A woman that overcomes barriers

Lately, more and more leading US media have been talking about Hillary Clinton as a potential candidate for presidency, describing her as a woman who overcomes barriers. At the same time, it should be noted that Clinton herself has not made any statements concerning her intention for presidency. But the tendency to deliver frequent speeches on foreign policy topics indicates the fact that after her resignation (and the Secretary of State ranks fourth in importance in the US establishment) she wants to remain an influential figure on the American political scene and to keep her finger on the pulse.

Clinton, 68, has extensive political experience. And in her campaigns she has always tried to demonstrate firmness, first as the president’s wife in the fight for a seat in the US Senate, and then as a potential commander-in-chief. During the 2008 campaign, when she competed against the current President Barrack Obama, Clinton stated that she participated in the race because she thought herself to be the most prepared person for presidency.

Now, after being the chief of the US diplomacy for four years, she is promoting her own agenda as a private person, defending women, delivering speeches on the unfinished case of the women’s movement, and starting a new international project, which is aimed at helping women and children through the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation.

It is quite obvious that she counts on support of women in the 2016 election. Thus she hopes that she might finally become the first Democrat to receive the majority of white women’s votes. After the introduction of exit polls in 1972, not a single Democrat has been known to have received the majority of white women’s votes. In the recent election, Obama received only 42 percent of these, and Romney – 56 percent.

It is also in Clinton’s favor that more and more Americans seem to become prone to electing a woman as a president. “Hypothetically speaking, I really hope that I will live to see a woman becoming president,” she said this June while speaking in front of five thousand supporters in Toronto. “Our country has to make this leap of faith,” she added. And during another speech at the women’s liberal arts college in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, Clinton talked about her desire to see more women as heads of states. “Bryn Mawr means ‘a big mountain’ in Welsh,” she said. “We still have a long way to go and climb a big mountain. If it was easy, we would have already done this. That is why let us focus on this goal.”

We would like to remind our readers that in 2008, after losing the nomination race for presidency, Clinton said in her concession speech: “Although we weren’t able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it has about 18 million cracks in it and the light is shining through like never before, filling all of us with hope and confidence that this path will be easier to complete the next time.”

By the way, back in 1995, First Lady Clinton proclaimed to the whole world that she stood for women’s rights. “Human rights are women’s rights, and women’s rights are human rights,” she said during the international conference in Beijing. And as Secretary of State, Clinton made the vesting women with rights and powers her main focus. She delivered speeches on the role women could play in improving the processes of governance, economic growth, and security maintenance.

That is why it is no coincidence that her first public speech after working in the State Department, which took place at a gala conference “Vital Voices Global Partnership,” was related to the discussion about women’s unused potential. She continued with this topic in April during the conference “Women in the World.” “We are the agents of changes, we are the drivers of progress, we are the peacemakers, and all we need to do is fight for a chance,” she said. In a few months, while speaking at a conference “Clinton Global Initiative” in Chicago, she said that when women were involved in politics, it affected the whole society.

The leading American female politicians think that the country is ready for a female president. The current First Lady Michelle Obama states that the matter comes down only to choosing the best candidate. She refused to make an assumption that Clinton might be such candidate. At the same time, Mrs. Obama thinks that the first lady may compete for presidency one day, but she personally has no such intention because she lacks patience, which is essential for a politician. And the minority leader at the House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi openly declared in an interview with NBS News that “the country is ready for Hillary.”

Vice chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee Donna Brazile, who once managed Al Gore’s political campaign and is known for her close ties with the Clintons, is even more categorical. She said in one interview: “There is no doubting the fact that if Clinton decides to run for president, the first election will turn into her coronation.”

The fact that Republicans do not have an outstanding person to become a serious competitor for Clinton also increases her chances. Today, there are 16 persons on the list of possible candidates from the Republican Party. And only vice president Joe Biden might be a rival for Clinton among the Democrats. However, according to the Rasmussen survey, if primaries of the Democratic Party for the 2016 election took place today, 39 percent of respondents would support Clinton, and only 7 percent would vote for Biden. But according to the media, Biden, 72, is planning to retire. Therefore, there is no competition for Clinton among the Democrats to talk about.

Observers point out that the incumbent president or, to be more specific, his legacy, may become an obstacle on Clinton’s way to presidency. First of all, she will have to face such a problem as the drop of presidential approval ratings.

The most recent events, such as the Snowden case and the way the administration settles the Syrian conflict by accepting Putin’s help, did not add trust in president. Analysts believe that in order to separate herself from Obama’s legacy, which is becoming more and more questionable, Clinton has to systematically propose solutions to matters of economy and employment in a way that would correspond to expectations of the disappointed electorate.

Therefore, the revival of economy through clear and consistent politics that will contribute to its growth must become the central point of Clinton’s comeback.

Observers state that Clinton can win the 2016 elections, but only if she produces politics which will demonstrate that she thinks as an American, but not as a Democrat or a Republican.