Fact Check: Bill Clinton Accuses Republicans of Wanting Americans To Be ‘Very Miserable' and 'Angry'?

Nur Ibrahim
·3 min read
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Lev Radin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Lev Radin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
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Claim:

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton said, in 2022: “The Republicans are pretty simple actually, and pretty straightforward. They say, ‘I want you to be very miserable, and I want you to be very angry. And I want you to vote for us, and we’ll make it worse, but we’ll blame them.’”

Rating:

Rating: Correct Attribution
Rating: Correct Attribution

While stumping for Democratic U.S. House candidate Josh Riley at a campaign rally leading up to the 2022 midterm elections, former U.S. President Bill Clinton allegedly let loose a volley of accusations against Republicans that was destined to become a meme.

"The Republicans are pretty simple, actually, and pretty straightforward," Clinton allegedly said. "They say, 'I want you to be very miserable. And I want you to be very angry. And I want you to vote for us, and we'll make it worse, but we'll blame them.'"

Clinton: The Republicans are pretty simple, actually, and pretty straightforward. They say, 'I want you to be very miserable. And I want you to be very angry.'
Clinton: The Republicans are pretty simple, actually, and pretty straightforward. They say, 'I want you to be very miserable. And I want you to be very angry.'

(@the360five/X)

Clinton did indeed say these words. At a midterm election campaign rally in November 2022 for Democratic House candidate Josh Riley in Hurleyville, New York, Clinton prefaced the remark by saying, "I'm here today because I think this is really one of the most important House races in the entire United States because of who you are." He went on to describe how he saw the Republican campaigning formula to a laughing crowd:

The Republicans are pretty simple actually, and pretty straightforward. They say, 'I want you to be very miserable, and I want you to be very angry. And I want you to vote for us, and we'll make it worse, but we'll blame them.' [...]

So here comes Josh who says, 'How about we make it better?' I like this guy because of what he's done with his life and because he came from a working class family [...]

 

Fox News livestreamed Clinton's speech on their official YouTube page. He can be heard making the remark after the 33-minute mark.

Despite Clinton's support, Republican Marc Molinaro defeated Riley at the polls.

Given that there is video footage of Clinton saying those words, which were also widely reported in the news media, we rate this claim as a Correct Attribution.

Sources:

"Biden Says Americans 'Can't Take Democracy for Granted Any Longer.'" Washington Post, 2 Nov. 2022, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/11/02/election-2022-latest-news/. Accessed 30 Aug. 2023.

"Former President Bill Clinton Joins Rally for Democrat Josh Riley." Fox News, Nov. 2, 2022. www.youtube.com, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6wUsV7UWDiY. Accessed 30 Aug. 2023.

"New York 19th Congressional District Election Results." The New York Times, 8 Nov. 2022. NYTimes.com, https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/11/08/us/elections/results-new-york-us-house-district-19.html. Accessed 30 Aug. 2023.