WASHINGTON (AFP) — Hand in hand on a stroll through a Washington park the day after her triple primary victory, Hillary and Bill Clinton confirmed this week their inseparability -- even though Bill's support for his wife's presidential quest hasn't always been a help to her.
The former president has been tireless in backing his wife's battle with Barack Obama for the Democratic nomination for president.
But Bill's zealousness has proven a double-edged sword for Hillary. President from 1993-2001, Bill's still-unparalleled popularity among Democrats pulls in support for his wife, the New York senator -- but his massive charisma also overshadows her effort to hold the limelight.
Moreover, he has proven a distinct liability at times, especially when his attacks on Obama have boomeranged to harm her campaign.
His campaigning energy is especially beneficial -- as Hillary took a short rest in the wake of the four March 4 primaries -- three of which she won, boosting her momentum against Obama -- Bill headed off to campaign for the next tests on the primary calendar.
In three days this week he swung across the country, appearing at three events in Wyoming, one in Pennsylvania, and five in Mississippi.
(Wyoming voted Saturday; Mississippi is to vote Tuesday, and Pennsylvania on April 22.)
His pitch was unreserved support, and at each event Bill, 61, insisted that even if Hillary was not his wife, he would back her.
But he also held back on the kind of attacks on Obama that got the former first lady's campaign in deep trouble in January.
Then, the ex-president scored big headlines when he called Illinois Senator Obama's account of his undeviating opposition to the Iraq war "a fairy tale."
The comment was made out by some to be a broader, even racially tinged smear on African-American Obama's presidential ambitions.
A few weeks later, Bill Clinton added to that soup when he compared Obama's broad-based presidential effort to that of black leader Jesse Jackson in 1992, which was mainly driven by support from black voters.
The charge that the Clinton's were "race-baiting" -- stirring up racial enmity -- perhaps helped Obama to victory in the South Carolina primary which propelled him into the lead in the race.
After that Bill's contribution to the campaign appeared to be ratcheted back, and his direct attacks on Obama disappeared.
He then leaped back into the headlines just before the March 4 primaries when he declared to voters in Texas that if his wife did not win that state and Ohio, her quest would be finished.
"If she wins Texas and Ohio I think she will be the nominee. If you don't deliver for her, I don't think she can be. It's all on you," he said.
The statement at first drew criticism from Hillary supporters. But after she did win those states, pulling her back into contention with Obama, pundits asked whether perhaps Bill had in fact mobilized her supporters -- which would confirm his reputation as the most gifted politician of his generation.
Yet the numerous scandals associated with Bill's presidency remain a potent source of help for Obama.
Obama's team regularly calls for the Clintons to release their tax filings, suggesting there might be some embarrassing information regarding the Clintons' sources of income.
"Considering the huge amounts of money that they have made in recent years, they've contributed that money to the campaign, (and) some of those relationships financially have been with individuals who've come under quite a bit scrutiny for possible ethical transgressions," said Obama campaign manager David Plouffe.
"It's essential for the American people to know where they're getting their money from."
Clinton's camp has denounced this kind of talk, likening Obama's people to a Republican investigator who hounded Bill Clinton in the 1990s over financial and sexual allegations.
A Washington Times article Friday underscored the vulnerabilities Bill Clinton brings to his wife's campaign. The conservative newspaper said Bill Clinton had accepted 700,000 dollars for his foundation from an Internet company, Accoona, "co-founded by a convicted felon and backed by the Chinese government."
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