RNC chief: Clinton bid could help GOP

Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said Tuesday it could be a boon for the GOP if Hillary Clinton ran for president in 2016 due to all the “scandal” that surrounds her. 

The GOP’s campaign chief called Clinton a “very political person who makes decisions based on how the wind blows.” 

{mosads}“I’m not sure,” Priebus told CNN when asked if Clinton would be the Democratic nominee in 2016. “But with all of the scandal around her, I’m not so sure it would be all that bad for the Republican Party, to tell you the truth.” 

The RNC head was reacting to excerpts from a new book by former Defense Secretary Robert Gates, which alleged Clinton admitted that she opposed the 2007 Iraq troop surge because she would be facing then-Sen. Barack Obama in the Iowa Caucus in the 2008 election. 

Priebus rattled of a list of other issues that he said could be a liability to Clinton if she runs for president again, including the Benghazi, Libya, attack that happened while she was secretary of State, her affiliation with President Obama and her failed attempt to enact universal healthcare as first lady.

Priebus reiterated that the RNC is focusing on building a ground game ahead of the midterm elections. But he hinted last month that his opposition research shop is already targeting Clinton and plans to put a broader emphasis on potential presidential candidates in the future. 

“I don’t know who is going to be their nominee. … But what I do know is you have a political person who made political decisions her entire life, and if she does decide to run, she is going to answer for every one of them,” he said. 

The rapid response arm of the Democratic super-PAC American Bridge said Priebus was attempting to recycle debunked scandals from Clinton’s career. 

“Priebus is reaching for decades-old and already debunked myths to distract from the GOP’s real record of scandal,” said the group “Correct the Record,” citing the government shutdown in October and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s (R) recent scandal over a bridge closure. 

Clinton is the early favorite for the Democratic nomination. She has said she will make a decision on a run sometime this year. 

—This post was updated Jan. 8 at 2 p.m.