As Hillary Clinton prepared to announce her presidential bid, the man who defeated her in the Democratic primaries in 2008 had some words of commendation for her. President Barack Obama believes Hillary would be “an excellent president”.
“She was a formidable candidate in 2008. She was a great supporter of mine in the general election. She was an outstanding Secretary of State. She is my friend. I think she would be an excellent President,” Obama said at a news conference in Panama on the eve of Clinton’s projected announcement. “When she makes a decision to announce, I’m confident that she will be very clear about her vision for the country moving forward, if she announces,” Obama said.
Commenting on her four years as his Secretary of State, Obama said: “She was focused and working on really important foreign policy initiatives. And the one thing I can say is that she’s going to be able to handle herself very well in any conversations or debates around foreign policy.”
“And her track record with respect to domestic policy is I think one that cares about working families,” Obama said, remarking: “If she decides to run and she makes an announcement, she’s going to have some strong messages to deliver.”
Clinton was expected to make the announcement on social media on Sunday, possibly in the afternoon, and it with campaign appearances in the traditional early-voting States of Iowa and New Hampshire next week.
Clinton has remained the undisputed frontrunner for the Democratic ticket even while there is no clear idea yet on who else would be making the bid. There has been no definitive word one or the other from Vice President Joe Biden. The one seen most likely to explore the possibility is former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley. Another is Jim Webb, the former Senator from Virginia.
The Clinton campaign team, meanwhile, circulated a memo to her supporters on Saturday laying out the guiding principles. The memo is called “We Are Hillary For America”, according to Fox News, which reportedly managed to get hold of a copy of the memo.
“This campaign is not about Hillary Clinton and not about us — it’s about the everyday Americans who are trying to build a better life for themselves and their families,” the memo says, noting the aim of the campaign would be “to give every family, every small business, and every American a path to lasting prosperity by electing Hillary Clinton the next President of the United States.”