Politics / Bill Clinton Clinton Passes the Torch— or Does He? Clinton passes the torch - or does he? By Kevin Spak, Newser Staff Posted Aug 28, 2008 10:00 AM CDT Copied Clinton Passes the Torch— or Does He? Bill Clinton endorses Barack Obama - and has trouble calming down the crowd. (heroesanon) Bill Clinton's speech at the Democratic National Convention (part 2). (wehadrons) 1 of 2 Pundits are raving over Bill Clinton’s speech at the Democratic Convention last night. Here’s what they’re saying: Mark Halperin of Time gives Clinton an A+ for a speech seemingly untouched by primary bitterness. “Let's face it: while Obama is a marvelous speaker, Clinton is better,” he writes. The LA Times’ Don Frederick agrees, saying Obama ought to hire Clinton as a writer and speech coach. Clinton seemingly effortlessly hit the themes Obama has struggled to articulate. John Ibbitson of the Globe and Mail sees Clinton’s speech as a swan song, a beautiful, if unwilling, passing of the torch. “With this emphatic endorsement, Mr. Clinton surrendered leadership of the party,” he writes. “It must have hurt.” But the National Review’s Mark Hemmingway begs to differ, declaring the speech not a genuine Obama endorsement but merely “a rousing partisan screed” with an obvious eye to 2012. (More Bill Clinton stories.) See 1 photo Report an error