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Andover state Rep. Barry Finegold describes him as “the greatest president of my generation,” and Democratic congressional candidate Niki Tsongas is hoping others in the 5th District feel the same way about former President Bill Clinton.
Republican Jim Ogonowski’s camp termed Clinton’s appearance on Tsongas’ behalf Sunday night an act of desperation by a candidate who has been slipping in the polls. Ogonowski, on the other hand, has done his best to depict himself as an independent who will not blindly follow the White House lead; and has no plans to bring George W. Bush to the district between now and Oct. 16.
It seems those on Tsongas’s side would like nothing better than for this month’s special election to turn into a referendum on which president voters liked better — Clinton or Bush.
Certainly there was no doubt how the several thousand Tsongas partisans who crammed into Lowell’s Memorial Auditorium and sat through a two-hour delay to hear Clinton’s speech, felt. The former president received a raucous reception, and the decibel level in the hall appeared to increase each time there was a mention of his wife’s candidacy for president.
Meanwhile, the theme of Tsongas’ speech was how “Bill and I agree …,” whether the issue was getting out of Iraq or expanding the free health insurance program for children.
Given the slight gains the president has been making in the polls lately and the still dismal standing of the Democratic Congress, the election in the 5th will be viewed nationally either as an early indicator of redemption or another sign of repudiation for Bush.