Hillary Clinton: "I'm in to win"

Saturday, January 20, 2007

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Hillary Clinton has announced her bid for the presidency.

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sen. Hillary Clinton jumped into the fray as a 2008 presidential candidate with the words "I'm in" posted on her Web site.

"And I'm in to win," she added in a statement, announcing she has set up an exploratory committee that can gauge opinions and raise money for a presidential campaign.

Clinton's announcement comes exactly two years to the day the next president will be inaugurated: January 20, 2009.

The former first lady and Democratic senator from New York is considered her party's front-runner in what has become a diverse Democratic field.

Should she win, she would be the first woman to serve as president of the United States -- and the first presidential spouse to do so as well. President Bill Clinton served two terms -- from 1993-2001.

On Tuesday, Democrat Sen. Barack Obama announced that he was filing papers to form a presidential exploratory committee, a bid to become the first African-American president.

And on Sunday, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, also a Democrat, is expected to announce his bid, one that could make him the first Latino president.

Web chats begin Monday

Bringing "the right end" to the war in Iraq, reducing the deficit, making the country energy independent and health care affordable were issues Clinton touted in her announcement, speaking on a video posted on her site.

"After six years of George Bush, it is time to renew the promise of America," she said.

"I grew up in a middle-class family in the middle of America, and we believed in that promise," the 59-year-old native of Chicago said.

"I still do. I've spent my entire life trying to make good on it, whether it was fighting for women's basic rights or children's basic health care, protecting our social security or protecting our soldiers."

In the video, she invited Americans to join her in a three-night series of live video Web chats beginning Monday.

"So let's talk. Let's chat, let's start a dialogue about your ideas and mine, because the conversation in Washington has been just a little one-sided lately, don't you think?"

She'll travel next weekend to Iowa and later to New Hampshire, two kickoff states for the Democratic presidential nominating process in 2008, according to her campaign organizers.

When Clinton launched her Senate bid in New York in 1999, she began a "listening tour" around the state to explore views on education, business and health care issues.

Her Republican opponent, Rick Lazio, called her a "carpetbagger" because she had not previously lived in New York. But she wound up beating him, becoming the first sitting first lady to win an elected office -- and was re-elected last year with 67 percent of the vote, a landslide.

A crowded field

Clinton's announcement puts her in a big Democratic crowd of candidates.

In a statement released Saturday, Obama said, "Senator Clinton is a good friend and a colleague whom I greatly respect. I welcome her and all the candidates, not as competitors, but as allies in the work of getting our country back on track."

In addition to Obama and Richardson, the field also includes former Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina, the party's 2004 vice presidential nominee, who declared his candidacy late last year; Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, a liberal critic of the war in Iraq; and Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack.

Sens. Joe Biden of Delaware and Chris Dodd of Connecticut have also said they will seek the nomination, and other Democrats mentioned as possible candidates include the party's 2004 presidential candidate, Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts; retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark, and the Rev. Al Sharpton.

Also Saturday, Sen. Sam Brownback of Kansas entered the Republican race for president.

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