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Dole: Bill Clinton’s health will keep him from helping Hillary

Posted at 12:02 AM, May 29, 2016
and last updated 2016-05-29 00:02:03-04

WASHINGTON — Former Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole says Bill Clinton’s health will affect his ability to campaign for his wife.

“Bill Clinton, who would be a great asset, has had this health problem and doesn’t look strong and robust like he has been in the past,” the 92-year-old Dole told CNN’s Ana Cabrera Saturday on “CNN Newsroom.”

Dole didn’t refer to a specific health issue affecting the 69-year-old Clinton, who is younger than Dole was when he unsuccessfully challenged the 42nd president in 1996. In 2004, Clinton underwent a quadruple bypass to restore blood flow to his heart.

A representative for Clinton didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment Saturday afternoon.

“(The health issue) affects his voice. He is not going to be able to go out there with the fire and brimstone he would have had earlier,” Dole added. “He could be an adviser, certainly, if not in an official capacity, if he is in the White House with his wife should she be elected as president. He would be along her side.”

But Hillary Clinton’s past could make her difficult to elect, Dole said.

“I think Hillary has a lot of baggage and while she doesn’t admit it, it’s there. Very clearly things she shouldn’t have done,” Dole said. “The public has already known about a lot of that. Her family has been in the spotlight for so many decades.”

Dole said voters want to see a new face in the White House.

“She has been there a long time and people are looking for fresh faces. That’s why (Marco) Rubio was attractive for a long time, because he’s a new generation,” he said.

“I mean, she’s been around what, 30 years? I don’t know. A long time,” Dole said.