Hillary: "New Political Icon"
Clinton's European Triumph
July 8, 2003
By Toby Westerman
Copyright 2003 International News Analysis Today
www.inatoday.com
An admiring overseas media is greeting with skepticism Hillary Clinton's declaration that she will not be a presidential candidate, as the Democratic New York Senator concluded her ten-day day tour of Europe promoting her book, "Living History."
While in Europe, Clinton attacked U.S. President George Bush, his policies, and called into question the validity of his election.
Clinton flatly denied that her book is a "path to the presidency of the United States," asserting, "that is not the reason I wrote the book," according to a report in the German news daily, Der Spiegel.
"That is not necessarily the last … word," added Der Spiegel, expressing a widely held belief that Clinton will make a bid for the U.S. presidency.
In Germany, Clinton's book is second in popularity only to "Stupid White Men,"
Michael Moore's assault on Bush and conservatives.
Hillary will be the "new political icon," according to Der Spiegel, which gave Clinton a glowing review of her interview on the German television talk show, "Sabine Christiansen."
Clinton's statements were "cautious" and "circumspect" during the talk show, which included appearances by several important German political and business leaders, Der Spiegel said.
Earlier, Clinton was the featured guest on the British Broadcasting Corporation's television program, "Breakfast with David Frost."
In response to Frost's respectful questions, Clinton stated that she stands for the "same policies" as her husband, former U.S. President Bill Clinton.
Senator Clinton characterized her husband's proposal for socialized medicine, a generally rejected attempt at social engineering, as "too much, too fast."
She described her husband's period in office as "extraordinarily positive," reflecting that Bill Clinton wore the duties of the presidency "lightly and with humility."
While expressing unlimited support for her husband's policies, Clinton clearly was less than certain about the future of their marriage.
Although Clinton disclosed that she hoped her union with Bill was "forever," she added thoughtfully, "one never knows."
When Frost asked her about the 2000 presidential election, Clinton sidestepped accusations of Bush illegally assuming office, but she added that Bush did "prevent" Democrat Al Gore from "being inaugurated."
During the Frost interview, Clinton criticized what she referred to as Bush's "unipolar" view of international relations, using a term often employed by Moscow, Beijing and Havana in their condemnations of U.S. foreign policy.
Clinton stated that she gives her support to a "multipolar" foreign policy, a term Russia, Communist China, and Cuba have used for at least six years to describe their vision of a "new world order," with the United States subsumed to the United Nations.
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