Waiting on Hillary

The following is my latest column in The Jewish Link of Bergen County, which is an open letter to Hillary Clinton as she contemplates a run for the White House:

WAITING ON HILLARY

By: N. Aaron Troodler, Esq.

An open letter to Hillary Clinton

Dear Hillary,

You must have the weight of the world on your shoulders. All eyes are upon you at all times, and political reporters, pundits, and the public hang on your every word. The incredible scrutiny that you now endure undoubtedly rivals the spotlight that was shined upon you when you were the First Lady of the United States. The intense analysis that ensues anytime you make a statement is comparable to the attention that you garnered when you served as Secretary of State or as a member of the United States Senate. You are bearing what appears to be a crushing burden.

In the scheme of things, it is not the least bit surprising. In my estimation, the chaos will continue for quite some time. The question is, for how long. And that is up to you.

The question on everyone’s mind is will she, or won’t she? Will she take the plunge and jump into the 2016 presidential race? Or, will she take a pass and forego the presidential sweepstakes?

On your end, you have been extremely coy about your intentions thus far. At times, you act like a person who is methodically laying the groundwork for a White House run. Yet, at other times, you display an apparent indifference to the entire process.

Yes, you are only one individual. But you are just any person – you are Hillary Clinton. And for that sole reason, your plans vis-a-vis this race are the only thing that matters to people.

Other potential Democratic presidential candidates are hanging back before they openly declare their intentions pending your decision. If you decide to run, you instantly become the frontrunner. If you choose not to run, the field suddenly becomes wide open for all of the other Democratic presidential hopefuls.

You are obviously closely monitoring the early 2016 polls, which show you with a commanding lead over your potential competitors. You must know that a recent CNN poll found that 53% of registered Democratic voters in Iowa would cast their vote for you in 2016. To put that in perspective, Vice President Joe Biden was a very distant second with 15% and Senator Elizabeth Warren registered just 7%.

Speaking of Iowa, you just made a high-profile return to the state that holds the first presidential caucus of the presidential season. The last time you were there, which was during the 2008 presidential campaign, you suffered a stinging defeat to the man who would ultimately go on to become the next President of the United States.

But that was ancient history. Your triumphant return to Iowa several weeks ago for Senator Tom Harkin’s famous steak fry fundraiser furthered the speculation about your presidential intentions. After telling the crowd, “I’m back!” you wowed them with your charisma and your command of the issues. You even acknowledged to the crowd that you are “thinking about” running for president.

Fresh off of your big appearance in Iowa, we discovered that you are heading up to New Hampshire, another critical state in the 2016 presidential contest, to be the featured guest at a fundraiser for State Senator Lou D’Allesandro, a prominent and influential New Hampshire Democrat.

These visits come in the wake of a successful summer book tour, where you toured the country and met with adoring fans at countless book signing events.

Ready for Hillary, a political action committee that was created in anticipation of your potential run for president, has established a grass-roots network in several key states and mobilized an army of Democratic operatives and field workers to bolster your candidacy, should you choose to run.

Aside from your impressive lead over your fellow Democrats who are contemplating presidential runs, you also appear to be well positioned to beat any of the Republicans whose names are being bantered about. At this juncture, it appears that Senators Rand Paul, Marco Rubio, and Ted Cruz, Rep. Paul Ryan, former Governors Mike Huckabee and Jeb Bush, and Governors Chris Christie, Bobby Jindal, and Scott Walker would all have an uphill battle against you in the 2016 general election.

Hillary, you are in a good place. Momentum is on your side and the ball is in your court. So what are you waiting for? You have said that you won’t decide until early next year whether or not to run. Why keep us in suspense?

We learned earlier this week that you became a grandmother for the first time. Don’t you want to ensure that your granddaughter will grow up in a time when we have our first female president? Can’t you just imagine how much fun it would be to have to child-proof the White House for baby Charlotte? If you decide to run and ultimately emerge victorious, you will have the distinct pleasure of having taught your granddaughter (and millions of other American women) the valuable age-old lesson that anything is possible in life.

Let’s cut to the chase. After decades of being front and center on the world stage, it is hard to let go and cede the limelight to someone else. I certainly get it, and I don’t blame you for trying to hold on as long as you can while being noncommittal at the same time. However, in my estimation, you appear to have the “itch.” You may be taking your time deliberating on what is undoubtedly a monumental decision for you and your family, but I believe that deep down you have another run in you.

So, instead of playing the obligatory “wait and see game” that appears to be an integral part of the conventional political playbook, I would love to see you throw caution to the wind and just go for it. Don’t delay the inevitable any longer. Announce that you’re running for president and then you can finally get down to business. America is waiting. It’s time to find out if America is ready for Hillary.

N. Aaron Troodler is an attorney and principal of Paul Revere Public Relations, a public relations and political consulting firm. Visit him on the Web at TroodlersTake.blogspot.com, www.PaulReverePR.com, or www.JewishWorldPR.com. You can also follow him on Twitter: @troodler