Hillary Clinton: Dems’ focus on future threats put them at disadvantage in tough midterm climate

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Thursday that Democratic candidates are struggling in the midterm campaign because they are warning about future threats while being hammered by the GOP over things like the economy and crime that are more salient to voters.

Speaking to CNN, Mrs. Clinton said she thinks Republicans don’t have a true plan to deal with inflation or public safety worries, though they’ve managed to stir up voters.

“It’s difficult to tell people what’s going to happen in the future when understandably they’re focused on the present,” Mrs. Clinton said. “It’s more challenging to say, ’Hey, look they’re going to go after Social Security and Medicare.’”

Forecasters say the GOP is on track to retake the House and could tip the evenly divided Senate in their favor.

Voters consistently cite the economy and inflation as their top concern, putting Democrats on the back foot because they are the party in charge of Washington.

Democratic contenders, meanwhile, say abortion access is under threat in the states and they believe Republicans will undermine entitlement programs for seniors if they take charge.

“Those are real threats,” Mrs. Clinton said. “But it is more challenging to get that focus on the future.”

Mrs. Clinton said the GOP isn’t truly concerned about crime, pointing to those who joked about a recent attack on Paul Pelosi, the husband of the House speaker, and that crime rates are just as high in some red areas despite high-profile complaints about liberal cities.

“They’re not concerned about voter safety, they just want to keep voters scared,” Mrs. Clinton said. “That’s really regrettable.”

Mrs. Clinton also bemoaned the fact President Biden and the Democrats haven’t been able to communicate their accomplishments to voters.

“There has been an enormous amount of commitment of new building, new infrastructure, new investments in manufacturing,” Mrs. Clinton said, also pointing to efforts to rein in prescription and insulin costs. “We’ve got to get that message across more effectively.”

Mrs. Clinton, a former first lady and senator from New York, is rallying in the Empire State with Vice President Kamala Harris and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat trying to fend off Republican Rep. Lee Zeldin in her reelection battle.

Mrs. Clinton acknowledged the closer-than-expected nature of the governor’s race but said midterms are always difficult for the party that controls the White House.

“Our job is to convince our voters to turn out, if they turn out there is no doubt we will win,” Mrs. Clinton said.

The former secretary acknowledged that some candidates will not align themselves with Mr. Biden at all, including Rep. Tim Ryan in the Senate race in Ohio and Katie Hobbs in the Arizona governor’s race.

Ms. Hobbs “understands what the people in Arizona want to hear,” Mrs. Clinton said, adding that Mr. Ryan “has run an exceptional race in Ohio. He is a real native Ohioan.”