Barack Obama is a great orator – something of which we shall doubtless be reminded tonight – but Bill Clinton is the greater communicator. His speech to the Democratic convention in Charlotte last night was a masterclass. The old boy’s still got it.
Of course, it helps to be speaking in his new role – assumed upon the death of Edward Kennedy – as the party’s elder statesman. It’s easier to appear above the fray as a member of the ex-Presidents club. Most of the time, it invests you with extra gravitas. Even so, this was vintage Clinton, making by far the best – and most comprehensive – case for Obama’s re-election yet. Better, perhaps, than the argument the President will advance tonight.
As I say, Obama is a grand orator but there are times when it can seem as though he’s delivering a lecture not an address. Clinton, by contrast, is the master of delivering a fireside chat to an audience of thousands in the hall and millions at home.
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