Bill Clinton Shreds Rand Paul and The Benghazi Obsessed Republican Party

In a matter of seconds, former President Clinton went on Meet The Press and showed Rand Paul and the Republican Party why hopes of winning in 2016 on Benghazi won’t work.

Video of the full interview:

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When David Gregory asked Clinton about Rand Paul’s claim that Benghazi disqualifies Hillary Clinton as a presidential candidate, he answered, “Well, let’s go back to the first question because it’s serious. That’s not a serious comment. That’s not a serious question. Rand Paul, when ten different instances occurred when President Bush was in office where American diplomatic personnel were killed around the world. How many outraged Republican members of Congress were there? Zero.”

The Meet The Press interview demonstrated that Bill and Hillary have their fingers on the critical issue that will determine the outcome of the 2016 election. Just as it was in 1992, the issue is the economy. As former President Clinton said, the economy has recovered the jobs that were lost, but now it is time to bring wages up. Clinton said that he believed that it was time for both sides to work together again to get the economy moving. The blueprint for Hillary Clinton’s 2016 run is coming into focus. She is going to hammer the issue of the economy every single day on the campaign trail. The Clinton legacy of economic success gives her built in credibility that other candidates won’t have.

Former President Clinton easily cut through Republican noisemakers on Benghazi. Clinton was careful not to say that Paul wasn’t a serious candidate, but the message was clear that Republicans shouldn’t be taken seriously when they go down conspiracy rabbit holes like Benghazi.

After eight years of bitter partisan warfare, the time might be right for Hillary Clinton’s message in 2016. Tactically, by giving the right-wing conspiracies no credibility, President Clinton was moving the discussion towards the issue that he wanted to talk about. In strategic terms, the Clintons have been driving the narrative. Bill and Hillary Clinton aren’t afraid of Rand Paul, or anything else the Republican Party can throw at them.

The GOP’s Clinton problem just got a whole lot worse.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association