Former President Bill Clinton knew how to capture his audience at a grassroots campaign stop last night: by mentioning his wife's Penn State roots.

"I'm here to represent the only candidate for president who had a father and a brother who played football for Penn State," he said.

Bill Clinton, who took the stage in front of about 8,000 spectators at Rec Hall, also recalled his last visit to campus in 1996.

"I still remember the peach ice cream I got at the Creamery," he said.

During an hour-long speech, his fifth stop of the day, he spoke to potential voters about where his wife, Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., stands on issues of energy, economy, universal health care and Iraq.

He explained that Hillary Clinton believes energy independence and efficiency are key to improving the state of the environment and creating more jobs. Specifically, he said her energy plan will focus on clean coal, solar and wind energy and energy-efficient vehicles.

In order to turn the economy around, Bill Clinton said, his wife proposes to implement programs that allow more students to attend college and graduate with less debt.

"We have to reclaim the future of young people," he said. "A college degree is worth more than a million dollars to the person who has it and to the society as a whole."

As commander-in-chief, Hillary Clinton plans to restore America's international credibility, starting with bringing U.S. troops back from Iraq, Bill Clinton said.

"We've got to stop saying, 'It's our way or the highway,' " he said. "We've got to stop saying there is one set of rules for us and another set of rules for everybody else."

As he was speaking about relations with the Middle East, Lidor Levkovitch, an Israeli student in the Penn State Intensive English Communication Program, held up an Israeli flag.

"We have to guarantee the security of the man holding that flag there," Bill Clinton said.

Levkovitch, who spent three years in the Israeli army, said he is interested in hearing presidential candidates' speeches, including Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill, who will be on campus Sunday.

"We're here just to hear how Hillary can help the solution in the Middle East," he said. "We can't vote, but we just want to come and hear what they have to say."

After his speech, Bill Clinton greeted audience members on the floor, one of whom said she was convinced the former president came specifically to her to shake hands.

"He came for me!" Lauren Bowie (freshman-communications) said. "It's a great feeling. I matter to him. We made eye contact. He's for the people."

Aaron Giua (freshman-secondary education), who said shaking Bill Clinton's hand was "exhilarating," said he voted for Hillary Clinton in the Ohio primary earlier this month.

Above all, Bill Clinton said, in this presidential race "what matters is what change will be made in your lives."