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Wrapping a whirlwind day of campaigning, President Barack Obama joined Bill Clinton — the last Democratic president, and vocal advocate for Obama — at a massive rally Saturday evening in northern Virginia.
Before a crowd estimated at 24,000, Obama both literally and figuratively embraced Clinton, who has emerged as one of the most dogged advocates for the president's re-election campaign this fall.
"He has been traveling all across the country for this campaign. He's been laying out the stakes so well that our team basically calls him the 'Secretary of Explaining Stuff,'" Obama said. "He was a great president; he has been a great friend."
As the final weekend of the 2012 campaign raised the question of which candidate, Obama or Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, would best move Washington past its intractable problems, Clinton, a president who has only grown more popular since leaving office, offered Obama his imprimatur.
"As you see, I have given my voice in the service of my president," the hoarse former president said, following some local favorites, the Dave Matthews Band, at the rally in suburban Washington.
NBC Politics coverage of the 2012 campaign:
- Uncertain finale looms amid weekend campaign blitz
- Romney implores Colorado for 'one last push'
- Biden zings Romney in Colorado
- Ryan travels to Pennsylvania, trying to put state in play
- Obama plays up 'trust' in battleground Ohio
- Obama aide explains 'voting is best revenge' comment
- Ryan: 'We believe in change and hope'
- Romney strikes optimistic tone as final weekend opens
- Polls: Obama stays ahead in Ohio, deadlocked with Romney in Fla.
- GOP's chances at Senate imperiled by self-inflicted wounds
Both Obama and Romney spent the day criss-crossing the United States to make a firmly centrist appeal, each of them trying to sound upbeat as the clock counts down on Election 2012. Each candidate drew thousands — sometimes tens of thousands — of supporters to rallies in Iowa, Wisconsin, Colorado, Iowa, Virginia, Ohio and beyond. And each candidate argued he was the one who could break through the gridlock in a Congress beset for the past two years by bitter partisan fights.
"You know that if the president is re-elected, he'll still be unable to work with the people in Congress," Romney told a sprawling crowd in Colorado. "He's ignored them. He's blamed them. He's attacked them."
Romney spent much of the campaign's final weekend arguing he was the candidate of "change," co-opting Obama's 2008 message to use four years later against the president.
Whether the Republican candidate's claim to to the mantle of change would resonate with a handful of remaining swing voters in just a few battleground states was unclear. Obama seemed to enjoy an edge in states like Iowa, leading Romney by five points among likely voters, according to the Des Moines Register's final poll. But a WMUR poll of New Hampshire also found the president and Romney tied, at 47 percent, in another battleground state: New Hampshire.
That neither Obama or Romney had managed to open a solid advantage over the other in the final hours of the campaign only raised the stakes for the final series of events on Sunday and Monday. Both Obama and Romney — along with Vice President Biden and Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan — were set to hit the road for another robust schedule tomorrow. Obama was set to travel to Colorado, Florida, and New Hampshire; Romney's schedule would take him to Iowa, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
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All I can say it was great having President Clinton and Obama together on the campaign trail. It was very good and befitting. I am so happy that President Clinton participated in this campaign. He was great and no one can contest his loyalty to Obama and the Democratic Party. President Clinton worked very hard with no doubt. This man was absolutely fabulous. I am very sure the Republican Party wished that they had someone of this stature on their side. You cannot get better than President Clinton. I love me some Clinton. I say thank you to him for giving his all to President Obama.
Obama/Biden 2012
“No, I think that they played the race card on me,” said Clinton, “and we now know from memos from the campaign and everything that they planned to do it all along.”
no wonder there are so many poor, pitiful americans they will believe any fool who even mentions the word FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
so sad!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
To JH
Yes, President Bill Clinton, the most popular former President in history
And who do the GOP have? Meat Loaf?
The have Bushy who's in the Caymens talking to other rich pricks how to hide their money overseas.
you are so naive !!!!!!!!!! billy boy was talking one way when hillary was running against him and flip flopping when his wife worked for him!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
he didn't have sex with that woman... he's so trusrworthy...lmao
robert b, did you watch the republican debates? Also Sanctimonious Rick Santorum, Rudy Giuliani, John Mc Cain. Mike Huckabee, Ann Coulter "If we don't run Chris Christie, Mitt Romney will be our candidate, and we will lose".
Any of that familiar? Politicians typically back their party. When they back the OPPOSING party, that might make one think. Seen that happen this election year? I would look at those people and what they say the reasons for doing so are.
I really wish the GOP would bring some facts or specifics to the table, all I've heard are racist undertones and talking points from Rupert Murdochs TV station, actually befits a Car Salesman like Romney and his strange mixed up Farm boy running Mate
We are actually really lucky to have a good Man like President Obama as President, and having him for 4 more years will definitely have us going down the road in the right direction!
Obama/Biden 2012....FOUR MORE YEARS!!
Totally agree SkyMoose........President is a good and decent man who has brought us through this mess with grace and calmness.
Well here we go again. The Quad Annual Monument to American Stupidity. We are 16 + Trillion in debt have a crumbling infrastructure, 500 + Billion Trade Deficit per year, Involved in 2 wars and talking about a 3rd, and we are so stupid as a nation that we are going to elect the same two groups of people into office that got us into this mess again. We have a elected Congress and Senate who are for sale to the group with the most campaign contributions who only have a 12 % approval rating but with many members with 20 + yrs. of seniority. How can this be? We are truly the poster child of nations for Mental Retardation.
Well then Robert, lets talk about YOUR old Hero....George W....where is He? Witness Protection?
Are you afraid tom trot HIM out? Yeah that'd be great, then you all could remember how you almost ruined the entire country with lies "good ol boy" bravado...yeah that worked out GREAT didn't it?
In his own words:
"On Feb. 2, 2009,President Barack Obama explained his chances to fix the economy to host Matt Lauer on NBC's "Today" show: "I will be held accountable. I've got four years. … If I don't have this done in three years, then there's going to be a one-term proposition." According to Obama, himself, words mean something. He has made his entire political career using carefully chosen words.
Well, one thing is for certain . . . if Obama wins this time around, it will be by less of a margin than '08. That means there were a lot more people who liked him then than like him now . . . an I'm one of them. First 4 years has been a big let down as far as I'm concerned. Particularly failed to bridge the gap and end the gridlock in Washington. Made it worse actually. Sure, it takes two sides to reach compromise . . . but this is something HE promised he could get done. And it goes beyond Washington . . . all you have to do is read the divisiveness among these comments.
Still he is better than a corporte raider who has spent his life "harvesting profits" and shoveling it offshore in secret bank accounts.
birds of a feather flock together...
and, the people living off the govt sure proves that...
so sad how people have given up on their lives!!!!!!!!!! they had no positive american leader guiding them properly!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"Democratic Party is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery." These are possibly the 5 best sentences you'll ever read: UNFORTUNATELY, MOST VOTERS DON'T KNOW THIS.
#1 you cannot legislate the poor into prosperity, by legislating the wealth out of prosperity.
#2 What one person receives without working for , another person must work for without receiving.
#3 the government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.
#4 you cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.
#5 When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them; and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work, because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that is the beginning of the end of any nation.
And tax breaks for the rich do not create jobs. But if you create a report, even though it's a non-partisan part of the government, the Republicans will bitch until you bury the report until after the election.
Romney has not answered a question in over 23 days...WHY do you think that is?
And, please DO try to use a different news source than Fox
I mean, not EVERYBODYS out to get you, or are they?
Obama, our president, has not held a news conference in front of the Washington press corp in many months. Why do you think that is?
Please he talks to the press all the time. The only reporters Mittens will consider speaking to is Fox Entertainment/News.
You want to talk about the last four year? Read this post and it has
government chart links. Voting records can’t be lied about and I suggest you
look further into this. Not only should Obama be re-elected, people need to wake
up and there are names to be taken for treason. Look at the article and then
look at the voting records on Government web sites. Also imagine what going back
to Bush policies would do to us now. We need to vote for Obama and hold those
accountable for holding our country down.
The biggest traitor of them all os Obama lying to the American prople about what happened in Benghazi. By not taking action, he violated his oath of office, aiding and abetting the sodomization, torture, and murder of our ambassador and 3 other Americans.
Here, here JimArs.....I agree 100%. Damn Republicans set out to destroy this president on purpose and with malice.......treason..yes.
Give a man a fish, and he will eat for one day. Teach a man to fish, and he will never starve. Give a man Section 8 public housing, a free cell phone with free minutes, food stamps, welfare checks, free cheese, a pair of designer Michael Jordan sneakers and he will vote democrat for his entire life.
Nice talking points, but false, but what Romney supporter didn't know how to lie if they listened to him for more than 5 minutes.
All i can say is 47%.....
LMAO, the bulk of the 47% Mittens was talking about are retirees. You know those damn freeloaders that worked for 30 or 40 years.
Thats me.....only I worked for 50 years.
They quit giving out gubmint cheese a decades ago, and those "free cell phones" were a phone assistance program started by that patron saint of Republicans Ronald Reagan.
Hey Me2, where are your facts coming from? or is that just conjecture??
your so called dumb idiot prez didn't even know how many states there are!!!!!!!!!!!!
57...??????????? with one more to go !!!!!!!!!!!!!!
lmaoooooooooooooooooooooooo
he's no american!!!!!!!!!!!!
The Definition of Learning Disorders: People who actually think one party is better than the other and can save us. The only difference between the two is do you want bitten by a Rattlesnake or a Copperhead.
Large crowd attends Virginia concert with The Dave Matthews Band and former president Bill Clinton.
Barack Obama also in attendance.
I'm truly embarassed by the ignorance....but I guess thats what bliss is
so true metoo999!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
when you enable people too much and in the wrong ways they only get weaker!!!!!!!!!!!
why should they even try to change EVERYTHING'S FREE!!!!!!!!!!!!!
americans REWARD bad behavior and they wonder why there are so many pitiful, helpless americans!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Its all about race, can't even see the good the Man has done for us
Welfare up 32% is good?
Republicans can't see anything right now, they are blinded by hate.
Honestly, where I live there aren't so many helpless....where is it you live?
Nationally 1 in 5 in poverty.
1/3 of population receiving some form of government assistance.
Yes, decades of bullshyte "trickle down" economics will do that. That's why we need to NOT vote back in the failed Republican economic policies that brought us to this point. We gave the wealthy so-called "job creators" their huge tax cuts and did they create jobs with the extra money? No! They socked it away in off-shore accounts and invested it overseas, not America.
"all that for a damn flAG" in the words of your wonderful, respectful to her country first lady!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
So, then . You Guys would rather give it to Romneys friends then, rather than help Americans in need.....like our Breathern in the wake of H Sandy?
you must live a sheltered life!!!!!!!!!!!
get out and volunteer and you wlll be SHOCKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Modern American Currency:
One dollar bill: George Washington
Five dollar bill: Abraham Lincoln
Ten dollar bill: Alexander Hamilton
Twenty dollar bill: Andrew Jackson
Fifty dollar bill: Ulysses S. Grant
One hundred dollar bill: Benjamin Franklin
Food Stamps: Barack Obama