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Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton didn't wait long to applaud the veto of an Arizona law that would have allowed businesses that asserted their religious beliefs the right to deny service to gay and lesbian customers.

In the first minutes of a speech at the University of Miami Wednesday night, Clinton lauded the fact that Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer -- a Republican -- vetoed the legislation that supporters said protected religious liberty.

"Thankfully the governor of Arizona has vetoed the discriminatory legislation that was passed, recognizing that inclusive leadership is really what the 21st century is all about," Clinton said to the 6,000 people who assembled at the south Florida institution.

Brewer announced just hours before Clinton took the stage that she had decided to veto the bill that had created a national firestorm. Brewer said she made the decision she knew was right for her state.

Clinton used the Arizona law to frame the rest of her remarks, weaving between the rights of gays and lesbians to the rights of people with disabilities. The former first lady pulled greatly from her career and her education at Wellesley College and Yale University.

"It is the work of this century to complete the unfinished business of making sure that every girl and boy and every woman and man lives in societies that respect their rights no matter who they are, respects their potential and their talents, gives them the opportunities that every human being deserves, no matter where you were born, no matter the color of your skin, no matter your religion, your ethnicity, or whom you love," Clinton said to applause.

As much as Clinton's speech looked back at her history, though, there were also overarching forward-looking themes in her remarks.

"I hope that your generation will be a true participation generation," she said. "I hope you will find ways to make sure that the barriers that too often divide us are torn down once and for all."

Clinton also commended the young people in the audience for being the "most open-minded and tolerant we have ever seen."

Clinton's speech comes as the former secretary of state eyes a presidential run in 2016. She is the frontrunner for her party's nomination, with poll after poll showing she laps all other possible Democratic challengers.

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Hillary Clinton applauds the veto of SB1062

Delivering the keynote address at the 2014 meeting of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, former first lady and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton acknowledged Obamacare is imperfect but praised many of its reforms and described the law as an overall good.

I think we are on the right track in many respects but I would be the first to say if things arent working then we need people of good faith to come together and make evidence-based changes, Clinton said before claiming that [p]art of the challenge is to clear away all the smoke and try to figure out what is working and what isnt.

Clinton celebrated Obamacare provisions that allow young people to stay on their parents health insurance plans until the age of 26, as well as those that provide free preventative care. Speaking about beneficiaries of these elements of the law, as well as the millions who have received health insurance through it, Clinton said to take away what has now been provided would be a great tragedy.

This is going to be challenging and I dont think we should throw the baby out with the bath, she added.

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Between her remarks and a question-and-answer session with the groups board chairman, Scott MacLean, Clinton did not offer specifics on how she would change Obamacare.

Instead, she asked the audience of medical professionals and information technology specialists to play a role in the reforms.

Clinton synthesized her views on Obamacare near the end her answer for MacLean, stating that those in power needed to be smart about the reforms and changes that have to occur.

So sitting here today, I think that the glass is slightly more than half full in terms of the positive reality, Clinton concluded. If there are things that are going to undermine quality, increase cost, than we have to know about them.

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Hillary Clinton defends Obamacare, says it may need fixes

CORAL GABLES

The one question on everyone's mind was the one she didn't answer.

Hillary Clinton spoke for 62 minutes Wednesday evening without giving a clear indication of whether she plans to run for president in 2016.

There were a few tantalizing tidbits, though, from the former secretary of state, former U.S. senator, former first lady and unsuccessful candidate for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination.

The final question of the night, read to Clinton by University of Miami President Donna Shalala, asked her to amplify on the "TBD" on her Twitter biography.

She laughed and the audience roared. "I'd really like to [answer]," she joked, explaining she couldn't because she was out of space on her Twitter profile.

As to what she'll do next, Clinton said, "I will certainly ponder that."

Speaking to about 6,100 University of Miami students, faculty, staff and guests starting and ending her time on stage by making the school's "U" sign with her hands Clinton:

Described Venezuela as a democracy more in theory than reality. "Other than elections, there "aren't many characteristics" of democracy, citing the need for a free press, protection of opponents' rights and an independent judiciary.

Praised Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer's veto of anti-gay legislation, which Clinton termed "discriminatory." Her comment drew one of the strongest rounds of applause of the night.

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Hillary Clinton doesn't tip her hand during UM speech | Video/Photos

Hillary Clinton offered a full-throated defense of Obamacareon Wednesdaynight but also expressed openness to changing President Obamas signature health care law.

The former secretary of state and early frontrunner for the Democratic Partys 2016 presidential nomination said the law, despite some flaws that should be addressed, is working and it would be foolish to scrap it and start over.

I think we are on the right track in many respects, but I would be the first to say if things arent working then we need people of good faith to come together and make evidence-based changes, Mrs. Clinton said, according to CNN.

She made her remarks at a Florida meeting of the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society. The event was closed to the press though anyone reportedly could buy a ticket and attend.

Mrs. Clinton, who pushed her own ambitious but ill-fated health-care reform agenda while first lady in the 1990s, specifically cited the problems small businesses are encountering under Obamacare. Companies moving employees from full-time to part-time hours in order to avoid providing insurance coverage, she said, is something that should be addressed.

But on the larger issue, Mrs. Clinton said it would be wrong to throw the baby out with the bath and stressed Obamacare can and should be refined so it works better for average Americans. Many of Mrs. Clintons potential GOP rivals in 2016 have already vowed to repeal and replace Obamacare if elected.

Part of the challenge is to clear away all the smoke and try to figure out what is working and what isnt, Mrs. Clinton said, as quoted by CNN. What do we need to do to try to fix this? Because it would be a great tragedy, in my opinion, to take away what has now been provided.

Mrs. Clinton hasnt yet announced her 2016 plans, but she already has a grass-roots organizing and fundraising machine operating at full capacity. Early polling shows her far ahead of potential Democratic rivals such as Vice President Joseph R. Biden and Maryland Gov. Martin OMalley.

Mrs. Clinton also bests possible Republican opponents by significant margins, polling data show.

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Hillary Clinton all-in in backing Obamacare

It was not exactly a globe-girdling excursion. But for about an hour Wednesday night, seated on a stage at a university in Florida, Hillary Rodham Clinton offered some of her world view and a glimpse of what might constitute a 2016 run for president.

She encouraged her young, and supportive, audience to engage in the campaign process, to press their would-be leaders for specificity and to avoid the slough of political cynicism. No one can or should sit on the sidelines, Clinton said.

She defended the role of government as a force for the common good, opened no daylight between herself and President Obama, the erstwhile rival she served as secretary of state, and staked a few very broad policy positions.

But pressed by a question from the audience, she revealed nothing about her intentions regarding the next presidential race. The TBD in her Twitter biography would have to remain just that, she joked, saying she had run out of the characters allotted by the micro-blogging service.

The stop at the University of Miami in Coral Gables was part of an active schedule of public and private appearances Clinton has maintained since leaving the Obama administration a year ago. Earlier Wednesday, she spoke behind closed doors to a healthcare group in Orlando where, according to a CNN reporter in attendance, she endorsed corrective though unspecified changes to Obamas signature healthcare law.

I think we are on the right track in many respects but I would be the first to say if thing arent working then we need people of good faith to come together and make evidence-based changes, Clinton said.

In Coral Gables, she opened her remarks by praising Republican Gov. Gov. Jan Brewer for vetoing Arizona legislation that would have allowed businesses to refuse service to gays and lesbians. Brewer recognized, Clinton said, that inclusive leadership is really what the 21st century is all about.

Led by the gentle questioning of moderator Donna Shalala, the university president and a member of her husbands presidential cabinet, Clinton focused more on foreign affairs Wednesday night. Presidential campaigns are rarely decided by matters of global policy but Clintons role as the nations chief diplomat means a greater portion of her presidential campaign, should she run, may focus on her time on the world stage.

She took a veiled swipe at former President George W. Bush and his administration, mentioning the war in Iraqwhich she backed as a U.S. senatorand alluding to the controversial treatment of prisoners in the global war on terrorism. Lapses from our values and legal principles helped undermine Americas image aboard, Clinton said, and Obama has done a lot in the last five years to try to move away from that.

She called for more U.S. engagement in the Americas, criticizing the leadership of Venezuela, and, choosing her words carefully, expressed disappointment with efforts to rid Syria of its chemical weapons. A lot more international pressure is going to be brought on the Assad regime to finish the job, Clinton said.

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In Florida stop, hints of a 2016 Hillary Clinton campaign