Iowans get acquainted with Clinton (from Omaha World Herald)

http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_pg=1673&u_sid=2321164

Published Sunday
January 28, 2007

Iowans get acquainted with Clinton

BY ELIZABETH AHLIN

WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

DES MOINES - When U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton took the stage Saturday in front of hundreds of Iowans, there was no need for introductions. But she made sure everyone knew why she was there.

"I'm running for president, and I'm in it to win it," the Democrat told an estimated 1,500 at East High School.

Clinton was greeted by an enthusiastic and supportive crowd during her first visit to Iowa since 2003. Cheers and applause interrupted her comments on national security, universal health care, early childhood education and alternative energy, among other subjects.

She emphasized her Midwestern background as a native Chicagoan and life in rural areas of New York, the state she represents in the Senate.

Clinton was asked by a member of the audience how she would do as a woman in a field of male candidates.

"There will probably be more stories about my clothes and hair than some of the people running against me," she said, prompting laughter from the crowd.

Indeed, her appearance prompted a man in the crowd to say "I think you look very nice" after asking her a question about Iraq.

Clinton acknowledged that being a woman running for president will command attention that male candidates do not receive, but she asked that Iowa caucusgoers evaluate her as a potential president.


An estimated 1,500 people turned out Saturday at East High School in Des Moines to see Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

An audience member shouted, "You go, girl!" in response. Clinton answered, "You go with me."

Clinton did not make overt references to her competitors, though she appeared to contrast herself with U.S. Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., who is expected to announce his candidacy in early February. Some have questioned whether Obama, in his first Senate term, has the experience to run the country.

"I have a lifetime of experience, as well as all the work I've done, that makes me particularly well-prepared to take office in January 2009," Clinton said.

According to recent polls, former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina is leading the Democratic race in Iowa, with Clinton, Obama and former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack trailing. Obama visited Iowa three times last year. Edwards and Vilsack have made numerous campaign appearances in the state.

The caucuses are scheduled to be held next January.

As a politician who is also a celebrity, the former first lady faces a challenge in Iowa where, historically, presidential campaigns have been an intimate process conducted in living rooms and at main street cafes.

"She doesn't need to establish name recognition, but what she does need to establish is a personal rapport with voters," said Dianne Bystrom, director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University.

Banners hanging in the auditorium read, "Let the conversation begin!"

Clinton kept the question-and-answer period conversational and relaxed. But she also avoided some controversial topics.

One man said he was concerned about escalating troop levels in Iraq. He asked Clinton if she thought more troops would be sent. Clinton responded by vowing to better fund health care for veterans.

But at an early morning meeting with the Iowa Democratic Party's central committee, Clinton said she opposed Bush's call for more troops in Iraq. She said she regretted her 2002 vote to authorize the use of military force in Iraq.

Robert Dodder of Council Bluffs gave Clinton a letter asking her to come to western Iowa.

Dodder said Clinton has more baggage than other candidates, largely due to her high-profile role as the wife of former President Clinton.

She needs to meet with a wide range of Iowans to win the state. "I think when people hear her they're going to think well of her and speak well of her," he said. "People need to get to know her."

Joyce Schulte of Creston, a two-time Democratic candidate for Congress, said Clinton has "a sense of real connectedness to people. People are more than a bill number to her."

Dodder and Schulte said they are reserving judgment on the Democrats seeking the presidency, citing the importance of choosing the best candidate.

Is this something new? Has she said before that she regretted it?

she's never said that she regretted her vote, but that she does regret the way President Bush used the authority given to him in the vote. I'd be pleased but surprised if she finally admitted that she does regret her vote - but the article only paraphrases her, it doesn't quote her directly, so who knows what she said?

fund health care for veterans.

Hillary, the practiced politician, evades answering the question.

People aren't stupid, Hillary. Start being honest.