Peter Beinart helps to set the record straight regarding Bill Clinton, with some much needed perspective as a reminder:

Measured in electoral votes (which often factor out third-party candidates because they don’t win a plurality in any state), Clinton’s victories look impressive. He won 370 electoral votes in 1992 and 379 in 1996—more than Wilson in 1916,Truman in 1948, John F.Kennedy in 1960, Nixon in 1968, Jimmy Carter in 1976, or George W. Bush in 2000 or 2004.

....By December 1998, after the Monica Lewinsky scandal hit, a majority of Americans disliked Clinton personally, but over 70 percent liked what he was doing for the country. Today’s activists blame Clintonism for leaving grassroots Democrats demoralized. But the demoralization began after Clinton left office. According to the Pew Research Center, 63 percent of Democrats said their party was doing a good job standing up for its core beliefs in 2000—compared with only 33 percent by the end of 2004.

....Even more importantly, public perceptions of government, which had also been in freefall since the mid-’80s, began to improve—which is logical, given that government policies were markedly improving the lives of average Americans, particularly the poor.

....The Democratic Party’s prospects once again look bright....Americans are turning to the Democratic Party because, under Bush, they have seen government fail, and they remember a time when it worked—under Bill Clinton.

Dems should use Clinton nostalgia as Republicans do with Reagan; it works!