Thursday on MSNBC, former Democratic National Committee chairman Howard Dean criticized Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump’s effort to take on Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton by attacking her husband former President Bill Clinton.

According to Dean, Bill Clinton’s popularity surpasses Trump’s popularity and that attacking him is a tactical mistake.

“Bill Clinton is the smartest politician alive in America and probably the smartest politician since Franklin Roosevelt,” Dean said. “He’s not going to engage with Donald Trump. And actually, I think what trump is doing actually helps Bill Clinton. There is a risk in bringing Bill Clinton on the campaign trail. Hillary has to run her campaign, not somebody else’s campaign. But Trump is making it easy for the Clintons right now. You go after Bill, Bill goes out there. Everybody loves him. He’s got huge numbers, better than Donald Trump I might add. This is the first time I thought Trump has really made a tactical mistake.

“I think it will — not only do I think it will energize the Democratic base, I think it makes former President Clinton look pretty damn good compared to Donald Trump. So the one-on-one strategy, taking on somebody and making mincemeat out of them has worked well for Trump. This is a mistake. You’re taking on the most talented guy in America. I think that’s a mistake.”

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