Activists trying to recruit Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Massachusetts Democrat, to run for president in 2016 are scheduled to kick off an organizational effort in the early presidential primary state of New Hampshire on Saturday.
The event in Manchester will involve members of the liberal groups Democracy for America and MoveOn.org, who have banded together in an effort to get Ms. Warren into the race. A similar one was held in the early presidential state of Iowa last month.
The groups announced last week that more than 200,000 people have signed onto a petition asking Ms. Warren to run. The first-term senator has repeatedly resisted such pleas and has said she is not running for president. Polls show former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton as the clear front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016, should Mrs. Clinton choose to run.
Asked in a newly published interview with Fortune Magazine if she is “going to” run for president, Ms. Warren said “no.”
In a joint statement, the groups said the position isn’t a new one for her and that if she were running there would be no need for a “draft” effort.”
Polls show former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton as the clear front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016, should Mrs. Clinton choose to run.
SEE ALSO: Antonio Weiss withdraws from Treasury post consideration amid liberal backlash
Regardless, Ms. Warren’s influence is being felt in Washington. After Democrats’ disastrous performance in the 2014 midterms, she was tapped to serve in a leadership position for Senate Democrats, and amid pressure from Mrs. Warren and other progressives, the White House recently announced that President Obama’s pick to serve in a top Treasury post has withdrawn his nomination.
Antonio Weiss, Mr. Obama’s pick to serve as undersecretary for domestic finance, told the White House over the weekend he was withdrawing his name from consideration, citing the distraction his Senate confirmation hearing would cause.
Mr. Weiss, who had been criticized by Ms. Warren and others for his ties to Wall Street, will instead serve as counselor to Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, a position that does not need confirmation from the Senate.
• David Sherfinski can be reached at dsherfinski@washingtontimes.com.
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