Ahead of a potential 2016 presidential campaign, Hillary Clinton seems most comfortable at elite universities, far away from real voters and reporters. So it’s no wonder her advisers are considering keeping her off the campaign trail for as long as possible.
National Journal recounts a recent speech she gave on women’s empowerment at the insular and cozy confines of Georgetown and compared it to her gaffe-prone appearances on the stump. Most recently, Clinton campaigned for Massachusetts gubernatorial candidate Martha Coakley and said, “don’t let anybody tell you it’s corporations and businesses that create jobs.” She somehow later blamed her gaffe on “shorthand.”
The beltway publication said that Clinton is “absolutely in her element” in cocooned and elite settings such as Georgetown, which is considered “her public safe space.”
“At Georgetown, she could be as pragmatic and professorial as she wanted,” National Journal observed. “Even at the Democratic National Committee Women’s Leadership Forum, Clinton’s performance sounded more like a paid advertisement for the Democratic Party than a speech she truly cared about.”
According to a Bloomberg report, Clinton advisers want her to announce her candidacy as late as possible because they contend that “she’s more popular when she’s not directly engaged in electoral politics, she’s better off waiting for things to settle out after what’s expected to be an ugly election night for Democrats, and she benefits from staying out of the fray while Republican hopefuls start to tear each other apart.”
In other words, Clinton becomes less likable the more she engages with people–and the press–outside of elite and comfortable settings in Georgetown where she doesn’t have to answer any hard questions.
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