Four Straight Minutes Of Bill Clinton Applause
The cheering for Bill Clinton went on for about five hours at the Democratic National Convention tonight before he could finally start his speech. (OK, seriously, for 3 minutes 48 seconds.) He pretended to get a little frustrated, but you know the ex-president, who tends to feel persecuted and under-appreciated, just ate it up. Clinton was remarkably well behaved, his foreign policy address not going grotesquely beyond the alloted 10 minutes and, hey, even occasionally touching on foreign policy, in between statements on the American Dream, Hurricane Katrina, unions and corporate cronyism. Clinton laid the Obama praise on thick — he's ready! to be president! also, unique! young and "inexperienced" like Clinton was! — then got into the serious Republican bashing, which is the focus of this clip and really the best part of the convention so far. Sometimes you need Hope and inspiration, but sometimes you just want to see some well-landed punches and nice memories of the resurgent 1990s. Video of the endless applause after the jump, along with bonus footage of him actually saying things.