OPINION: This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
Former President Bill Clinton is warning the Democrats to beware of the Republicans closing game as he warned they “always close well.”
The former president sat down with CNN on Sunday and spoke to host Fareed Zakaria about what he believes the biggest challenge is for the Democrats as the misterms approach.
“We could hold both these houses,” he said. “But we have to say the right things. And we have to note the Republicans always close well. Why? Because they find some new way to scare the living daylights out of swing voters about something. That’s what they did in 2021 — where they made critical race theory sound worse than smallpox. And it wasn’t being taught in any public schools in America. But they didn’t care. They just scare people.”
That is rich coming from someone who belongs to a Party that tells the American people the Republicans are going to outlaw abortion, end democracy and have been screeching for decades the the Republican Party is going to eliminate Social Security and Medicare.
He said that even though there have been changes since his last day as president, “the break point in American politics is not much different,” as he believes that independent voters are the ones who decide elections.
“You still have to get those people,” the former president said. “It’s just that there’s so many fewer, because as the parties have gone more ideological and clear, and somehow psychically intolerant, they pull more and more people toward the extremes. But there’s still some people hanging on there who are really trying to think, and trying to understand what’s going on.”
Bill Clinton to Fareed Zakaria on the midterms: "The Republicans always close well. Why? Because they find some new way to scare the living daylights out of swing voters about something. That's what they did in 2021 when they made critical race theory sound worse than smallpox." pic.twitter.com/VxFw7yFq9c
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 18, 2022
He also spoke on the death of Ken Starr, the man who prosecuted his impeachment.
“I read the obituary, and I realized that his family loved him, and I think that’s something to be grateful for. And when your life is over, that’s all there is to say. But I was taught not to talk about people that, you know…I have nothing to say, except that I’m glad he died with the love of his family,” he said.
Bill Clinton on the death of Ken Starr: "I read the obituary and I realized that his family loved him, and I think that's something to be grateful for. And when your life is over, that's all there is to say." pic.twitter.com/y0vPVuSZg1
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 18, 2022
Ken Starr, the former federal judge who was the lead investigator in the impeachment trial of former President Bill Clinton, has died and we now know his cause of death.
His family said that he died from complications from surgery at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center in Houston.
“A Reagan judicial appointee and Solicitor General under George H.W. Bush, Ken Starr also served as Independent Counsel, President and Chancellor of Baylor University, and Dean of the Pepperdine School of Law. Starr had a distinguished career in academia, the law, and public service. After leaving Baylor, Starr was Of Counsel to The Lanier Law Firm, where he continued to practice appellate law. He also taught courses in constitutional law, negotiation, and religious liberty plus authored several books, and served as a commentator for Fox News. Starr died on September 13, 2022, at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center in Houston of complications from surgery,” the family said.
“We are deeply saddened by the loss of our dear and loving Father and Grandfather, whom we admired for his prodigious work ethic, but who always put his family first. The love, energy, endearing sense of humor, and fun-loving interest Dad exhibited to each of us was truly special, and we cherish the many wonderful memories we were able to experience with him,” his son Randall said.
Starr was also the president of Baylor University from 2010 – 2016.
“Judge Starr was a dedicated public servant and ardent supporter of religious freedom that allows faith-based institutions such as Baylor to flourish,” the university’s President Linda Livingstone said, CNN reported.
A conservative Republican, Starr’s investigations into Clinton began when he was appointed by a federal appeals panel in 1994 as an independent counsel in the probe of the then-President and Hillary Clinton’s involvement in the Whitewater real estate scandal. The Clintons ultimately were not prosecuted in that case, but Starr’s investigation in the Clintons’ dealings later expanded to include Paula Jones’ allegations of sexual harassment, and that inquiry led to Starr leading the investigation into the President’s affair with Monica Lewinsky.
The Lewinsky affair ultimately resulted in Clinton being impeached on two charges of lying under oath to a federal grand jury and obstructing justice, though he was acquitted by the Senate in February 1999 and served out the remainder of his term.
Starr had been accused by some Democrats of prosecuting former President Clinton for political reasons, but he defended himself from those accusations.
