Former President Bill Clinton defended his wife Hillary on NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday, charging that the media are “trying to change the subject” on Hillary when she tries to discuss the economy and that individuals need to give the former secretary of State’s claims “context.”
“Half the time, somebody asking a question couldn’t even vote when I was president,” Bill informed NBC host David Gregory. “And so you have to live in the moment, not with memory. It is factually true that we were several million dollars in debt. Everybody now assumes that what happened in the intervening years was automatic. I’m shocked that it’s happened. I’m shocked that people still want me to give talks. So, I’m grateful.”
While the former president acknowledged that his wife’s comments about the two not being “truly well off” and paying ordinary taxes could make some label her as out of touch, he assured the audience that Hillary’s track record shows she’s anything but.
“She advocated and worked as a senator for things that were good for ordinary people and before that, all her life,” Bill explained. “And the people asking her questions should put this into some sort of context.”
Later on in the interview, he called himself a “foot soldier” in Hillary’s army. ” I will do what I am instructed to do,” Bill said in regards to his role in a potential presidential campaign.
Yet, his comments as the conversation came to a close sounded more like those of someone who’s ready to move into a retirement community, not the White House.
“You reach our age and you just look at it differently,” Bill said. “We’ve had wonderful lives, we’ve been incredibly blessed and we’re looking forward to being grandparents.”
Watch the full “Meet the Press” interview below.
