Clinton

Saw Bill and Hillary today. I'll spare you my political commentary, except for two brief observations:

1) Hillary's biggest applause line came when she declared that, once she's President, she'll "listen to what scientists say and stop being so anti-science". Much to my surprise, the crowd loved it. (The applause from the science line exceeded just about everything save for a reference to civil unions in New Hampshire.) Mooney would have been proud.

2) I've seen Bill Clinton in person a couple times now, and his charisma never ceases to amaze me. The Elvis cliches are all true. I'm sure that some of his charm simply comes from being an ex-president. That said, Jimmy Carter doesn't make me swoon in the same way.

So what is Bill's secret? First of all, the man is an astonishingly gifted storyteller. He's got that uniquely Southern talent for making even the most banal anecdotes riveting. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, Bill's face is like a muscular soap-opera. It's so overstuffed with feeling and expression that you can't help but watch and be entertained. One moment he's beaming at a baby, the next moment he's biting his lip and feeling someone's pain. Then he's nodding sincerely. Then he's beaming again. Watching him work the rope line, I realized that Bill's face is capable of expressing the complete range of human emotions in five seconds flat. And the feelings never ever feel insincere. I don't think the man has a fake smile. When he poses for pictures, his grin always looks so genuine it's a little eerie. Perhaps Paul Ekman should investigate.

Photo courtesy of Dan's cell phone