Amidst the ongoing controversy surrounding Hillary Clinton’s use of a private e-mail server, on Tuesday NBC’s Today rushed to promote former President Bill Clinton’s efforts to defend his wife from criticism.
News reader Tamron Hall introduced the segment by touting “Hillary Clinton is dispatching her not so secret weapon, her husband and former president to help her weather the e-mail storm” and then turned to White House correspondent Kristen Welker to continue to tout the former president’s actions.
After Welker detailed Hillary’s recent fund-raising trips that were designed to “prove that she is still the strongest candidate despite losing ground over her e-mails” the NBC reporter gushed how “former President Bill Clinton is escalating his involvement in her campaign. No stranger to surviving controversy, Bill Clinton is on the attack this week.”
Throughout the pro-Bill Clinton segment, Welker played several clips of the former president attacking the GOP over his wife’s e-mail scandal and eagerly gushed that he was using his old “playbook” to condemn Republicans:
The former president is taking a page from his old playbook. Pointing the finger at the GOP. During an interview with CNBC he blamed Republicans for overhyping his wife's use of a personal e-mail account when she was Secretary of State.
Welker maintained that Bill Clinton “could be a powerful surrogate for his wife in the coming months” but concluded her pro-Clinton puff piece by detailing Vice President Joe Biden's supposed strength in the 2016 presidential race:
Meanwhile, our latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll shows that Vice President Biden, who is still considering a run, would be the most popular presidential candidate if he chooses to get in the race. His decision expected in early October.
See relevant transcript below.
NBC’s Today
September 29, 2015
TAMRON HALL: Trump's Democratic rival Hillary Clinton is dispatching her not so secret weapon, her husband and former president to help her weather the e-mail storm. NBC White House correspondent Kristen Welker is here with more on that strategy. Good morning, Kristen.
KRISTEN WELKER: Tamron, good morning to you. Secretary Clinton is fund-raising on the west coast, and she's hoping to bring in a big haul this quarter to prove that she is still the strongest candidate despite losing ground over her e-mails and it comes as former President Bill Clinton is escalating his involvement in her campaign. No stranger to surviving controversy, Bill Clinton is on the attack this week.
BILL CLINTON: It really is similar to the strategy that the Republicans employed against me with Whitewater.
WELKER: The former president is taking a page from his old playbook. Pointing the finger at the GOP. During an interview with CNBC he blamed Republicans for overhyping his wife's use of a personal e-mail account when she was Secretary of State.
CLINTON: They look at the field and they say who do we not want to run against and then they dribble out stuff and they attack.
WELKER: And now Bill Clinton will start to ramp up his engagement on the trail. He's set to attend several fund-raisers in the coming weeks, including in Atlanta, Missouri and Michigan. At each spot he will try to reassure jittery Democrats his wife is still the candidate to beat.
CLINTON: I'm glad it happened in 2015 instead of 2016, and I believe it will burn itself out.
WELKER: And while Mr. Clinton's attacks against Republicans won't go away he declined to engage front-runner Donald Trump despite Trump's constant jabs at Secretary Clinton telling E News --
CLINTON: He was very nice to me when I got out of the white House, and he wanted Hillary to come to his wedding.
WELKER: And while Bill Clinton could be a powerful surrogate for his wife in the coming months, she's not prepared to say whether he'll follow her if she makes it all the way to the White House.
CHUCK TODD: So, he'll have a West Wing office if you get there?
HILLARY CLINTON: He's a pretty busy guy. I don't know anything like that, but I'm not looking -- I'm not counting my chickens before they hatch.
WELKER: Meanwhile, our latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll shows that Vice President Biden, who is still considering a run, would be the most popular presidential candidate if he chooses to get in the race. His decision expected in early October.
