Did Hillary Clinton say anything important in Iowa?
| Washington
Hillary Rodham Clinton did not announce that she鈥檚 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 she鈥檒l forget herself and let something slip out if they keep up the badgering.
But Clinton talked like a candidate. And by that we鈥檙e not just referring to her coy 鈥淗ello Iowa, I鈥檓 baaaack!鈥� 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 鈥� the kind of thing she鈥檒l 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. (Didn鈥檛 another presidential candidate named Clinton once have a sign on their war room wall, 鈥淚t鈥檚 the economy, stupid鈥�?)
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.
鈥淭oday, 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 it鈥檚 supposed to be in America,鈥� said Hillary Clinton at the Steak Fry podium, standing in front of .
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.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 who we鈥檝e always been and that is what our country must be again. So that鈥檚 what this election is really about,鈥� said the former secretary of State.
No, she wasn鈥檛 referring to 2016 there. Don鈥檛 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.
Clinton鈥檚 words got a polite reception from the crowd. Her biggest applause lines were those which dealt with women鈥檚 rights, according to CNN鈥檚 Peter Hamby. That鈥檚 something of a change 鈥� in her, not the audience. During her 2008 run, Clinton generally shied away from 鈥渇ocusing on her gender and the history-making nature of her candidacy,鈥� .
It was hubby Bill who got the warmest reception, though. He spoke after her (protocol 鈥� he鈥檚 actually been president, remember) and as , the 鈥淏ill Clinton Show was very much in town.鈥�
Bill veered all over the rhetorical map, leaping from excitement at his impending grandchild, to the Arkansas Senate race, to the career of retiring Steak Fry host Sen. Tim Harkin, to the Koch Brothers and the problem of big money in politics.
That could be a problem for Hillary going forward, as her style is inevitably compared to that of her husband. When the couple worked the crowd at the rope line, it was a reminder 鈥渉ow much the former president enjoys the art of politicking more than his wife does,鈥� writes Ms. Haberman.
That鈥檚 a comparison the nascent Hillary campaign can鈥檛 be too happy about.
