WASHINGTON: Bill Clinton is back in the game big time, serving as President Barack Obama’s surrogate in chief and relying on his oratorical skill and folksy style to help Democratic candidates across the US.

His high-profile role also gives him the chance to enhance his legacy as Democratic elder statesman and global humanitarian. He can build up political goodwill should his wife, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, decide to run again for president down the road. Out of office since 2001, Clinton is proving that he retains a strong appeal with voters, especially in conservative states where Democratic candidates aren’t eager to appear with Obama. The ex-president is a leading expert in the art of the political comeback — a skill the struggling Obama could use now.—AP