Hillary (& Bill) Clinton

excerpts from the Iowa Daily Report

December 16-31, 2003

Hillary’s foreign policy speech: (12/17/2003)

Hillary Clinton, although not a candidate for President, gave the following foreign policy address to the NY Council on Foreign Relations: --click here to read entire speech --

Self-discipline, not self-doubt

Tina Brown writes in a column in the Washington Post about Democrats’ tough times. She infers one of the contributing factors is Hillary’s not a candidate:

The day after the Saddam news you could see Hillary Clinton in New York moving herself inexorably into the Democratic void in a policy address at the Council on Foreign Relations. More hawkish than Bush on the need to ramp up the troop numbers in Iraq, practical about the impending trouble next July when the possibly premature transfer of power follows troop reduction in the spring, shrewdly caring about the need to promote maternal care in Afghanistan, sure of her leonine power, she morphed her pinstripe pantsuit before our eyes into battle fatigues and flak jacket. Planted solidly behind the lectern with only intermittent reference to her notes she exuded the sense of a well-filled mind and life. Maybe not yet a credible commander-in-chief but at least a Democratic Major Barbara. Distantly one could hear the voice of Maggie Thatcher during the Gulf War in 1990, commanding Bush 41 not to "go wobbly." She will wait this one out. Self-discipline, not self-doubt. (12/18/2003)

Hillary's opponent criticized

New York Gov. Pataki was criticized by NY Democrats for revealing the plans for the Freedom Tower to Katie Couric, the popular host of NBC's "Today" show, prompting gripes that the governor is using the Sept. 11 tragedy to bolster his own national political ambitions. Pataki, who is not expected to seek a fourth term as governor, is widely believed to have his eye on a bigger office. Many GOP operatives believe Pataki may challenge Sen. Hillary Clinton in 2006. (12/20/2003)

Clinton’s Iraq-al Qaeda connection

The Weekly Standard explores how the Clinton administration clearly felt Iraq was connected to Al Qaeda but now offers a different perspective. The issue is the chemical factory Bill Clinton ordered blown up in Sudan. Sudan was the country Bin Laden was in until he went to Afghanistan:

If the case appeared "clear cut" to top Clinton administration officials, it was not as open-and-shut to the news media. Press reports brimmed with speculation about bad intelligence or even the misuse of intelligence. In an October 27, 1999, article, New York Times reporter James Risen went back and reexamined the intelligence. He wrote: "At the pivotal meeting reviewing the targets, the Director of Central Intelligence, George J. Tenet, was said to have cautioned Mr. Clinton's top advisers that while he believed that the evidence connecting Mr. Bin Laden to the factory was strong, it was less than ironclad." Risen also reported that Secretary of State Madeleine Albright had shut down an investigation into the targeting after questions were raised by the department's Bureau of Intelligence and Research (the same intelligence team that raised questions about prewar intelligence relating to the war in Iraq). (12/22/2003)

Hillary’s coming out

The NY Times reports on Hillary Clinton’s phone call complaining about callers who had been lambasting the Clintons on a talk show. The article explores Hillary’s more outspoken approach:

Relentlessly and ubiquitously, Mrs. Clinton is out there, pounding away at Republicans, responding to her critics, staking out distinct positions on everything from Afghanistan and Iraq (she is a hawk) to terror money and unemployment insurance benefits (she wants more). By design or not, in the last few months she has been showing a feisty side that her critics long suspected was there but that her advisers say she has been reluctant to display. (12/23/2003)

Hillary’s call to arms

The Hillary campaign is asking her supporters to help her out:

We all know that Hillary is out there making the case for change, speaking out about why we have to change the direction of this country. As Friends of Hillary we're working to do our part, by getting organized and building support to make sure Hillary can keep speaking out.

The response to our last email was tremendous! Hillary wants you all to know how much she appreciates your support. BUT when I see how hard the right wing is working to stop her, I realize that we need to do more!

Just this past week, a former Republican Congressman appeared on Fox Television to announce the new organization StopHillaryPac.com. This organization states that its sole purpose is to defeat Hillary Clinton. The Congressman made a direct plea on national television to get "average people to give $25 to get a campaign ready so the minute Hillary is on the ballot, we go national to stop her." (12/23/2003)

Hillary’s China problems

The U.S. publisher of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's memoirs has withdrawn rights for the Chinese translation, citing the Chinese publisher's unwillingness to restore passages critical of the government. "They no longer have the right to print or sell the book," Adam Rothberg, a spokesman for Simon & Schuster, said yesterday. Simon & Schuster had learned in September that Yilin Press, a Chinese government-backed publisher, removed references in "Living History" to the 1989 Tiananmen Square democracy protests, and altered Mrs. Clinton's comments about human rights activist Harry Wu, who campaigns against abuses in the Chinese labor camps, where he spent 19 years. (12/24/2003)

Draft Hillary

Draft Hillary Camp will hold a rally in Senate park January 13, 2004 (more details to come). Senate park is located directly next to the Russell Senate office building, and between Union Station and the Capitol. (12/27/2003)

Most Admired Woman

While President Clinton has a cameo in Wesley Clark’s new commercial, Hillary Clinton is being recognized as the most admired woman in America -- behind President George W.Bush as the most admired individual. For the second year in a row, Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York was the most admired woman. The former first lady was the first or second choice of 16% in a USA TODAY/CNN/Gallup Poll. Her memoir, Living History, is a best seller this year. Last year, 7% chose her. TV host Oprah Winfrey was second this year and in 2002. Laura Bush also was third last year. She placed first in 2001 after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. (12/30/2003)

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