Hillary sat down to a comprehensive interview with TIME. Here are some excerpts:
The Democratic presidential candidate on Iowa, children's issues Republicans and faith
TIME political columnist Joe Klein sat down with Hillary Clinton on Tuesday in Hampton, N.H., to about her campaign and the state of the presidential race. To read more about their interview, see the cover story for the Feb. 18 issue of TIME. The following is an edited and condensed transcript of their conversation.
KLEIN: I was watching you in Iowa last week and you were working so hard and by the way, really well. And then I saw what happened last night and it occurred to me that it’s never easy for you in politics.
SECRETARY HILLARY CLINTON: You know what, I think that it’s always hard but there are a lot of issues and maybe even some obstacles that I’ve got to get over in order to make my case and have people listen. I felt really good as we were moving through those last couple of weeks before the caucus because it’s a very strange election, Joe. You’ve been covering them for a long time.
Hillary worked her heart out. He volunteers and supporters worked their hearts out. The canvassing was incredible. It translated in a win in Iowa. A close win, to be sure, but a win.
KLEIN: You mentioned issues and obstacles. What obstacles?
CLINTON: Well, I think that there are lots of punditry and analysis about what is really driving voter interest, voter turnout in this election. And the grand statement, the insult, the scapegoating, the anger — all of that has constituencies, and I’m somebody who likes to make progress, get things done, get real results in people’s lives.
A lot of hot air being dispensed at anger at this or that, government, the “establishment” to be opposed (which includes Planned Parenthood, Human Rights Campaign and NARAL), when it is really all about getting things for the middle class accomplished.
KLEIN: I love the ad of you and your lifetime support for children’s issues and seeing you with those pictures going all the way back. If you were to talk to that young woman in that photograph about what you know now and what the difference is, what would you say to her?
CLINTON: I’d say don’t ever lose your idealism. Stay true to your values about what you think needs to happen in our country to give more people, particularly kids, the chance to live up to their God-given potential. Keep working toward that, but also don’t just hang on to the idealism at the expense of actually producing results that will improve people’s lives….You could stay outside the political process and be an advocate and set the goals, and there’s a really worthy role for that and an American historical experience that supports that.
In other words here, don’t make purity the enemy of the good. Don’t stick to rigid purity at the expense of real improvement in people’s lives.
KLEIN: And how would you tell her — what argument would you make for her to vote for you now as opposed to Bernie?
CLINTON: I’d say look at what a candidate has actually accomplished. There’s a role for rhetoric, there’s a role for political ideology. But the best way you can tell what a President can and will do is by looking at what that person brings to his or her candidacy…I know what it’s like to be knocked down and how you dust yourself off and you get back up and you keep fighting for what you believe in. But you do it within the process so that you can actually try to get results for people, so that you can point to our political system working. And I think that that’s what we need more of right now; not less.
Rhetoric is no substitute for actual governing. We need to work within the political system to show that it is working instead of tearing it all down, proclaiming everybody corrupt, part of the whatever-garchy and terrible “establishment”.
There is more meat to this interview, both here in the compressed version and in the full version to be released on the 18th. I encourage readers to click on the link provided to read it all (Don’t want to run afoul any fair usage rules).