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New tensions are emerging in the relationship between allies of President Obama and Hillary Clinton.

At issue is the fate of the political equivalent of gold dust the enormous email list, comprised of many millions of supporters and donors, that the Obama team has compiled over the course of his two presidential campaigns.

The Clinton camp would dearly love to get its hands on the list, but there is no promise as yet that the presidents aides will comply.

There are large concerns about the lists among Clinton supporters, one Hillary ally told The Hill.

But Team Obama has long believed that the presidents support is built upon the bedrock of his personal qualities rather than mere party identification. His people are loath to be seen as treating the passion of his supporters in a cavalier fashion.

Theres a lot of data voter data, massive email lists that Obama built and there are a lot of people who want to make sure that he spreads that wealth, the Clinton ally said. They want to make sure he doesnt take it in a suitcase back to Chicago and move on. No one wants to see it disappear or have it used just to build a library.

But a senior Democratic strategist familiar with the Obama operation noted that, among the millions of names and emails on the famous lists, there were many people whose primary loyalty was to Barack Obama rather than to the Democratic Party.

Asked about the likely fate of the data, the strategist expressed uncertainty as to how the internal discussions would shake out. The person floated the idea of a compromise under which Obama could send out emails to his own list, but then include a link to a Hillary-specific site to which his supporters could donate.

The gathering storm over the email lists is just the latest example of the complicated dynamics that underpin the Obama-Clinton relationship. It is revealing that the tensions have flared before the former first lady has even officially launched her 2016 campaign.

Obama himself might have made the first big speech of the 2016 election last week, with his State of the Union address. The president asserted that he had been vindicated by events in the face of Republican opposition, tweaked the GOP a number of times, and made appeals to key demographic groups, including women and Latinos.

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Obama, Clinton tensions build over email lists ahead of 2016