Hillary Clinton 'not in any hurry' to make decision on 2016
FILE - In this Oct. 18, 2011, file photo, then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton works from a desk inside a C-17 military plane upon her departure from Malta, in the Mediterranean Sea, bound for Tripoli, Libya. Clinton has joined Twitter, describing herself as a "pantsuit aficionado" and a "hair icon." The potential 2016 presidential candidate's profile page shows the infamous photo of the stern-looking Clinton wearing dark sunglasses and reading her Blackberry. (AP Photo / Kevin Lamarque, Pool, File)
With the 2016 election a little more than three years away, Hillary Clinton says she won't rush into a decision whether to make a second go for the White House.
“I’m not in any hurry," Clinton said in an interview with New York magazine — her first since stepping down as secretary of state. "I think it’s a serious decision, not to be made lightly, but it’s also not one that has to be made soon."
Clinton said the seemingly endless speculation about her possible run for President is tiring, both for her and for America.
“This election is more than three years away, and I just don’t think it’s good for the country," she said. "It’s like when you meet somebody at a party and they look over your shoulder to see who else is there, and you want to talk to them about something that’s really important; in fact, maybe you came to the party to talk to that particular person, and they just want to know what’s next. I feel like that’s our political process right now. I just don’t think it is good.”
But Clinton has been keeping a keen eye on the political climate in Washington as she wrestles with the idea of another run for the White House.
"I’m both pragmatic and realistic," the former first lady and New York senator said. "I think I have a pretty good idea of the political and governmental challenges that are facing our leaders, and I’ll do whatever I can from whatever position I find myself in to advocate for the values and the policies I think are right for the country. I will just continue to weigh what the factors are that would influence me making a decision one way or the other.”
At the moment, Clinton says she's enjoying her time at home with Bill.
“We get to be at home together a lot more now than we used to in the last few years," she said. "We have a great time; we laugh at our dogs; we watch stupid movies; we take long walks; we go for a swim. You know, just ordinary, everyday pleasures.”
And her husband claims he doesn't know which way Hillary is leaning.
"I don't," Bill Clinton told CNN's Fareed Zakaria on Sunday. "Somebody may know, but I don't. I'm not one of the people who does."
Still, Bill can understand the appeal of Hillary on the top of a 2016 ticket:
She served well as secretary of state, and because people across the political spectrum finally got to see her the way those of us who know her see her. And, you know, when you're — when I was president and she, like me, was subject to a long line of relentless criticism, and she did in the Senate. And she made a lot of friends in the Senate among Republicans as well as Democrats. People in New York liked her across the political spectrum. But it was the first time the country had ever gotten to see her as somebody who just, what you see is what you get, she shows up for work every day, gets stuff done, and is very strong about it. I think that's — but these polls don't mean much now. We're a long way ahead. I think she would be the first to tell you that there is no such thing as a done deal, ever, by anybody. But I don't know what she's going to do.
Given Hillary Clinton's experence as secretary of state and in the U.S. Senate, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi thinks she would be one of the best-prepared candidates in recent memory — even more so than Bill.
"More prepared than President Obama," Pelosi said on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday. "Certainly more prepared than President Bush [and] certainly more prepared than President Clinton I might admit."
Pelosi said it was premature to say who she'd support in a possible primary showdown between Clinton and Vice President Joe Biden.
"I always have had a habit of saying, 'When you're serious about running, I'll be serious about it,'" she added. "But I think it would be magnificent for America to have a woman president. I think it would be just wonderful."
Clinton, for her part, agrees.
"We broke the great race barrier with President Obama but it's time that we also really ask ourselves deep down what it's going to take to elect a woman president," Clinton said on Thursday during during the question and answer session following a speech in Miami. "And I will certainly do what I can when that time comes to elect somebody — whoever that somebody might be."
