Washington (CNN) -- Former President George W. Bush left the White House more than five years ago and has since stayed out of most Washington debates. But it would be hard to tell that if you have been listening to Hillary Clinton over the past month. From defending her record at the State Department to defining her economic vision, Clinton has used Bush as her primary rhetorical device to both explain her vision for the future and defend her past. "The biggest accomplishment in the four years as secretary of state was helping to restore American leadership and we did that in a number of ways," Clinton said earlier this month before faulting Bush for the U.S. standing on the world stage when he left the White House in 2009.
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Hillary Clinton has used Bush to defend her record, explain vision for the future
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Democrats applaud her strategy but there are risks as Bush's popularity rises
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Republican strategist says pointing fingers at Bush won't help member of "status quo"
While Bush was unpopular in office -- and still is with @placeholder -- his standing has improved since leaving Washington.
The speech was, in part, an attempt to make inroads with @placeholder, some of whom have been apprehensive about Clinton's more moderate positions.