As Hillary Clinton Soars, Questions Shadow Speaking Tour
Hillary Clinton has not announced whether she's running for president in 2016. But when she and the road show that inevitably follows her arrived at the University of Miami, an official declaration seemed a mere formality.
In a scene with all the makings of a campaign appearance, a line of Miami students waiting to get into Clinton's speech snaked around the university's arena hours before her arrival on Wednesday. When she arrived, it was with the heavy protection she retains as a former secretary of state and the wife of a former president, Bill Clinton.
Outside the arena, Ready for Hillary, an independent pro-Clinton group that has recruited veterans of President Barack Obama's campaigns, was signing up supporters. By the time Clinton's speech began, there were "Ready For Hillary" signs and stickers throughout the crowd of an estimated 6,000 including at least 3,200 students.
Clinton's remarks were not surprising a call for students to get involved in their communities, and support for Obama's healthcare overhaul, Arizona Governor Jan Brewer's veto of anti-gay legislation, democracy in Venezuela and the continued removal of chemical weapons from Syria.
As usual, she was coy about the prospect of a bid to become the first woman to be U.S. president. When asked about the letters "TBD" in her biography on Twitter, Clinton, 66, said with a smile, "I'll certainly ponder that."
Clinton's speech represented the public face of a lucrative nationwide speaking tour that has kept her in the spotlight as the widely presumed, albeit undeclared, front-runner for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination.
But the tour also is raising concerns among Democrats and others over a range of issues, from the political implications of Democrats rallying around Clinton so long before the 2016 election to the way her team has stage-managed what some see as a nationwide dash for cash in speaking fees.
Some Democrats are wary of criticizing Clinton publicly, but privately worry that scenes such as the one in Coral Gables could wind up hurting the party in 2016 if they portray Clinton as an entitled prospect who does not have to fight for the party's nomination. Such a sentiment is widely believed to have damaged Clinton in 2008, when she lost the party's nomination to Obama despite entering the race as the favorite.
Early polls indicate that Clinton easily would be the favorite to win the 2016 nomination if she chose to run. But in recent weeks there have been signs of frustration within the party over what some call the "inevitability" of her nomination.
Vice President Joe Biden, who has said he is considering a run for the White House, seemed to reflect the thinking of the tap-the-brakes-on-Clinton crowd this week when he told Politico that 2016 is "lifetimes away" and that he is "as qualified as anybody" to be president.
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