CHICAGO
— Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential campaign will center on
boosting economic security for the middle class and expanding
opportunities for working families, while casting the former senator and
secretary of state as a "tenacious fighter" able to get results, two
senior advisers said Saturday. President Barack Obama all but endorsed
her, saying "I think she would be an excellent president."
The
senior advisers provided the first preview of the message Clinton
planned to convey when she launches her long-anticipated campaign on
Sunday with an online video. Until now, the former first lady has
offered only hints of what would drive her if she were to run a second
time for the White House.
The
strategy described by Clinton's advisers has echoes of Obama's 2012
re-election campaign. He framed the choice for voters as between
Democrats focused on the middle class and Republicans wanting to protect
the wealthy and return to policies that led to the 2008 economic
collapse.
The
advisers said Clinton will argue that voters have a similar choice in
2016. Clinton also intends to sell herself as being able to work with
Congress, businesses and world leaders.
That
approach could be perceived as a critique of Obama, Clinton's rival for
the nomination in 2008. He has largely been unable to fulfill his
pledge to end Washington's intense partisanship and found much of his
presidency stymied by gridlock with Congress.
The
Clinton advisers spoke on condition of anonymity in order to discuss
her plans ahead of Sunday's announcement. People familiar with the plans
say Clinton will travel to Iowa and other early-voting states to hold
small events with residents in the days after the video's release.
In
New York on Saturday, at the final event put on by "Ready for Hillary,"
a group not connected with her campaign that's worked for the past few
years to stoke excitement for it, enthusiastic supporters joined elected
officials and local party leaders to celebrate the launch to come.
"After
she left the State Department she could have slipped into
grandmother-hood, but people want to call her back into public service,"
said Jarret Berg, 29, a Democratic staffer in the New York legislature.
"It's time for her."
As
her official announcement loomed, the Republican National Committee
linked Clinton to Obama, a regular focus of criticism from the GOP. "All
Hillary Clinton is offering is a continuation of the same big
government ideas that have grown Washington instead of the middle
class," RNC spokesman Michael Short said in a statement. "That's why
voters want fresh leadership and a new direction, not four more years of
Obama's failed policies."
Clinton
is not expected to roll out detailed policy positions in the first
weeks of her campaign. Advisers said she planned to talk about ways
families can increase take-home pay, the importance of expanding early
childhood education and making higher education more affordable.
It's
not yet clear whether that will include a noticeable break with Obama
on economic policy. The GOP has hammered Obama's approach as
anti-business and insufficient in the wake of the recession. The White
House says the economy has improved significantly in recent years.
The
unemployment rate fell to 5.5 percent in March, but manufacturing and
new home construction slowed, cheaper gas has yet to ignite consumer
spending and participation in the labor force remains sluggish.
Clinton
will enter the race as the overwhelming favorite for her party's
nomination. Still, her team has said her early strategy is designed to
avoid appearing to take that nomination for granted.
Clinton received an early boost Saturday from Obama, who was asked if he would be involved in her expected campaign.
"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, and I'm not
on the ballot so I'm not going to step on her lines," Obama said from
Panama City as he wrapped up participation in a summit of Western
Hemisphere leaders.
Clinton's
early events will include discussions at colleges, day care centers and
private homes, and stops at coffee shops and diners. After about a
month of such events, Clinton will give a broader speech outlining more
specifics about her rationale for running.
Clinton's
husband, Bill, and daughter, Chelsea, are unlikely to appear at her
early events. Bill Clinton, the former two-term president, said recently
that he wanted to play a role as a "backstage adviser" in his wife's
campaign. Advisers said Bill Clinton has been engaged with his wife in
some of the policy discussions leading up to this weekend's rollout.
To
prepare for the campaign, Clinton has spent months meeting with
economic policy experts, including Heather Boushey, whose research
focuses on inequality, and Teresa Ghilarducci, a labor economist and
retirement policy expert. The policy development process has been
overseen by aides Jake Sullivan and Dan Schwerin.
In
the days before her announcement, Clinton has been holding lengthy
meetings with her staff, sometimes joining them at her crowded personal
offices in midtown Manhattan and other times participating by phone. She
is expected to reach out to donors in the coming weeks, but does not
plan to headline many fundraising events over the next month.
Clinton's
growing team of staffers began working Friday out of a new campaign
headquarters in Brooklyn. They gathered Saturday to hear from campaign
manager-in-waiting Robby Mook, who told them the campaign would value
teamwork, diversity, discipline and humility.
Mook
distributed a memo titled "We are Hillary for America" that included
several guiding principles, including a vow to work together and respect
each other. The campaign, the memo said, "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
meeting was described by a Democratic official in attendance who spoke
on condition of anonymity to describe a private strategy session. The
memo was first reported by Politico.
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