Hillary Clinton: U.S. presidential election, 2008



Hillary Rodham Clinton, the Democratic senator from New York, announced in November 2003 that she would form an exploratory committee to consider a run for president in 2008. As of 2007, no woman had ever been nominated for president by a major party.

Clinton's established national image made her possible candidacy in 2008 a popular and controversial topic among media pundits, bloggers, and the public at large. For example, in July 2005 The Washington Monthly magazine ran two side-by-side articles, one saying that she could win the presidency, and one thinking that she could not. In June 2008, she ended her campaign and endorsed Barack Obama.

Obama's attack website - DesperateHillaryAttacks.com

 * Jake Tapper, "Obama Camp Registers Anti-Clinton Web Sites. Campaign Plays Semantics Over Whether Sites Are Personal Attacks," ABC News, December 20, 2007.
 * Greg Sargent, "Hey Obama -- Who Are You Calling Desperate?" TPMElectionCentral, December 21, 2007.

The Clinton Foundation

 * Don Van Natta, Jr., Jo Becker, and Mike McIntire, "In Charity and Politics, Clinton Donors Overlap," New York Times, December 20, 2007.
 * eriposte, "The Corrupt Clinton Foundation," The Left Coaster, December 21, 2007.

Counterpunching
Clinton, "who for months seemed on a turbulence-free course at the front of the presidential pack, has kicked into a new phase of more-aggressive campaigning designed to address emerging weaknesses and to engage her Democratic rivals more directly," Janet Hook reported November 22, 2007, in the Los Angeles Times.

"New television ads take head-on the criticism that she cannot be trusted and is unelectable. She is directly and repeatedly attacking Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) as too inexperienced for the White House" and has "sharpen[ed] distinctions with Obama on healthcare, challenging his claim to have a plan that would provide universal coverage," Hook wrote.

"It is a more in-your-face posture than earlier in the campaign when, sitting atop a commanding lead in national polls, Clinton adopted an above-the-fray stance that focused more on attacking Republicans than on challenging fellow Democrats," Hook wrote.

"Indeed, all of the candidates have sharpened their rhetoric as the balloting draws nearer. Obama, despite his signature promise to avoid negative campaigning, has with increasing intensity portrayed Clinton -- the former first lady and now U.S. senator from New York -- as a creature of a discredited Washington establishment. Former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina has accused her of defending a corrupt political system," Hook wrote.

"But her rivals have become increasingly difficult to ignore as they try to portray her as too polarizing to win the general election and accuse her of changing or obfuscating her positions on issues such as trade and the Iraq war. Her latest TV ads take on the allegations that she is untrustworthy and unelectable," Hook wrote.

Related external articles
 * Also see HillaryHub and TheFactHub at HillaryHub.com.
 * Steve Chapman, "Clinton is learning from experience," Chicago Tribune, November 22, 2007.
 * News Release: "Hillary Clinton’s Remarks Today on Her Experience and Vision for a New America," HillaryClinton.com, December 3, 2007.

Ready to lead on Day One (i.e. experience)

 * Steve Soto, "Clinton Returns To Readiness Argument," The Left Coaster, November 19, 2007.
 * John Ellis, "Nixon 1968, Clinton 2008," RealClearPolitics, November 21, 2007.
 * eriposte, "The Campaign Debate on Qualifications and Experience," The Left Coaster, December 16, 2007.
 * Wayne Slater, "Experience from 1972 stumping in Texas helped shape Clinton's campaign. lections '08: Lone Star stumping gig in '72 race helped shape own bid," Dallas Morning News, December 16, 2007.
 * Steve Clemons, "Obama vs. Clinton on Putting Legislative Machinery to Work," The Huffington Post, December 17, 2007.
 * Joseph C. Wilson, "The Real Hillary I Know--and the Unreal Obama," The Huffington Post, December 21, 2007.

On executive power (Unitary Executive Theory)
In an October 23, 2007, telephone interview with The Guardian (UK)'s Michael Tomasky, Clinton said she "would launch a policy review as president with an eye towards giving up some of the executive powers accumulated" by President George W. Bush.

In the interview, Clinton "also accuses the Bush administration's broad brush approach to terrorism of making it harder to understand 'what it is we were up against', and expresses concerns about the attitude of the president's nominee for attorney general to interrogation and 'expansive' executive power."

Clinton said that Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney "both had taken actions 'beyond any power the Congress would have granted' and - even when congressional authorisation was possible - chosen not to pursue it 'as a matter of principle'.

"'The power grab undertaken by the Bush-Cheney administration has gone much further than any other president and has been sustained for longer,' she said. 'Other presidents, like Lincoln, have had to take on extraordinary powers but would later go to Congress for either ratification or rejection.'"

"Clinton stated it was 'absolutely' conceivable that, as president, she would give up executive powers in the name of constitutional principle."

On the use of diplomacy

 * Eric Kleefeld, "Hillary: I'll Send Colin Powell Abroad As My Emissary," TPMElectionCentral, November 27, 2007.

Opposes confirmation of Mukasey
On October 30, 2007, Clinton joined Sens. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and John Edwards "in unequivocally opposing Michael Mukasey's nomination as attorney general."

On (or no) war in Iran

 * S.759. A bill to prohibit the use of funds for military operations in Iran introduced by Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.), March 5, 2007. Clinton, Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) are co-sponsors.
 * John Amato, "Hillary Clinton: 'If the administration believes that any, any use of force against Iran is necessary, the president must come to Congress to seek that authority'," Crooks and Liars, February 14, 2007.

Related external articles
 * Sen. Barack Obama on Iran and Obama's non-binding resolution.

Kyl-Lieberman vote
"Sen. Obama and Sen. Edwards, while intending to advance a progressive foreign policy vision, are unfortunately mainstreaming the fraudulent right-wing meme that the President can use resolutions without binding or legal authority as a justification or 'blank check' to invade other countries! (Not to mention, some of their eager supporters, who I am reasonably sure were helping debunk these kinds of claims when George Bush or his supporters were making them, are unfortunately busy trying to - wrongly - establish how Sen. Clinton's vote allows Bush to go to war. This is exactly the kind of stuff that George Bush and the neocons have been dying to hear)," eriposte wrote November 3, 2007, at The Left Coaster. Related external articles


 * eriposte, "Hillary Clinton Single-Handedly Declares War on Iran (or Something Like That)," The Left Coaster, October 11, 2007.
 * Ben Smith, "Clinton plays defense on Iran," The Politico, October 20, 2007.
 * Editorial: "A Difference on Iran? Barack Obama's unconvincing attack on Hillary Clinton's 'saber-rattling'," Washington Post, October 21, 2007.
 * Ben Smith, "What she should have mailed," The Politico, October 21, 2007.
 * Ben Smith, "Hillary's sense," The Politico, October 22, 2007.
 * Jeff Dinelli, "Obama, Biden Refuse To Sign Warning Letter To Bush On Iran," The Left Coaster, November 1, 2007.

On nuclear weapons and Pakistan
Also see Barack Obama on the use of nuclear weapons.


 * Michael McAuliff and Michael Saul, "Barack stumbles over nukes question," New York Daily News, August 3, 2007.
 * Anne E. Kornblut, "Clinton Demurs On Obama's Nuclear Stance. She Says It Is Unwise to Rule Out Using the Arms Against Terrorists," Washington Post, August 3, 2007.
 * Domenico Montanaro, "On Pakistan, Finally Edwards," First Read/MSNBC, August 19, 2007. re John Edwards
 * Ed Tibbetts, "Clinton: Bush policies spur Pakistan crackdown," Quad City Times, November 5, 2007.

Political attacks
This article covers political attacks made against Hillary Clinton.

Polling & public perception
In a December 2005 CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll, 41% of Democrats preferred her for the 2008 presidential nomination. 

In a poll conducted by the same organizations in May 2005, when general voters were asked the likelihood of voting for Senator Clinton for president, 29% of respondents were very likely, 24% were somewhat likely, 7% were not very likely, and 39% were not at all likely. In June 2003, in a similar poll, the numbers had been 21% very likely, 21% somewhat likely, 12% not very likely, and 44% not at all likely. In May 2005, 55% of respondents held a favorable view of Senator Clinton, while 39% held an unfavorable view of her. These findings were similar to the June 2003 poll that found 53% reacted favorably toward her and 41% unfavorably, with the undecided/no opinion bloc representing only 6% of those polled.

In January 2006, the moderate-liberal magazine The New Republic attempted to debunk the "myth" that Senator Clinton's popularity in traditionally Republican upstate New York was unprecedented, arguing both that the region was not as conservative as was often assumed in the national media and that her approval ratings there were comparable to those of other prominent Democrats. The article challenged the assumption that Sen. Clinton's appeal in upstate New York would be the harbinger of her ability to attract support from moderates and conservatives nationwide, setting off a debate throughout the blogosphere as to her presidential prospects. 

In February 2006, TheWhiteHouseProject.org named Hillary Rodham Clinton one of its "8 in '08", a group of eight female politicians who could possibly run and/or be elected president in 2008.

In March 2006, high-voltage actress Sharon Stone cast doubt on Clinton's presidential chances, saying "Hillary still has sexual power, and I don't think people will accept that. It's too threatening." 

Polling results

 * Susan Page, "Poll: Clinton rebounds over Obama," USA TODAY, May 9, 2007.
 * Robert Novak, "Hillary up, Obama down," Townhall.com, May 12, 2007; Chicago Sun-Times (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review), May 13, 2007.
 * Mark Memmott and Jill Lawrence, "Rasmussen: Clinton leading Obama among key voters," On Politics Blog / USA TODAY', May 14, 2007.
 * David Paul Kuhn, "White women may prove Clinton swing bloc" and "Hillary rallies women's support," The Politico, June 4, 2007.
 * kos, "Biden's and Celinda Lake's propaganda poll," The Daily Kos, September 24, 2007.
 * Jay Cost, "The Previous Subject, Continued: Quantifying the Debate's Effect," Horserace Blog/RealClearPolitics, November 8, 2007.
 * Greg Sargent, "Media Lavishes Attention On Bogus Internet Poll Showing Hillary Losing To Repubs -- And Ignores Reputable Poll Finding Opposite," Horse's Mouth Blog/Talking Points Memo, November 27, 2007.

Iowa

 * Big Tent Democrat, "Is Edwards Crashing And Burning In Iowa?" Talk Left, November 19, 2007.
 * Taylor Marsh, "Is Edwards' Goose Cooked?" TaylorMarsh.com, November 19, 2007.

From the campaign trail

 * Jill Zuckman, "Clinton courting non-voters. The N.Y. Democrat's presidential campaign is going after a far more elusive goal than female voters: Women who have not even registered, a target that includes 21 million under age 44," Chicago Tribune, May 15, 2007.
 * Adam Nagourney, "Clinton Staff Memo Urged Skipping Iowa," New York Times, May 23, 2007.
 * "Hillary Aide: Let's Skip Iowa. But Candidate Herself Says She's Committed To Competing In Hawkeye Caucuses," Associated Press (CBS News), May 24, 2007.
 * Chris Cillizza, "Obama's Got a Memo, Too," The Fix Blog/Washington Post, May 24, 2007.
 * M.J. Rosenberg, "Leaked Hillary Memo on Iowa Caucus!!!! Oh the Humanity," TPM Cafe, May 24, 2007.
 * Taylor Marsh, "Why Clinton was Booed at TBA," TaylorMarsh.com, June 20, 2007.
 * Jane Hamsher, "The Ladies of TBA," Firedoglake, Blog, June 20, 2007.
 * Bill Scher, "What the Boos Were About," Campaign for America's Future, June 20, 2007.
 * "Obama tries to turn heads of Clinton admirers by taking regular — yet subtle — jabs," Associated Press (International Herald Tribune), July 18, 2007.
 * Robin Givhan, "Hillary Clinton's Tentative Dip Into New Neckline Territory," Washington Post, July 20, 2007.
 * MissLaura, "The Boobs at the Washington Post,"The Daily Kos, July 20, 2007.
 * Dan Balz, "No Turning Back?" The Trail/Washington Post, July 25, 2007.
 * Christi Parsons, "Clinton, Obama trading jabs," Chicago Tribune, July 26, 2007.
 * Steve Huntley, "Hillary thrives on campaign trail," Chicago Sun-Times, July 27, 2007.
 * Joe Conason, "Ginning up a fight between Clinton and Obama. There's little difference between their stances on foreign policy -- just telling differences in style," Salon, July 27, 2007.
 * Chris Cillizza, "The Line: Debate Provides '08 Wake-up Call," The Fix/Washington Post, July 27, 2007.
 * Blake D. Dvorak, "Clinton Rope-A-Dopes Obama," RealClearPolitics, July 27, 2007.
 * Rich Lowry, "Hillary, the underestimated front runner," National Review/Kings Syndicate (InsideBayArea.com), July 30, 2007.
 * Sam Youngman, "Walking a fine line," The Hill, August 15, 2007.
 * Ben Smith, "Darth Cheney," The Politico, September 19, 2007.
 * Roger Simon, "Clinton: I'm not what you think," The Politico, September 20, 2007.
 * Philip Stephens, "Obama and Edwards battle against the inevitable," Financial Times, November 8, 2007.
 * Dan Balz and Shailagh Murray, "On Campaign Bus, Obama Opens Up About Challengers. 'I Try to Stick to What I Think'," Washington Post, November 9, 2007.
 * eriposte, "A Short History of Recent U.S. Presidential Politics - Part 1: Bringing Honesty and Integrity Back to the White House," The Left Coaster, November 12, 2007.
 * eriposte, "Sen. Edwards Says: Sign a 'Pledge' and Send me Your Brain; I Say: No Thanks],"] The Left Coaster'', November 29, 2007.

Profiles

 * Marcella Bombarieri, "From conservative roots sprang a call for change," Boston Globe, October 21, 2007.

News releases
Also see HillaryClinton.com "Endorsements" for recent updates.

By members of the Congressional Black Caucus

 * Alexander Bolton, "Obama snubs Black Caucus," The Hill, April 30, 2007.
 * Jonathan E. Kaplan, "CBC’s event for Clinton prompts grumbles," The Hill, September 20, 2007.

People

 * Gov. Jon Corzine (D-N.J.)
 * Former Gov. Gray Davis (D-Calif.)
 * Terry Duffy, CME Group Executive Chairman (and former Bush backer)
 * eriposte, The Left Coaster; see "Election 2008: Who I am Supporting in the Democratic Primary," which contains detailed analysis supporting the endorsement.
 * Geraldine Ferraro (D-N.Y.), first female presidential candidate in 1984 from a major party
 * Former Sen. Bob Kerrey (D-Neb.)
 * Billy Jean King, tennis star
 * John Mack (R), Morgan Stanley Chief Executive Officer and one of Bush's biggest fundraisers
 * Former Vice President Walter Mondale
 * Gov. Martin O'Malley (D-Md.)
 * Fabian Nunez (D), California Assembly Speaker
 * Francis Slay (D), Mayor of St. Louis, MO
 * Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D-N.Y.)
 * Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa of Los Angeles
 * Gov. Tom Vilsack (D-Iowa)
 * Frank Willis (D), Mayor of Florence, S.C.
 * Former ambassador Joe Wilson
 * Raul Yzaguirre, former long-time president of the National Council of La Raza

Organizations

 * American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)
 * American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
 * EMILY's List
 * International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM)
 * International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (BAC)
 * National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC)
 * National Organization for Women (NOW)
 * National Women's Political Caucus
 * Transportation Communications Union (TCU)
 * United Transportation Union (UTU)

Related external articles

 * Peter J. Smith, "Hillary Clinton Supported by Big Abortion, Gay Activists and Now the Porn Industry. Clinton spoke warmly of 'agenda' she is 'pursuing' with gay activists of Human Rights Campaign," LifeSite.net, April 19, 2007.
 * "Eight More NH State Representatives Endorse Senator Clinton for President. NH Support Continues to Grow with 37 House Endorsements," April 19, 2007.
 * Joshua Lynsen, "Dems lining up gay support  Gay. Clinton, Edwards, Obama identify early backers," Washington Blade, April 20, 2007.
 * "19 Massachusetts Legislators Endorse Clinton," April 20, 2007.
 * Josh Richman, "Lockyer, Davis among Calif. Dems for Clinton," Inside Bay Area, April 27, 2007.
 * Rick Pearson, "Clinton won't cede Illinois to Obama," Chicago Tribune, May 7, 2007.
 * "Leading Virginia Officials Endorse Clinton," Raising Kaine Blog, May 7, 2007.
 * "Spitzer, O'Malley to endorse Clinton," USA TODAY, May 8, 2007.
 * Jim Davenport, "Clinton plans to cut dropouts; picks up minister endorsements," Associated Press (The State), November 27, 2007.

Announces formation of presidential exploratory committee
On January 20, 2007, Clinton announced that she would establish an exploratory committee to consider a run for president in 2008. The announcement came on her website, which featured a headline stating, "I'm in." At the time of her announcement, several other prominent Democrats, including Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.). had already announced intentions to explore a 2008 bid. 


 * See Congresspedia article on the 2008 presidential election

Email
Email: http://www.hillaryclinton.com/help/contact/

Official websites

 * Hillary Clinton's Official U.S. Senate website.
 * HillaryClinton.com.
 * AttackTimeline.
 * HillaryHub.com.
 * TheFactHub at HillaryHub.com.


 * HillPAC.com, Hillary's Leadership PAC.

Unofficial websites

 * FriendsOfHillary.com, Hillary Rodham Clinton 2006 Reelection Campaign website.
 * Hillary.org, Draft Hillary Clinton for President Campaign/Hillary Clinton Forum; Hillary Clinton Forum - Discuss Pros and Cons of Presidential Candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton.
 * Hillary2008 Forum/Discussion Board.
 * Hillary is 44.com/.org
 * IronMyVote.com.
 * JustHillary.com. News archive.
 * MenforHillary.
 * Vote for Hillary Online.com.
 * VoteHillary.org. Unofficial Hillary Clinton for President 2008 site.
 * YouGoGirl.com by EMILY's List

Related SourceWatch articles

 * John McCain: U.S. presidential election, 2008 / troop surge in Iraq
 * The Presidential Coalition
 * U.S. presidential election, 2008
 * William Jefferson Clinton

External resources

 * See Hillary Rodham Clinton presidential campaign, 2008 in the Wikipedia.