate and the State Department. Every mention of his own political career was couched as part of a personal narrative of their life together. If somehow you didn’t know that he’d been President in the 1990s, you might not have realized it from this speech.

Instead, Bill assumed the posture of an awestruck bystander who happened to be around while Hillary worked her magic. When they dropped Chelsea off at college, he recalls, “there I was in a trance staring out the window the window trying not to cry, and there was Hillary, on her hands and knees looking for one more drawer to put that liner paper in.” Unlike Michelle Obama or Laura Bush, he softened his spouse by opening up about his own vulnerabilities, not hers.

Hillary and Bill Clinton’s Political Romance in Photos

Hillary and Bill Clinton have been married 40 years— much of it spent in the political spotlight. Here, Hillary Rodham and Bill Clinton married at a small ceremony on Oct. 11, 1975 - present Courtesy William J. Clinton Presidential Library
Hillary and Bill Clinton have been married 40 years— much of it spent in the political spotlight. Here, Hillary Rodham and Bill Clinton married at a small ceremony on Oct. 11, 1975 - present Courtesy William J. Clinton Presidential LibraryCourtesy William J. Clinton Presidential Library
Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton and wife Hillary Rodham hold their week-old baby Chelsea on March 5, 1980.
Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton and wife Hillary Rodham hold their week-old baby Chelsea on March 5, 1980. Donald R. Broyles—AP
Former Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary Clinton celebrate his victory in the Democratic runoff in Little Rock, Ark. on June 8, 1982.
Former Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary Clinton celebrate his victory in the Democratic runoff in Little Rock, Ark. on June 8, 1982.AP
Democratic presidential candidate Bill Clinton hugs his wife Hillary Clinton after she introduced him to well wishers at a downtown Chicago hotel, March 10, 1992.
Democratic presidential candidate Bill Clinton hugs his wife Hillary Clinton after she introduced him to well wishers at a downtown Chicago hotel, March 10, 1992. Ralf-Finn Hestoft—AP
Rodham Clinton Gore
Hillary Rodham Clinton sits on the lap of her husband, democratic presidential candidate Bill Clinton left, as she jokes with vice presidential candidate Al Gore and his wife, Tipper, during a brief rest on their bus in Durham, N.C., on Oct. 26, 1992. Stephen Savoia—AP
Bill Clinton & Hillary Rodham Clinton
Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton comforts his wife Hillary Rodham Clinton on the set of the news program '60 Minutes' after a stage light unexpectedly broke loose from the ceiling and knocked her down on Jan. 26, 1992. CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images
President Bill Clinton dances with First Lady Hillary Clinton on stage on Jan. 20, 1993 in Washington. Eleven inaugural balls were held on the same evening in honor of President Clinton's election.
President Bill Clinton dances with First Lady Hillary Clinton on stage on Jan. 20, 1993 in Washington. Eleven inaugural balls were held on the same evening in honor of President Clinton's election.Diana Walker—Liaison/Getty Images
Massachussets: U.S. President Bill Clinton (R) and
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton give each other a hug while playing golf at the Mink Meadows Golf Club on Martha's Vineyard Aug. 27,1993 in Massachusetts. J. David Ake—AFP/Getty Images
Bill Clinton
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton cut vegetables at the Covenant Baptist Church in Washington, on Nov. 24, 1993. Doug Mills—AP
President Clinton And Family On Vacation On Martha's Vineyard
President Bill Clinton bikes with his wife, Hillary Clinton, during their vacation on Martha's Vineyard in 1994. Evan Richman—The Boston Globe/Getty Images
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton drink Coca-Cola at Moscow's Coca-Cola refreshments plant on May 11, 1995.
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton drink Coca-Cola at Moscow's Coca-Cola refreshments plant on May 11, 1995. Greg Gibson—AP
President Bill Clinton puts an arm around his wife, Hillary Clinton, while watching Old Faithful erupt at Yellowstone National Park, Wyo., on Aug. 25, 1995. The first family visited several Yellowstone sites while on vacation.
President Bill Clinton puts an arm around his wife, Hillary Clinton, while watching Old Faithful erupt at Yellowstone National Park, Wyo., on Aug. 25, 1995. The first family visited several Yellowstone sites while on vacation. Doug Mills—AP
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton share a moment during an East Room ceremony at the White House on July 17, 1996.
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton share a moment during an East Room ceremony at the White House on July 17, 1996.Ron Edmonds—AP
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President Bill Clinton and his wife Hillary Rodham Clinton look at each other as they opened the White House Conference on Child Care Thursday Oct. 23, 1997 in the East Room of the White House. J. Scott Applewhite—AP
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First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton visits President Bill Clinton on March 14, 1997 at Bethesda Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. after he underwent surgery on his knee. AP
BILL CLINTON HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON
First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, squeezes the chin of President Bill Clinton during the kick-off rally for The President's Summit in Philadelphia on April 27, 1997. Tim Shaffer—AP
File photo dated 04 January 1998 shows US Presiden
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton dance on the beach of Megan Bay, St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands shortly after taking a swim on Jan. 4, 1998.Paul J. Richards—AFP/Getty Images
Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton
First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton watches President Bill Clinton as he thanks Democratic members of the House of Representatives who voted against impeachment on Dec. 19, 1998, following the Lewinsky scandal.Susan Walsh—AP
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton embrace during the New York State Senate luncheon on July 29, 2000 in New York City.
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton embrace during the New York State Senate luncheon on July 29, 2000 in New York City.Pablo Martinex Monsivais—AP
US First Lady and Senatorial candidate fopr New Yo
Senatorial candidate for New York and First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton with husband President Bill Clinton pose for photos with the workers at Gianelli's Italian Sausages at the State Fair on Sept. 2, 2000 in Syracuse, N.Y.Tim Sloan—AFP/Getty Images
Democratic Senator Hillary Clinton of Ne
New York Sen. Hillary Clinton and her husband former President Bill Clinton smile after she won her second term, during a rally held by New York Democrats, in New York, on Nov. 7, 2006. Timothy A. Clary—AFP/Getty Images
Hillary Rodham Clinton, Bill Clinton
Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., is hugged by her husband, former President Bill Clinton as he introduces her during a campaign rally in Louisville, Ky. on May 19, 2008. Elise Amendola—AP
Bill And Hillary Clinton Lower Times Square 2009 New Years Eve Ball
Former President Bill Clinton and then Secretary of State-elect Hillary Clinton celebrate the beginning of the year 2009 during the ceremony to lower the Times Square New Year's Eve ball in Times Square on Jan. 1, 2009 in New York.Jemal Countess—Getty Images
Democratic presidential candidate former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her husband former U.S. president Bill Clinton embrace during a primary night event on June 7, 2016 in Brooklyn, New York after Hillary Clinton surpassed the number of delegates needed to become the democratic nominee.
Democratic presidential candidate former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her husband former U.S. president Bill Clinton embrace during a primary night event on June 7, 2016 in Brooklyn, New York after Hillary Clinton surpassed the number of delegates needed to become the democratic nominee.Justin Sullivan—Getty Images

“She’s the best darn change maker I ever met in my entire life,” he said. “This woman has never been satisfied with the status quo in anything. This woman always wants to move the ball forward, that’s just who she is.”

In a particularly artful slight of hand, Bill Clinton compared this portrait of Hillary to the nasty caricatures painted by her enemies. “One is real,” he said, “the other is made up.” With one flick of a long, outstretched finger, Bill Clinton used the GOP’s attacks against Hillary to lend credibility to his own account. “A real change maker represents a real threat,” he said. “So the only option is to create a cartoon alternative, and run agains the cartoon.”

Delegates loved the idea of Bill Clinton as First Guy. “It’s never been done before, but based on how he did this, I think he’s gonna fill it with grace and grit,” said Judy Noel, a Hillary Clinton delegate from Florida. “He made her into such a warm, human and accomplished person.”

Even Bernie Sanders delegates were impressed. “Bill’s speech really shows a good side of Hillary Clinton,” said Gina Robinson Ungar, a Bernie Sanders delegate from Indiana. “I hope our neighbors back home will pay attention.”

There’s an old line that everything Fred Astaire did, Ginger Rogers also did backwards and in high heels. Bill Clinton’s speech Tuesday was the male analogue. He had to do everything Michelle Obama and Laura Bush did, only standing straight while wearing a tightly knotted tie.

It was not easy, but by all accounts he pulled it off.

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Write to Charlotte Alter / Philadelphia at charlotte.alter@time.com