GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- Most Americans predict Hillary Clinton's opponents in the 2008 presidential election campaign will try to exploit past Clinton scandals, but her husband Bill's current popularity with Americans could be a potent buffer for her.
According to a new USA Today/Gallup poll, a majority of Americans have a favorable view of former president Bill Clinton and 71% think he was a good president. Also, while the public generally believes Bill Clinton has not learned his lessons from past marital scandals, Americans say the Clintons' marriage should not be a factor when voters consider Hillary Clinton's candidacy for president.
In the end, despite all of the potential baggage he brings to the table, most Americans believe Bill Clinton will do more good than harm to Hillary Clinton's bid for president.
Bill Clinton's Popularity Is Renewed
With a December 2000 favorable rating from the American people of 57%, Bill Clinton left the White House on a high note. His image initially worsened due to controversy surrounding several of his eleventh-hour presidential pardons, the high cost of his proposed new office space in New York City, and criticism of the Clintons for accepting $190,000 in personal gifts they had received at the White House. However, after reaching a low of 39% in March 2001, Clinton's favorable rating eventually started to improve and is now back to the positive level seen at the end of his presidency.
Americans fully expect to hear about the various scandals that have embroiled the Clintons in their years in public office now that Hillary Clinton is running for president. Two-thirds think supporters of other candidates for the Democratic presidential nomination will try to dredge up past Clinton scandals. More than 8 in 10 believe that, should Clinton become the Democratic nominee, supporters of the Republican nominee for president will also try to make them an issue.
The question is whether reminding Americans about the litany of controversies that beset the Clintons from the 1992 campaign forward will spark the same negative reactions recorded when they occurred, and thus suppress support for Hillary Clinton's presidential bid.
The strategy may have some success with Republicans, the majority of whom say Clinton was a bad president. But it is likely to be resisted, if not resented, by independents and Democrats who overwhelmingly say Clinton was a good president.
Clintons' Marriage Off Limits?
Americans tend to doubt Bill Clinton has mended his straying ways. Fewer than half say the man nearly removed from office for lying under oath about an affair with Monica Lewinsky has "learned his lessons," while 51% say he is still the same person.
Effect of History and Current State of Clintons' Marriage on Voters
What effect will this have on Hillary Clinton's campaign? Only 23% say the Clintons' marriage should matter to voters, but 58% believe it will, in fact, matter.
Survey Methods
Results are based on telephone interviews with 1,007 national adults, aged 18 and older, conducted March 23-25, 2007. For results based on the total sample of national adults, one can say with 95% confidence that the maximum margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.