TIME: Clinton Urging Hillary to Run

Sept. 22, 2003

TIME magazine reports this week that Bill Clinton is urging his wife to reconsider plans not to run for president in 2004.

The magazine quotes two sources close to the Clintons as saying that Bill is begging his wife to change her mind.

An adviser to Hillary told TIME that Hillary has no plans to run and that she “just wants one of [Democratic hopefuls] to emerge, and just wants one of them to beat Bush."

But Bill has other ideas.

“It appears that Hillary's husband knows which Democrat he wants to emerge: the junior Senator from New York,” the magazine reports.

“Two sources close to the Clintons have told TIME that the former President has been urging his wife in private to reconsider her pledge not to run for President in 2004 and pondering the most feasible way for her to back out of it.”

But that should not be too much of a problem. Clinton has already said that he believes New Yorkers will be happy if she runs and relieve her of any commitment to remain in the Senate.

As for Hillary pledge not to run, recent history shows she can be flexible about her plans and promises.

As Carl Limbacher notes in his best-selling book “Hillary’s Scheme: Inside the Next Clinton's Ruthless Agenda to Take the White House,” Hillary vowed in 1997 that she would never run for office. She changed her mind in 2000 when she ran for the Senate.

Her husband has made similar promises. In 1990 he ran for governor of Arkansas promising he would not run for President during his term as governor.

The revelation that Bill Clinton is urging his wife to run seems to conflict with his recent encouragement to Wesley Clark that he enter the race. Key Clinton aides have joined the Clark campaign.

But the decision may not be so conflicted, as Clark may turn out to be a well-suited running mate for Hillary. Likewise, if chances look good for Clark, Hillary could always parachute in as his Vice Presidential nominee.

Recently, Bill Clinton described Hillary and Clark as the "two stars" of the Democratic Party.

http://www.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/9/21/141428.shtml