Clinton: ‘Bush is a very hard person to deal with’

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) said yesterday that there are risks in sending bills to President Bush that cut off troop funding in Iraq and that passing such bills may not be possible.

Clinton, taking questions following a speech to the National Jewish Democratic Council, was asked by former Rep. Martin Frost (D-Texas) what “the chances are” Congress will be able to send such bills to Bush, get them signed or override an expected veto.

{mosads}“I think it will be extremely challenging if at all possible,” Clinton said.

Clinton put the blame on Bush, criticizing the president for not being willing to work with Democrats on tactics for getting out of Iraq.

“You know as well as I do how difficult it will be,” Clinton said. “[Bush] is a very hard person to deal with on these issues.”
Clinton also cautioned that Democrats “don’t want to be blamed” for cutting off funding for troops in harm’s way, acknowledging the political risks of such a maneuver.

Clinton and New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson (D) rounded out the third day of the National Jewish Democratic Council’s first annual forum yesterday, both offering strong defenses of the U.S. alliance with Israel.

Clinton had clear loyalties in the room, receiving two introductions instead of the customary one and taking the stage saying she felt like she was at “a family reunion.”

Clinton spoke of her relationships with certain of those in the audience as well as her commitment to protecting Israel.

Clinton was also asked about what kind of role former President Clinton might play in her administration.

“There’s going to be a lot of work for him to do around the world,” Clinton said, stopping shy of recent pledges that the former president would serve as “ambassador to the world.”

Richardson devoted most of his time pleading with the crowd to look at his résumé and not his fundraising or his opponents’ “rock-star” status.

Richardson also said he wanted to see many debates, more than the six the Democratic National Committee has planned. The governor said such debates put all the candidates on a level playing field, as some “zillionaire” candidates are raising amounts of money that others can’t compete with.

“Frontrunners shouldn’t be afraid of debates,” Richardson said.

— Sam Youngman

We want our You Tube

The national party committees received a message yesterday from 75 individuals representing both ends of the political spectrum and the cream of the Internet crop: Put the 2008 debate footage in the public domain.

Few issues are able to unite the likes of conservative bomb-thrower Michelle Malkin and Campaign for America’s Future Co-Director Roger Hickey, but both joined in on the letter to the Democratic and Republican national committee chairmen.

In past years, networks have limited rebroadcast rights for presidential debate footage, which the 75 signatories believe would shut out voters from the increasingly Web-driven electoral process.

“No concerned voter should ever be labeled a lawbreaker for wanting to share video of a presidential debate with others,” the 75 wrote, asking the two parties to help make debate footage public or licensed under an open “Creative Commons” pact.

— Elana Schor

Economic policy buiding

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) continues to expand his legislative reach as his standing in presidential polls climbs and the first Democratic primary debates approach.

Obama, whose critics have seized on his freshman status as a disqualifier for the nomination, on Friday rolled out the Senate version of House Financial Services Committee Chairman Barney Frank’s (D-Mass.) bill allowing corporate shareholders to vote on executive compensation deals.

And yesterday, as news of the housing market’s plummeting sales continued to break, Obama joined good friend and Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) to reintroduce their bill codifying the crime of mortgage fraud.

— Elana Schor

Edwards counterattacks Guiliani

Former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) lambasted former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani (R) yesterday for suggesting that the United States will be at a greater risk for another terrorist attack should Democrats win the White House in 2008.

In a release, Edwards said, “He knows better. That’s not the kind of leadership he offered in the days immediately after 9/11, and it’s not the kind of leadership any American should be offering now.”

— Bob Cusack