Is Bill Clinton the only former president to campaign

[Eric J in MN]

...a lot during primary season?

George W. Bush did one event for Jeb Bush and I don't consider that a lot.

[LuvLoogie]

1. Who else is the political animal that Bill Clinton is?

[JoePhilly]

2. W was a pariah. No GOP candidate, including Jeb, ever wanted to see him again.

[onenote]

3. There haven't been many occasions for it in the past 50 years

Having a former president campaign for you only helps if the former president is popular (and by definition, a president that lost a re-election bid or didn't run for or complete a second term isn't popular enough to go on the campaign trail). In the last 50 years, there haven't been a lot of popular ex-presidents. Kennedy? Not available. Johnson? Not popular. Nixon? Not popular. Ford? Not popular. Carter? Not popular. Bush 1? Not popular. Bush 2? Not popular.

The only two ex presidents of the past 50 years that might have been viewed as an asset on the campaign trail are Reagan and Clinton, and Reagan's alzheimer's probably was a disqualifying factor in his case.

[BootinUp]

5. Yep. nt

[Eric J in MN]

10. I agree with most of that. But is Jimmy Carter

...so unpopular that he couldn't have helped anyone in Democratic primaries from 1984 to the present?

[onenote]

15. When he left office in 1981, Carter's popularity even among Democrats

was low -- under 35 percent overall. He lost 44 of 50 states in 1980, so no one really wanted him around in 1984. While his favorability ratings improved significantly over the years, a lot of that improvement can be attributed to people feeling good about him as a person more than as a politician. To a certain extent, jumping back into electoral politics with both feet would have undercut the very thing that was leading people to view him more favorably. Among Democrats, at least, I think Carter has been rehabilitated, in part because voters who are under 40 probably have no real recollection the negative perception of his presidency. But even in 2008, he was in his mid-80s and not likely to be an full time campaigner.

[LisaM]

4. He is in a pretty unique position

Not only is it his wife, he left office with good ratings (despite what you read here) and is still relatively young and able to do so. I can't really think of anyone else who falls into all these categories.

[book_worm]

6. He is the spouse of one of the candidates--Should Jane Sanders not campaign

for Bernie?

[Hiraeth]

7. Jane is not a former President.

[onenote]

16. why shouldn't former presidents campaign?

[Hiraeth]

18. On one hand, I don't care. On the other hand I can see an argument that

they should be "above" it.Out of respect for the office. That is probably an old fashioned sentiment.

[Eric J in MN]

11. I'm not objecting to Bill Clinton campaigning.

I was just wondering if this is a unique situation regarding an ex-president.

[Arkansas Granny]

8. Nobody wants W to campaign for them. HW and Jimmy Carter are both 91 years old and have

health issues which will make it unlikely that either will be doing any campaigning. I expect that President Obama will campaign once the nomination is finalized.

[Eric J in MN]

12. Yes, but why didn't Carter campaign during

...primary seasons when he was younger, 1984, 1988, 1992? Was he that that unpopular with Democrats?

[woolldog]

13. Unpopular with the country.

His presidency was widely seen as a disaster. He would've done more harm than good.

[onehandle]

9. Massively popular President with huge successes, who likes to campaign.

Glad he's on our side.

[tritsofme]

14. He's the most popular political figure in the country...

Bush is probably the most toxic. Do your own math.

[sofa king]

17. Harry Truman

Publicly supported Adlai Stevenson in 1956 and actively campaigned for Democratic Senate candidates.

Teddy Roosevelt actively campaigned against William H Taft, then broke off as a third party candidate and spoiled the election in favor of Woodrow Wilson, even delivering a speech with an assassin's bullet lodged in his chest.

[Eric J in MN]

19. But did Truman support Stevenson in primary season? NT

NT

[sofa king]

20. Not sure.

Truman did throw his weight behind Stevenson at the convention in 1952, which won it for him on the third ballot. But then he seems to have backed away from him in 1956 and while it looks as if Truman may have supported Stevenson at some point in the primaries, he actually backed off from Stevenson at that convention.

So who knows?

Realistically, there are matters of health, popularity, and party alignment which have prevented former Presidents from campaigning for another candidate. Several sitting Presidents, however, have anointed successors, including James Madison, Ronald Reagan, Teddy Roosevelt and Andrew Jackson. President Obama will certainly be considered to have similarly done so after Mrs. Clinton wins.