Full Name: Hillary Rodham Clinton

Current Office: U.S. Senator, New York. Elected Nov 7, 2000. First Term

Born: Chicago, Illinois, on October 26, 1947.

Education: Wellesley College (1969), Yale Law School (1973)

Religion: Methodist

Family: Married to former President William Jefferson Clinton. They have one daughter, Chelsea (born in 1980)

Significant Career Experience:

Member of the Rose Law Firm, Little Rock Arkansas, 1976-1992
Chaired the Arkansas Educational Standards Committee, co-founded the Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families, and served on the boards of the Arkansas Children's Hospital, Legal Services, and the Children's Defense Fund.
First Lady of Arkansas, various terms.
First Lady of the United States, 1993-2001.

Author:

It Takes a Village and Other Lessons Children Teach Us (1996)

Living History (2003)

Presidential Prospects

Love her or hate her (and most American voters are not indifferent), Hillary Clinton has leapt out as the Democratic frontrunner for 2008 by virtue of her celebrity status, her fundraising prowess and her political platform as a prominent member of the U.S. Senate.

In her first five and a half years in the Senate, Clinton has taken pains to position herself as a Democrat who is progressive on social issues, but a strong supporter of national security. Her vote for authorization for the War in Iraq cuts both ways with Democratic Primary voters—some see this as a wise choice to guard her liberal flank; but many party activists are upset with this stance as the American occupation of Iraq continues to deteriorate. Clinton has veered back by criticizing the Administration for not providing sufficient body armor for troops. She has been a forceful advocate of reconstruction funds for New York City in the wake of the 911 terrorist attacks.

No other candidate in the 2008 Presidential field has the benefit of running two successful campaigns for the White House—and no political observer denies that Hillary was not intimately involved with every major move in Bill Clinton’s White House campaigns. Counting her hard fought win over Republican Rick Lazio in 2000—the most expensive political race in New York history—Clinton has prevailed in three tough electoral contests.

There is no doubt that Hillary knows how to motivate the Democratic base, especially in its strongholds on the East and West Coasts of the country. She has actively spent the past five years raising money for and speaking out on behalf of Democratic candidates, a track record that will give her prominent local support in every key primary state. Her Senate War Chest—reported to exceed $20 million—will not be exhausted in her 2006 reelection contest against lackluster GOP opposition, which frees her to spend these funds on efforts that benefit her candidacy, including direct contributions to Democratic candidates across the country.

Hillary’s Achilles heal, of course, is Hillary. Long the target of pundits across the political spectrum, she has been cast as everything from “Queen of the Liberals,” to “The Shadow President” to “Anti-Mom.” While much of this criticism amounts to gross distortion or her record and her role in the Clinton White House, Hillary’s challenge is to overcome these past associations and appeal to voters in her own right as an authentic human being who should be considered on her own merits. Despite the huge war chest, this may prove to be a monumental task.

What do you think?