Hillary: I’ll Be Better President Than Bill Was

December 8, 2007

Hillary Clinton said she thinks her own presidency could be better than her husband's.

"In some ways, I think Clinton 2 will be better than Clinton 1 because of what I've learned and absorbed over the last years," the Democratic presidential candidate told Des Moines Register editors and reporters Friday afternoon.

Clinton's mother, Dorothy Rodham, 88, joined her on the campaign trail Friday night and is scheduled to be with her today in Winterset, Williamsburg and Washington.

Clinton said her husband's presidency won't give her an advantage with voters.

"The fact my husband was president is a plus and a minus," she said. "Some people will vote for me and some people won't. It's just like anything else, whether it's something serious, like my position on health care, or something frivolous, like my hairstyle. People can vote for or against you on any basis whatsoever."

Clinton deflected the issue that frequently confronts her, that she is viewed negatively by a large percentage of people. She said her time as first lady gave her insight and an idea of the demands of the job none of her opponents have.

"I think that having the unique experience on both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue, particularly in this polarized time that we live in, because it's obviously not just me," she said, answering the question of how she would work to attract Republican support in Congress, if elected. "I'm just someone who kind of gets labeled that. But our politics has become very fraught and very contentious."

Asked whether she is favor of lifting the cap on the percentage of income subject to Social Security payroll taxes, Clinton laughed loudly and said, "You know, this has been such a phony issue."

In an apparent jab at Democrat Barack Obama, Clinton added: "I believe it is an equally big mistake for Democrats to be throwing out all these ideas when there's not a ghost of a chance that any president who is a Democrat can get the changes that we need to meet the long-term challenges of Social Security in the absence of a bipartisan agreement.

"To do so is like writing ads for the Republicans in the general election. 'Oh, here they come again, a trillion-dollar tax increase. Hold onto your hats.' "

The government collects money from people's paychecks on earnings up to $97,500 a year for Social Security retirement benefits. Obama has said raising that cap could bring in more money to prevent benefit cuts for future retirees.

Clinton and her mother visited Des Moines East High School on Friday for a how-to-caucus session. The event doubled as a campaign rally.

Clinton vowed to become "a president who wakes up every day thinking about what goes on in America," and she vowed to "appoint qualified people again" to governmental posts.

The half-hour event ended with people swarming around Clinton, forming a crowd so thick that they blocked the exit.

Source: Des Moines Register

Posted by Hillary · Filed Under Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton, Hillary Clinton in the News, News, Top Story

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