Democrats clamouring for Hillary Clinton as midterms campaigner

Wednesday, 25 June 2014 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

REUTERS: Facing a potential Republican surge at November’s midterm elections, Democratic candidates are clamouring for Hillary Clinton to join them on the campaign trail. The former Secretary of State’s high ratings and connections to a vast roster of major party contributors makes her the most sought after surrogate for Democratic hopefuls in a difficult election year. In contrast, President Barack Obama is expected to have a muted role due to his dropping popularity.

While Clinton undoubtedly wants to see her party do well on 4 November, a return to town halls and diners will give her a chance to test speech themes and flex her retail politics muscles ahead of her own likely run for president in 2016. Clinton’s last campaign was in 2008 and she has looked rusty as she promotes her memoir “Hard Choices,” stumbling over media questions about her personal wealth and lucrative speeches. Helping fellow Democrats will also bolster her existing network of party allies throughout the country should she chose to make a White House bid. But the former senator will have to pick her appearances and endorsements carefully to avoid association with too many losing candidates in the fall, when Republicans are tipped by pundits to keep the House of Representatives and perhaps gain the six seats they need to take control of the Senate. “I’ve heard from virtually every incumbent and candidate that she is at the top of their list,” said New York congressman Steve Israel, chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. That makes her more popular with House Democratic campaigns than former President Bill Clinton, a veteran campaigner, although her husband’s approval ratings with the public are higher than hers. Israel said Hillary Clinton had indicated to him her willingness to get involved in the midterms, when traditionally the President’s party is more likely to struggle. “Hillary and Bill Clinton can go into any battleground district in the United States and be an asset,” Israel said. “She helps turn out our base, she helps with independent voters, she helps with fundraisers.” Both the DCCC and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee are using Clinton’s book as a fundraising tool in emails to supporters. They ask voters to submit their name for a chance to win a copy of the book, thus building a list of her supporters who can be contacted to turn out at the midterm election campaign. “Ready For Hillary” – a well-funded group that supports a Clinton 2016 candidacy by identifying and organising millions of voters around the country - altered its federal registration in May so it can be a vessel for funding midterms campaigns. The group has contributed to state Democratic parties by sponsoring dinner and convention sponsorships in states like New Hampshire, which is both home to a contested Senate race in November and an influential early-voting state that Clinton would aim to win in a presidential race. Voters are slightly more likely to support a congressional candidate backed by Clinton than by Obama, according to a March poll by the Wall Street Journal and NBC News. A quarter of voters said a Hillary Clinton endorsement could sway them, compared to 22%for Obama. A separate Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll showed 44%of voters view Clinton positively and 37%see her negatively. Seventy percent of Republicans and a chunky 40%of independents said in that poll there was no chance they would vote for Clinton in 2016, suggesting her main role in the midterms could be to energise Democrats and raise funds rather than win over undecided voters.

Michelle Obama says will not go into politics after White House

REUTERS: US first lady Michelle Obama will not go into politics after leaving the White House, she said on Monday, dismissing rumours she might follow in the footsteps of predecessor Hillary Clinton and run for the Senate after her husband leaves office.

At an event to promote family-friendly workplace policies, the wife of President Barack Obama was asked whether her next move would be political. “No, it will not be political. It definitely will not be. It will be mission-based, service-focused,” Obama told ABC newscaster Robin Roberts. Her comment may have been aimed at shutting down recent speculation that Obama was mulling a future run for the US Senate. President Obama’s term in the White House ends in early 2017. Former first lady Hillary Clinton was first elected to the US Senate in 2000 just as her husband, President Bill Clinton, was finishing his second term. She went on to become US Secretary of State under Obama after losing to him in a run to become the 2008 Democratic presidential nominee. During her time as first lady, Michelle Obama spearheaded a movement to make school lunches healthier, a move for which she has come under recent fire from congressional Republicans. Before her husband went into politics, Obama worked as an attorney, director of a “public allies” leadership-training group in Chicago and as director for community affairs at the University of Chicago Hospitals.