Clinton received a loud, standing ovation from an announced crowd of 10,000 at the 52nd annual Fight for Freedom Fund Dinner held by the Detroit chapter of the NAACP. He received another ovation when he was introduced to speak.
"This economy of ours has been great for me and for several of you, but it's not been such a good deal for a lot of people," he said. "More people are working and losing their family's health insurance. More people are working and falling below the poverty line."
"More than a billion dollars of tax refund money vanishes from people's pockets every year from refund anticipation loans," he said. "You're borrowing from money you know you are going to get."
"The next president and Congress can give you quality, affordable health care," he said. "But if we don't do something about rising tide of childhood obesity and diabetes among our children, it threatens our future."
Clinton also delivered the keynote address at the NAACP fundraiser in 2000, while he was still president. Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was among the local leaders who welcomed Clinton back to Detroit.
Democratic Gov. Jennifer Granholm followed Kilpatrick with a jab at President George W. Bush and a hint of support for presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.
"Don't we all wish you were in the chair today?" she said to Bill Clinton. "He may not be in the chair today, but maybe he'll be in the (White) house."
Andrew Whidby, 49, of Detroit said he was pleased that Clinton avoided political rambling in his speech and focused on issues of importance to African Americans.
"Maybe some others may have expected him to push for his wife, Hillary, but he didn't do that. He also didn't knock Barack Obama," Whidby said of the U.S. senator from Illinois who also is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination.
The theme of this year's NAACP dinner was "We Fight Until We Win." It was the culmination of Freedom Weekend which included a labor leaders' luncheon, emerging leaders panel and a town hall meeting featuring Kilpatrick and the Rev. Al Sharpton.
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