Bill Clinton’s post-presidential journey: a story told in convention speeches

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — In Bill Clinton’s prime-time speech at the Democratic National Convention in 1988, the young governor of Arkansas bored delegates so thoroughly that they cheered when he said, “in closing...” Many years later, as a former president whose legacy had made a comeback, Clinton aided Barack Obama’s reelection with a 2012 convention address that earned him a nickname as the “secretary of explaining stuff.”

The 78-year-old Clinton, a veteran of convention speeches over the past four decades, knows as well as anyone the difference between a good and a disastrous performance. What’s less certain as he prepares to deliver his 12th convention speech Wednesday is the impact he’ll have on a party trying to prevent Donald Trump from returning to the White House.

Clinton’s political journey, from Little Rock to the White House and later to elder statesman status, can be traced in part through his evolving role at the Democratic National Convention — for better or worse. Credited with reviving Democrats’ fortunes when he was elected in 1992 and as the last president to leave office with a budget surplus, Clinton remains a rock star for many Democrats. But for others, his legacy has been complicated, both by evolving views about his centrist brand of politics and about the scandal involving sex and power that nearly ended his presidency.

This time around, as Democrats look to end Trump’s political career, allies and experts regard Clinton as a valuable messenger for Vice President Kamala Harris on the economy, with a recent AP-NORC poll showing that Americans are somewhat more likely to trust Trump than the Democratic Party’s nominee on economic issues.