Bill Clinton backs Obama, but through spokesman

By Deborah Charles

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two weeks after his wife ended her White House bid, former Democratic President Bill Clinton offered a faint voice of support for Barack Obama -- through a spokesman.

Clinton, who gave the Democratic presidential candidate's energy policy faint praise over the weekend, has not yet said in public that he would support Obama.

"President Clinton is obviously committed to doing whatever he can and is asked to do to ensure Senator Obama is the next president of the United States," Clinton's spokesman Matt McKenna told Reuters in a one-sentence e-mail.

He gave no further details.

Obama said on his campaign plane that he had not spoken to Bill Clinton yet because the former president has been in Europe.

"But we're looking forward to setting up a long conversation," the Illinois senator told reporters as he traveled to Los Angeles. "He's as smart as they come. He's a great strategist. We're going to want him campaigning."

Obama and New York Sen. Hillary Clinton spoke on Sunday night and one of the things they discussed was Obama and former President Clinton connecting, a campaign official said.

On Sunday, Bill Clinton made his first public address since his wife ended her presidential campaign on June 7 after Obama clinched enough support to be the Democratic nominee in the November election.