Liberal Democrats of a more progressive mind say former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton isn’t really their candidate for the White House in 2016 — but she very well could be, given the recent shifts in national policy and demographics that include an embrace of gay marriage and the growth of the Hispanic population.
With just a bit more lean to the left, Mrs. Clinton would be ideal — and some say they feel the time has come when she will listen to their progressive agenda and abandon any notion of moderate governance, The Hill reported. Of distaste to progressives: Mrs. Clinton supported the Iraq War and she ran for the White House once before to the right of President Bill Clinton.
“If Hillary Clinton embraces the rising economic populist tide in America, there will be little political space for a credible primary challenger,” said Laura Friedenbach of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, in The Hill. “But if she sides with big corporations against everyday people, there will be a huge amount of political space for some insurgent to run on an economic populist platform.”
Progressives are feeling as if their time has come in the country.
“Every candidate who thinks about running will be faced with a whole set of questions, on holding Wall Street accountable, on combatting student debt, on expanding social security,” Illya Sheyman, of MoveOn.org, told The Hill. “Whether it’s Secretary Clinton or Sen. Warren or others, all of them are going to have to address the issues that progressives really care about.”
Not all see a progressive wave on the horizon, though.
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“They argue for redistribution of wealth. Well, there are two major ways to do that — by massive tax increases or by more social programs,” said Republican consultant Ed Rollins, in The Hill. “That’s a very tough sell, politically. There are constituencies within the Democratic Party that have benefitted from those things, but I don’t think they are issues that are going to win them elections.”
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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