Obama: All the Advantages of Clinton Without the Mess

First of all, let me say that I really admired Bill Clinton as a president. I thought that he did a great job for the country. His economic record was great and his determination not to let the Republicans get away with shutting down the government was remarkable. But, let's face it, the private sexual indiscretions that ended up being made public were embarrassing. Embarrassing not just to him, but to his family and to his supporters. Not only were they embarrassing, but they probably led to Al Gore losing the 2000 election and the horrors of the Bush years. I can't help but believe that his sexual hi-jinks caused enough voters in Florida to vote for Bush over Gore to have been the difference in 2000.

The advantages of Clinton were that he was brilliant, he was an incredible politician, he was intellectually curious, and he was able to articulate a vision of America that appealed to voters. The disadvantages were that he was undisciplined which led to the private, and not so private, sexual indiscretions mentioned above.

Now, Obama is also brilliant, he is also intellectually curious, and he has the ability to inspire Americans and to so ably articulate his vision. He is also politically intelligent. He may not have Clinton's ability to connect with Americans emotionally as Clinton, but he certainly showed that he has incredible political skills.

What he doesn't have is Clinton's lack of discipline . He is not going to be having an affair with an intern and humiliating his wife and family, not to mention embarrassing the rest of us. With Obama you get a lot of Clinton's strengths, but not his weaknesses. A lot of the benefits of Clinton without the mess.