With U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., surging in national and state polls and now buzz growing that Vice President Joe Biden could enter the race, former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton tried to get back on track as she launched new ads in Iowa and New Hampshire.
Clinton’s team released the new TV spots late Sunday night, which focus on her biography. (See video below.) The ads are scheduled to run for five weeks in Iowa, home of the first caucus, and in New Hampshire, which hosts the first primary.
“We’re going to make sure everyone knows who Hillary Clinton really is –- who she fights for and what has motivated her lifelong commitment to children and families,” said Robby Mook, Clinton’s campaign manager.
Mook insisted the campaign had been ready for a competitive fight for the Democratic nomination even as Biden had been on the sidelines for months and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., decided not to run.
“Since day one, we’ve planned for a competitive primary with Hillary herself working to earn every vote and, ultimately, the nomination,” Mook said late on Sunday. “This is the natural next step.”
Over the weekend, the New York Times reported Biden, who ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1988 and 2008, was meeting with family and associates talking about another try for the White House.
Adding fuel to the fire, news emerged on Monday that Josh Alcorn, who had been a close aide to former Delaware Attorney General Beau Biden, the vice president’s son who died earlier this year, joined a super PAC looking to draft the vice president into the presidential race.
Clinton leads the polls with Biden generally close to Sanders in forming a second tier for the Democrats. The other candidates running for the Democratic nomination -- former U.S. Sen. and Gov. Lincoln Chafee, D-R.I., former Gov. Martin O’Malley, D-Md., and former U.S. Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., are lagging behind in the third tier.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
