Did Hillary Clinton say anything important in Iowa?
Washington Hillary Rodham Clinton did not announce that shes running for president during her big Sunday appearance at the Harkin Steak Fry in Iowa. Nobody really expected she would, though reporters keep asking about her intention. Maybe they just hope shell forget herself and let something slip out if they keep up the badgering.
But Clinton talked like a candidate. And by that were not just referring to her coy Hello Iowa, Im baaaack! at the start of her speech to the crowd. Her address focused a lot on economic issues, specially pitched to try and appeal to middle class voters. It sounded like the first draft of a stump speech the kind of thing shell repeat over and over in the months to come, with some tailoring of the edges for her particular audience.
Her theme? Surprise, surprise, it appears to be economic problems as experienced by the middle class. (Didnt another presidential candidate named Clinton once have a sign on their war room wall, Its the economy, stupid?)
In this Clinton appears to be fulfilling the prediction made by conservative talk show host Glenn Beck, who earlier this month said she will campaign on nostalgia for the prosperous years when Bill Clinton ran the country.
Today, you know so well, American families are working harder than ever, but maintaining a middle-class life feels like pushing a boulder uphill every single day. That is not how its supposed to be in America, said Hillary Clinton at the Steak Fry podium, standing in front of a backdrop of a tractor and bales of hay.
Then she looped this idea back into the American Dream, saying that in the US in the past each generation has done a little better than the one before.
Thats who weve always been and that is what our country must be again. So thats what this election is really about, said the former secretary of State.
No, she wasnt referring to 2016 there. Dont get ahead of yourself. She was talking about the upcoming midterms, in which the razor-close Iowa Senate race between Democratic Rep. Bruce Braley and GOP nominee Jodi Ernst could determine control of the chamber.
Clintons words got a polite reception from the crowd. Her biggest applause lines were those which dealt with womens rights, according to CNNs Peter Hamby. Thats something of a change in her, not the audience. During her 2008 run, Clinton generally shied away from focusing on her gender and the history-making nature of her candidacy, writes Mr. Hamby.
It was hubby Bill who got the warmest reception, though. He spoke after her (protocol hes actually been president, remember) and as Politicos Maggie Haberman noted, the Bill Clinton Show was very much in town.