A conversation with Bill Clinton

Keith Olbermann Anchor, 'Countdown' • Profile

"Countdown" host Keith Olbermann had to chance to speak with Bill Clinton, the 42nd president of the United States, to learn more about his efforts to help people around the world in even the smallest of ways and his feelings about the hot political topics affecting the country right now.

On his fund-raising juggernaut, the Clinton Global Initiative
KEITH OLBERMANN, HOST, “COUNTDOWN:” This is the annual “can you top this” of charity, of giving, of kindness. Is it more difficult this year in the middle of political crisis and heavy political fundraising and the contributions that follow that? 

BILL CLINTON, 42^ND PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES:  No, not really.  I mean, the interesting thing to me is how much more interest there is.  And I think it kind of what I want to happen is operating kind of independent of the politics, because my whole theory is that in the United States and around the world, you need a strong economy, a good government, and a vibrant civil society.

And for example, last year we had about 50,000 people follow my Webcast.  As of noon today, we have 400,000 people looking at it.

So I think there is just more and more interest in it.  It is not about government policy.  In fact, as you know, a lot of what we have had today are joint projects.  I just announced a program on neglected tropical diseases with the company, a foundation in 15 countries. 

That is what you have to do.  We try to find the proper role for private giving.  And it has really been encouraging to me.  We have had big, big givers.  People are giving $100 million.  An electric company committing $2.5 million to solar energy.  And then a lot of people just giving small amounts.  And that is what you want.  And you want the time and skills and just the whole texture.

I think in the 21^st century we all need to define our citizenship with making a good commitment to having good political policies, and also making the economy work, and finally being a giver in some way.  

OLBERMANN:  Last year you had “wow” moments.  The year before you had “wow” moments.  Is there something that stands out that just stops everything in the room?

CLINTON: Well, I think when (the annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative) opened yesterday, Bishop Tutu, as always, was profoundly eloquent.  And we were talking about whether religion was a good or a bad thing. 

Last year he brought the house down by saying religion is like a knife.  If you use it to cut bread, it is good.  If you use it to cut off your neighbor’s arm, it is bad.  So since that time there have been a whole spate of books written in America about how terrible religion is because (INAUDIBLE) politics around the world.

And Tutu talked about in Burma today how all of these Buddhist monks are risking their lives to try to free Aung San Suu Kyi and restore democracy.  And the way he did it just took my breath away. 

Then there have been small things.  For example, one of our most interesting commitments was a person who committed a relatively small amount of money, in the context of this, a couple of million dollars, to set up thousands of people in small businesses in the developing world to sell reading glasses.

It turns out in poor countries only 5 percent of the people can read but need reading glasses to read.  So this project will help hundreds of thousands of people and in the process create a whole new sector of the economy, a lot of small businesses.

A lot of people say, I never would have thought of that.  And we always have that where people are coming to us with simple ideas, you know, buying bikes for people so they will have a way to make a living.

Yesterday Brad Pitt made a big impression on people because he said he would give $5 million to somebody with his friends (INAUDIBLE) give $5 million and people would match it to rebuild the Lower Ninth Ward in New Orleans with green houses.  So that when the lower-income workers move back to the Ninth Ward, they will have better houses than they had before, and it will cost them less to run because the utility bills will be so much lower. 

And people thought, wow, that is a good thing, I hadn’t thought of that, that we could actually give them better houses and lower costs if we do it in this way. 

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