@PrezBillyJeff: Stephen Colbert Gets Bill Clinton To Join Twitter in St. Louis Interview

Apr 9, 2013 at 9:51 am
click to enlarge Colbert sends Clinton's first tweet in St. Louis. - via hulu.com
via hulu.com
Colbert sends Clinton's first tweet in St. Louis.

The creation of Twitter can be traced back to St. Louis -- and now, so can the creation of former President Bill Clinton's personal Twitter account.

@PrezBillyJeff.

Comedy Central host Stephen Colbert was at Washington University over the weekend to tape his first-ever interview with Clinton -- and one part of the show that aired last night that has Twitter abuzz this morning is...the section about Twitter!

How did Colbert convince Clinton to join? Video below.

See also: - Colbert to Tape Clinton in St. Louis: "I Assume He is Aware This is Happening" - Photos: Matthew Perry, Bill Clinton, Stephen Colbert at Wash. U. And More! - Stephen Colbert Interviews Bill Clinton [Slideshow]

Here's footage of the interview via Hulu.

"Do you tweet?" Colbert asks around the 1:18 mark.

"No," Clinton replies. "I think I'm so sort of insecure, like, if you know, what if you tweet and nobody tweets back?... There's nothing worse than a friendless tweeter. You're just wandering around in cyberspace." (We feel you, dude).

"I took the liberty of opening you a Twitter account," Colbert later says, noting that President Clinton and William Jefferson Clinton were taken.

But PrezBillyJeff was available!

And thus the account was born -- and soon so was his first Tweet, dictated by Clinton and typed on air by Colbert:

The account has more than 45,000 followers as of this writing (Does that address your insecurities, Mr. President?!), but is only following one person: @StephenAtHome.

@PrezBillyJeff: Stephen Colbert Gets Bill Clinton To Join Twitter in St. Louis Interview
Jon Gitchoff / RFT Slideshow

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