Hillary Clinton: Why You Should Vote for Me

The following op-ed appears in Monday’s issue of USA Today:

Hillary Clinton: Why you should vote for me
Hillary Clinton
USA Today
November 6, 2016

In January, America is going to have a new president. Things are going to change — that much is certain. The question is, what kind of change are we going to have?

We can build an economy that works for everyone, or stack the deck even more for those at the top.

We can keep America safe through strength and smarts — or turn our backs on our allies, and cozy up to our adversaries.

We can come together to build a stronger, fairer America, or fear the future and fear each other.

Everything I’ve done, as first lady, senator, or secretary of State, I’ve done by listening to people and looking for common ground, even with people who disagree with me. And if you elect me on Tuesday, that’s the kind of president I’ll be.

Here are four priorities for my first 100 days — issues I’ve heard about from Americans all over our country.

First, we will put forward the biggest investment in new jobs since World War II. We’ll invest in infrastructure and manufacturing to grow our economy for years to come. We’ll produce enough renewable energy to power every home in America within a decade. We’ll cut red tape for small businesses and make it easier for entrepreneurs to get the credit they need to grow and hire — because in America, if you can dream it, you should be able to build it. We’ll pay for it all by asking the wealthy, Wall Street and big corporations to finally pay their fair share. And this commitment will go far beyond the first 100 days. Creating more good jobs with rising incomes will be a central mission of my presidency.

Second, we will introduce comprehensive immigration reform legislation. The last president to sign comprehensive immigration reform was Ronald Reagan, and it was a priority for George W. Bush. I’m confident that we can work across the aisle to pass comprehensive reform that keeps families together and creates a path to citizenship, secures our border, and focuses our enforcement resources on violent criminals. This is the right thing to do, and it will also grow our economy.

Third, to break the gridlock in Washington, we need to get secret, unaccountable money out of our politics. It’s drowning out the voices of the American people. So within my first 30 days, I will introduce a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United. We should be protecting citizens’ rights to vote, not corporations’ rights to buy elections.

Fourth, we need to get started on end-to-end criminal justice reform. Too many people have been sent away for far too long for non-violent offenses. I believe our country will be stronger and safer when everyone has respect for the law and everyone is respected by the law.

There’s so much more we need to do together, and we certainly won’t get it all done in the first 100 days. But we’re going to roll up our sleeves and get to work for American families — and I’ll never, ever quit.

I want to be president for all Americans — Democrats, Republicans and independents; Americans of every race, faith and background.

My opponent has run his campaign on divisiveness, fear and insults, and spent months pitting Americans against each other. I’ve said many times that Donald Trump has shown us who he is. Now we have to decide who we are.

Because it’s not just our names on the ballot this year. Every issue we care about is on the ballot, too. This is about who we are as a country — and whether we are going to have change that makes us stronger together, or change that pushes us further apart.

It all comes down to this. I love our country. I believe in our people. And I think there’s nothing we can’t achieve if we work together and invest in each other.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

News Source: USA Today

FBI Announces it is Reopening Clinton Email Investigation

Scroll down for updates.

On Friday, FBI Director James Comey sent a letter to a Congressional Judiciary Committee explaining that the FBI had decided to reopen the case investigating Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server during her tenure as Secretary of State. The three page letter did not go into much detail which lead the Clinton campaign to respond. Campaign Chair John Podesta released a statement calling on Comey and the FBI to release more information surrounding their reasoning considering the election is less than two weeks away. The statement from Podesta is below.

“Upon completing this investigation more than three months ago, FBI Director Comey declared no reasonable prosecutor would move forward with a case like this and added that it was not even a close call. In the months since, Donald Trump and his Republican allies have been baselessly second-guessing the FBI and, in both public and private, browbeating the career officials there to revisit their conclusion in a desperate attempt to harm Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.

FBI Director Comey should immediately provide the American public more information than is contained in the letter he sent to eight Republican committee chairmen. Already, we have seen characterizations that the FBI is ‘reopening’ an investigation but Comey’s words do not match that characterization. Director Comey’s letter refers to emails that have come to light in an unrelated case, but we have no idea what those emails are and the Director himself notes they may not even be significant.

It is extraordinary that we would see something like this just 11 days out from a presidential election.

The Director owes it to the American people to immediately provide the full details of what he is now examining. We are confident this will not produce any conclusions different from the one the FBI reached in July.”

The FBI did elaborate later in the day saying that additional evidence related to the Clinton investigation was discovered on a laptop seized during the investigation of Rep. Anthony Weiner. FBI officials said that the bureau will investigate the newly discovered emails on the laptop and that it is possible that the emails could be duplicates of ones previously turned over by the Clinton camp. State Department officials said they have not been made aware of the FBI’s new evidence. More details are likely to be released in the coming weeks, but the news of a reopened investigation could affect Clinton at the polls.

Read the letter from Comey to Congress below (download the letter HERE).

View this document on Scribd

UPDATE (10/28): Following an event in Des Moines, Iowa, Hillary Clinton spoke at a press event and addressed the issues of the FBI reopening its investigation. Clinton said that the FBI needs to release additional details regarding its investigation with the election being less than two weeks away. “Voting is underway, so the American people deserve to get the full and complete facts immediately,” she said. She said that she was confident that nothing new would be found and that she did not know what new evidence the FBI might be referring to adding, “Right now, your guess is as good as mine, and I don’t think that’s good enough.” A video of Clinton’s statement is below.

UPDATE (10/29): The Washington Post obtained a copy of an internal memo sent by FBI director James Comey to FBI employees. In the letter, he briefly explains his reasoning for taking the early details of an investigation to Congress. Read the letter below:

To all:

This morning I sent a letter to Congress in connection with the Secretary Clinton email investigation.  Yesterday, the investigative team briefed me on their recommendation with respect to seeking access to emails that have recently been found in an unrelated case.  Because those emails appear to be pertinent to our investigation, I agreed that we should take appropriate steps to obtain and review them.

Of course, we don’t ordinarily tell Congress about ongoing investigations, but here I feel an obligation to do so given that I testified repeatedly in recent months that our investigation was completed. I also think it would be misleading to the American people were we not to supplement the record.  At the same time, however, given that we don’t know the significance of this newly discovered collection of emails, I don’t want to create a misleading impression.  In trying to strike that balance, in a brief letter and in the middle of an election season, there is significant risk of being misunderstood, but I wanted you to hear directly from me about it.

Jim Comey

UPDATE (10/29): Hillary for America responded to the news with several press releases and a post on Medium from campaign chair John Podesta.

UPDATE (10/30): The FBI announced that it obtained a warrant to search the emails found on a laptop belonging to former Congressman Anthony Weiner. While it is unclear how many emails on the laptop, if any, are relevant to the Hillary Clinton email investigation, an official revealed that there are over 650,000 emails on the computer. It is likely that the majority belong to the former Congressman, but his wife, Clinton aide Huma Abedin, also used the laptop. FBI officials also revealed today that several lower level investigators knew the emails existed weeks ago, but only recently brought them to the attend of Director James Comey. It is also unclear why a warrant was received after Comey briefed Congress of the investigation on Friday.

Hillary for America campaign chair John Podesta and campaign manager Robby Mook have been on the defensive since the revelations were announced. The campaign released a video about the facts of the case and calling for more details to be released considering the timing. The video released by The Briefing is below.

UPDATE (10/31): Former Attorney General Eric Holder wrote an op-ed in The Washington Post in which he called FBI director James Comey “a good man,” but said that he made a mistake by telling Congress about evidence that may have nothing to do with the Hillary Clinton email case. In the editorial, Holder says, “The department has a practice of not commenting on ongoing investigations. Indeed, except in exceptional circumstances, the department will not even acknowledge the existence of an investigation. The department also has a policy of not taking unnecessary action close in time to Election Day that might influence an election’s outcome. These rules have been followed during Republican and Democratic administrations. They aren’t designed to help any particular individual or to serve any political interest. Instead, they are intended to ensure that every investigation proceeds fairly and judiciously; to maintain the public trust in the department’s ability to do its job free of political influence; and to prevent investigations from unfairly or unintentionally casting public suspicion on public officials who have done nothing wrong.” Read the full editorial HERE.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

News Source: The Washington Post, The New York Times, ABC News, Politico, CNN, MSNBC, Medium, The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Washington Post

HFA Releases Issue Based Video Series

Earlier this week, Hillary for America released a series of issue based videos featuring African Americans talking about issues that are important to them. Topics covered include education, voting rights, criminal justice, health care, racial justice, LGBT rights, mental health, income inequality, and more. Each video is a powerful reminder about why the election is important. Watch the video series below.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

Hillary Clinton Interviewed by ESSENCE Magazine

An interview with Hillary Clinton is featured in the October issue of ESSENCE magazine. Clinton was interviewed by ESSENCE Editor-in-chief Vanessa K. De Luca, and they discussed how Clinton’s proposals would benefit black women. Clinton spoke about a number of her plans including ensuring equal pay for women, ensuring that students graduate from college debt-free, and her plans to enact criminal justice reform. Read the full interview below.

In ESSENCE Magazine’s October Issue, Secretary Hillary Clinton sat for an exclusive interview with the editor-in-chief Vanessa DeLuca to discuss her agenda for Black America.  She outlined her commitment to support women business owners, equal pay, criminal justice reform and to protect President Obama’s legacy.

ESSENCE: Thank you, Secretary Clinton, for spending time with ESSENCE. Let’s jump right in: In 2012, more than 70 percent of eligible Black women voters went to the polls and 96 percent of them voted for President Obama. How do you plan on energizing this bloc to vote for you in 2016?

HILLARY CLINTON: First, thank you, Vanessa. I’m delighted to be talking with you today. I think what’s remarkable and worthy of great attention is the percentage of Black women who vote. Black women understand that politics and government have a direct effect on their lives. I want to build on the progress that has been made under President Obama. I am absolutely unabashed in saying that I don’t think he gets the credit for what he’s achieved.

There is a very clear set of issues that are particularly important to African-American women. I will continue to reach out to say, “Look, we’ve got to build on the progress. I can’t do it without you. I want to know what you need, and I want you to know that I’m going to do everything I can to respond to those needs.

ESSENCE: In a poll we conducted with civic engagement group Black Women’s Roundtable last year, we asked our audience to tell us the top three issues they found to be the most critical in deciding whether they would vote for a particular candidate. The issues were affordable health care, living wage and college affordability. How can the middle class participate in the affordable health care plan in the ways they are prevented from doing right now?

HILLARY CLINTON: I was thrilled when President Obama got the Affordable Care Act through. I will be looking to see how we make it truly affordable so that the co-pays, the premiums and the deductibles don’t take such a huge chunk out of a woman’s or a family’s budget. Women are eligible for Medicare starting at age 65, but what about the women between 55 and 65 who are maybe facing health challenges but don’t have Medicare? What about caretakers, all the women who cut back on their work hours or stop their work life to care for a child, a spouse or an elderly relative? They are hurt when it comes to social security, so how do we take care of that? I want to look at this broadly to figure out how we help people get the quality affordable health care that everybody needs and deserves to different points in their life.

ESSENCE: Let’s shift to the second issue. Black women with a bachelor’s degree are making $10,000 less than the average White male with an associate’s degree. How do you plan to address the significant pay gaps for us?

HILLARY CLINTON: More good jobs with rising incomes is the centerpiece of how we’re going to provide a higher standard of living for people. There is still too much explicit and implicit bias in employment, hiring and promoting that, again, disproportionately affect the African-American women. I am in favor of raising the minimum wage, and support the efforts that have already been successful in New York and California to raise it to 15$ per hour. I want to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act so that you’re not retaliated against if you try to find out what you’re paid. Right now if you and I are working for the same company and we’re having lunch together and I say, “Well I’m making X an hour or my salary is Y,” and you say, “But we’re doing the same job and I am making X minus or Y minus,” we could both be fired for that.

ESSENCE: A lot of our readers are excited about your student loan plan. How will it assist those of us with college loan debt, especially those who attended historically Black colleges and universities?

HILLARY CLINTON: From the very moment I rolled out my college affordability plan, I made it very clear that I wanted to get back to where we used to be, where it was possible for someone for someone from a modest-income family to afford to go to college. I have a plan to make four-year public colleges and universities tuition-free. If you make less than $125,000 a year, you should not have to borrow a penny to pay for all their other costs. I also have a really strong commitment to historically Black colleges and billion fund set aside that will help HBCUs be competitive, be able to upgrade their laboratories and be able to provide more financial support to make sure they remain a viable option.

ESSENCE: Why is that important to you?

HILLARY CLINTON: My first boss, Marian Wright Edelman went to Spelman, and another great friend of mine, Vernon Jordan, got his law degree at Howard. I’ve has close friends talk about how that experience was so important in their maturing and that they felt very nurtured—challenged, but nurtured. I have visited a lot of HBCUs and the ones that are the public colleges and universities in a lot of states are being shortchanged when it comes to funding, so they’re having to close departments and buildings. It’s not that these schools don’t have the demand; they still do. They don’t have the resources. I want to provide a floor underneath them. I have a plan to help refinance your debt, to get it paid down, to ensure you pay no more than 10 percent of your income for your debt and to provide relief. If you go into public service, and that includes teaching and law enforcement, we will forgive the rest of your debt after ten years.

ESSENCE: How will you deal with the ongoing issue of police brutality and racial profiling should be elected president?

HILLARY CLINTON: I think there are four issues that we have to address simultaneously. One is policing reform and I think President Obama’s policing commission has excellent recommendations. What I intend to do is use the federal budget to incentivize and catalyze the 18,000 police departments we have in America to follow those kinds of recommendations. I want there to be national guidelines on the use of force, particularly lethal force, that every department would accept and that they would then train their police and hold them accountable. I want independent investigations of any police incident that results in the death of any person.

ESSENCE: Beyond a grand jury?

HILLARY CLINTON: New York, after some of our regrettable, terrible incidents, made the right decision by legislating that the attorney general of the state would take over these investigations. I want to have a better approach to accountability and justice. I want to provide second-chance programs for people coming out of jail and prison, but I want to do much more to divert people from ever getting their in the first place. Honestly, young, Black kids, particularly young Black boys, for being kids. I want to replace the cradle-to-prison pipeline with a cradle-to-college or –career pipeline and really emphasize that.

ESSENCE: Obviously the country is in a very precarious state right now. There’s lots of division and failure to see the other side. How would you bring us all together?

HILLARY CLINTON: I hope that by reaching out to people—especially across the aisle to Republicans as I did when I was First Lady, as senator and as secretary of state—I will demonstrate that I’m walking the walk as well as talking the talk. I know that it takes time and investment of your energy to build relationships, but investment of your energy to build relationships, but there’s no substitute for that. I intend to begin doing that as soon as I possibly can. This will determine what kind of lives we have and certainly what kind of lives our children and grandchildren will have. Are we going to be fairer, more just society with opportunity for all, one that builds an inclusive economic prosperity that people can feel is helping them get ahead? Are we going to stand against discrimination, bigotry, bluster and bullying? Those are all core beliefs that I have about the kind of country that I think we must be, and in our better moments, we are.

ESSENCE: Should there be resistance, how will you push back against that?

HILLARY CLINTON: I expect there will be resistance, but you have to work to find whatever common ground you can. I don’t know if you have seen the wonderful musical “Hamilton” but there is a point where George Washington says that he is going to step down and people are shocked.  But he said, “It’s the right thing to do,” and then he said, “History’s eyes are on us.” I think history’s eyes are still on us. We’ve got to keep working together and that means creating common ground and common purpose wherever we can. There will always be naysayers; there will always be haters. But we can’t let them drive our agenda. What we’re trying to do is much bigger than them and much more hopeful than they even understand. I am going to keep reaching out, and based on my experience I think we can make progress.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

News Source: ESSENCE

Hillary Clinton Pens Essay in Teen Vogue

This week, Teen Vogue published a special issue of their magazine featuring articles for girls, by girls. One of the essays was written by Hillary Clinton. In it, she offers inspiring advice to teenage girls on how their voices can be heard. Clinton says that three key ways to ensure they have a voice are: find something you care about and fight for it, learn from those who disagree with you, and vote. In her conclusion, Clinton says:

“I know many of you didn’t vote for me in the primaries. But no matter who you supported—whether it was me, Senator Bernie Sanders, or another candidate—I’m going to keep working hard to earn your trust. I’m not taking anything for granted. The stakes in this election are higher than ever. We have to come together to build an America that reflects the values your generation embodies—diversity, openness, innovation—and stop those who want to take us in a very different direction. Your age group is the largest American generation living today. That gives you a lot of power and even more responsibility. I know you’re up to it. “

Read the full essay HERE.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, be sure to subscribe to the campaign’s official Podcast, With Her.

News Source: Teen Vogue

Clinton Campaign Releases New TV Ads

This past week, Hillary Clinton and Hillary for America released a series of new television ads that highlight Clinton’s experience and Republican Donald Trump’s lack of judgement. The first ad, entitled “Role Models,” reminds viewers that our children are watching and that Trump is not a role model and his ideas are not what we want to pass on to the next generation. The other ads, titled “Myself,” “The Shows,” and “Issue,” highlight Clinton’s judgement, experience, and leadership in an ever changing world. Watch the new ads below.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Meet HFA Campaign Chair John Podesta

WASHINGTON, DC — NOVEMBER 9: Former Clinton White House Chief of Staff, John Podesta, being interviewed for Discovery Channel’s, “The President’s Gatekeepers,” November 9, 2012, in Washington, D.C. (Photo by David Hume Kennerly/Getty Images)

This coming week’s issue of Time magazine Hillary has a feature about Hillary for America campaign chair John Podesta. When Hillary Clinton decided to run for president in 2016, she chose Podesta to run her campaign. The Clintons have known Podesta for over two decades and her husband, former president Bill Clinton, relied on him in the White House, making him chief of staff for the final years of his administration. Podesta’s key strengths are his leadership and his meticulous planning. He has been a visual part of Clinton’s campaign and has been seen rallying volunteers and supporters, and he has taken part in a number of fundraisers. Should Clinton win the Democratic nomination in June and the White House in November, a great deal of credit will be owed to Podesta’s ability to learn from the past and long-term strategies. You can read the full the article HERE. You can also follow Podesta on Twitter @johnpodesta.

For all the latest, follow our Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

News Source: Time

Clinton Featured in Time Magazine

In the February 18 issues of Time, Hillary Clinton is featured on the cover. The main story is an interview with Clinton by Joe Klein. During the interview, they discussed the recent Iowa caucus, health care, Republicans, her faith, and her Democratic opponent, Bernie Sanders. You can read a preview of the article HERE, or check out the issue for the full interview.

For all the latest, follow our revamped Scheduled Events page and follow Clinton on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

News Source: Time

Clinton Pens Time 100 Profile for Elizabeth Warren

Hillary Rodham Clinton wrote a profile for Senator Elizabeth Warren that will appear in Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People issue. Warren is the strong Democrat who currently resides in the late Senator Ted Kennedy’s seat in Congress. She has been heralded by many for her strong stance on Wall Street bankers and her criticism of the current political climate. Warren is a strong force in the party, and Clinton recognizes that. There are members of her own party who would prefer Warren run for president in Clinton’s place. However, Clinton praises Warren in the profile for Time and her role as a “champion of working families and scourge of special interests.” A copy of the profile is below:

Progressive champion

It was always going to take a special kind of leader to pick up Ted Kennedy’s mantle as senior Senator from Massachusetts—champion of working families and scourge of special interests. Elizabeth Warren never lets us forget that the work of taming Wall Street’s irresponsible risk taking and reforming our financial system is far from finished. And she never hesitates to hold powerful people’s feet to the fire: bankers, lobbyists, senior government officials and, yes, even presidential aspirants.

Elizabeth Warren’s journey from janitor’s daughter to Harvard professor to public watchdog to U.S. Senator has been driven by an unflagging determination to level the playing field for hardworking American families like the one she grew up with in Oklahoma. She fights so hard for others to share in the American Dream because she lived it herself.

Source: Time