Hillary Clinton: No Wimps in the White House

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Hillary Clinton: No Wimps in the White House

April 18, 2008 10:06 AM

ABC News' Eloise Harper Reports: Hillary Clinton thinks the White House is no place for wimps.

Stepping up her criticism of her rival's performance in ABC News' primetime debate on Wednesday, Clinton, D-N.Y., told the FOX affiliate in Philadelphia, "I know he spent all day yesterday complaining about the hard questions he was asked. Being asked tough questions in a debate is nothing like the pressures you face inside the White House. In fact, when the going gets tough, you just can't walk away because we're going to have some very tough decisions that we have to make."

When pressed, Clinton continued the criticism, adding, "When the going gets tough you can't run away. And it's going to be tough going to deal with these hard problems; getting out of Iraq in the right way, turning the economy around, getting universal health care, ending our dependence on foreign oil. The special interests are going to be a lot tougher than 90 minutes of questions from two journalists and we need a president who is going to be up there fighting everyday for the American people and not complain about how much pressure there is, and how hard the questions are."

Sen. Clinton echoed her earlier comments to FOX in her first event on Friday.

"Some of you see that debate the other night?" Clinton asked the crowd in Randor, Pennsylvania. "Well, I know that some of my opponents' supporters and my opponent have been complaining about hard questions. Well, having been in the White House for eight years and seeing what happens in terms of the pressures and the stresses on the president, that was nothing. I'm with Harry Truman on this: if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. I am very comfortable in the kitchen."

Watch the VIDEO HERE.

The Obama campaign didn't waste any time in refuting Clinton's claims.

"Considering the fact that Senator Clinton sat on stage at the last debate and complained to all of America that she always gets the first question, her blatant hypocrisy here is stunning," Obama campaign spokesperson Bill Burton said in a written statement. "But if she'd rather spend her time talking about the same distractions and divisions that Washington is obsessed with, that's her business."

The candidate himself -- both literally and figuratively -- tried to brush off the debate on Thursday.

"She was taking every opportunity to get a dig in there, that's her right to kind of twist the knife a little bit," Obama said at a town hall in Raleigh, North Carolina, on Thursday.

"That's how our politics has been taught to be played. That's the lesson that she learned when the Republicans were doing that same thing to her back in the 1990s, so I understand it, and when you're running for the presidency then you've got to expect it."

Obama then paused, brushed both his shoulders, and then bent down and brushed off his knee amid thunderous applause from the audience.

"That's what you got to do," Obama laughed, "That is also precisely why I'm running for president to change that kind of politics."

Bill Clinton also got in on the act on Thursday.

The former President said he didn't see his wife "whining" when she's taken some tough political shots on the presidential campaign trail.

"When I watched that debate last night, I got kinda tickled," Clinton said at an American Legion Hall event in St. Mary's, Pennsylvania, "After the [debate], her opponents', oh, the people working were saying, 'Oh this is so negative, why are they doing this.' Well they've been beatin' up on her for 15 months. I didn't hear her whining when he said she was untruthful in Iowa or called her the senator from Punjab."

"And, you know, they said some pretty rough things about me, too. But you know, this is a contact sport. If you don't want to play, keep your uniform off," Clinton told a loudly cheering crowd.

In her interview with FOX, Sen. Clinton insisted, "We were both asked some pretty tough questions and that's part of what happens in a debate and in a campaign."

Obama called the first half of the debate "tit for tat silliness", and both senators seem to be growing tired of the exercise, having meet 21 times on the debate stage over the course of the campaign.

"We've now had 21 (debates), and look, I mean the previous three, you know, we did very well, so it's not as if we don't know how to do these things," Obama said on Thursday.

Obama has not yet committed to a proposed April 27 debate in Raleigh. Clinton has said she is willing to debate in North Carolina.

"Can I say that I've been through, what 23 of these debates?" Clinton told FOX on Friday. "And as I recall, I was asked some pretty tough questions in nearly every one of them. That goes with the territory, having been inside the White House, I know the pressures inside the White House, I know how hard it is every single day."

ABC News' Sunlen Miller and Sarah Amos contributed to this report.

April 18, 2008 in Bush, George W., Kucinich, Dennis, Tancredo, Tom | Permalink | User Comments (864)

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Hmmm. We'll see in November. I expect people will vote their kids and their pocketbooks.

Posted by: counting crows | Apr 18, 2008 10:48:08 AM

I have an idea that might catch on and get the left wing liberal media and strongarming left wind liberals who run the DNC's attention:

Do as I have done,support the person, not the party, as an Independent registered voter.

Change your voter registration from Democrat to Independent after the primary in your state!!!

Disenfranchised in Florida

Posted by: Disenfranchised in Florida | Apr 18, 2008 10:48:42 AM

Go to the LA times blog "top of the Ticket"

Or to Real Clear Politics "best of the blogs"

Or to You tube to watch Obama campaign ing for POTUS and giving the middle finger to his opponent at the same time.

This gesture is unpresidential to say the least. Everyone in the crowd knows what he has done. Everyone who has been in a high school class room can see what he has done.

He gave Hillary the middle finger while criticising her.

The man is unfit to be President.

Posted by: s.b. | Apr 18, 2008 10:49:35 AM

"honest"ly, please read before positng!

Posted by: Terri | Apr 18, 2008 10:51:14 AM

Hooray for Charlie Gibson! Finally a REAL line of questioning to get the truth out...and when he was faced with this hard but honest question he showed us all that he really can't handle the kind of pressure the presidency requires. Even more imporantly, when pushed with real real substantive questions, he couldn't come through. Obama revealed that under the surface, he doesn't have what it takes!

Posted by: RIchard | Apr 18, 2008 10:51:52 AM

DENIAL-DIVERT-DISMISS..That's how Obama deals with tough questions...When comparing a US Senator to a terrorist, his relationship to Bill Ayers, the weather underground master, to Bill's pardons, his relationship to his pastor Reverend Wright and so on..NO MORE FREE PASSES..NO OBAMA IN THE WHITE HOUSE

Posted by: Antonn | Apr 18, 2008 10:52:47 AM

Hillary did not compalin she is getting tough question, she only said why she is always the first to answer questions and Obama gets second.

So you crying OBAMA supporter, get real and grow up.

Hillary you rocked in the Philly debate.

Hillary 08

Posted by: JACK | Apr 18, 2008 10:54:09 AM

Obama needs to go back to South Chicago..to his beloved church and maybe he can trade his house for Reverend's Wright new digs.

Posted by: Antonn | Apr 18, 2008 10:55:54 AM

Did he sound like a crying baby? LOL.

Posted by: crying baby | Apr 18, 2008 10:58:36 AM

Looks like Obama is afraid to debate again.

I think it's time for him to step aside.

Posted by: Chris | Apr 18, 2008 11:00:37 AM

My only complaint with the media’s tough look at Obama is why it took so long. He should have gotten this treatment last year.

Hillary has been through the meat grinder and survived many times. Obama hasn’t even started to feel the heat. After the republicans get a through with him he is going to look like a traitor and terrorist sympathizer. They are very good at destroying people of questionable character like Obama. He is devisive and will be incapable of running an effective presidency. He has already divided the democratic party, do the Obamabots actually believe he has any chance of getting them back? sad.

If Hillary loses I am voting for McCain. He may be republican but at least he is capable of truly working with the dems. Obama will only make things worse.

Posted by: reason | Apr 18, 2008 11:02:32 AM

Obama is not very manly to complain when life gets tough..roll up your sleeves and tell us the TRUE relationships you have with BILL AYERS, REVEREND WRIGHT,BLACK PANTHER PARTY AND TONY REZCO. You seems to be the weaker among the Democratic candidates..

Posted by: Antonn | Apr 18, 2008 11:02:54 AM

Paradise Lost -- This debate will be remembered as one of the worst debates in American politics! Hillary Clinton and this type of politics is EXACTLY the type of political candidate the AMERICAN PEOPLE want to get rid of!

In the cynical world in which we live, where we have an opportunity to be witness to one of the greatest presidential elections in America's history -- world history and as a nation ABC news decided to to take to lowest road possible. To think that the American people care more about flag pins, campaign rhetoric, he said-- she said then the real issues affecting people in there every day lives. This debate will be remembered as one of the worst debates in American politics! A total embarrassment on the world stage, and only strengthens anti-American sentiments of being a nation of stupidity and ignorance.

Posted by: George Bernard | Apr 18, 2008 11:03:21 AM

we all know Mccain apologize for something, Hillary apologize fro something, do you know when Obama apologize for bitter-gate?he just regret.
does he apologize for his wife conditionaly love America?he just clear it.
does he apologize for believing in Wright over 20 years?he just defend him.
Does he apologize for NAFTA -gate?he just said "Canadian government is stupid. "
does he apologize for refusing wear American flag pin?I don't know
he is so arrogant. why you vote for him?

Posted by: arrogant | Apr 18, 2008 11:03:29 AM

If anything has been learned from the Clinton campaign, it has been Public Relations 101.

HOW TO COMPLETELY BLOW A PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN.

This will be taught in communication and political science classes starting next spring. She will be forever remembered in history as the modern day Tortoise and Hare Story.

Hare expected to win without a doubt
Hare loses first race and places third
Hare regroups and barely wins 3rd race
Hare loses races 4-15
Hare attempts to change into Duck/Image Change
Hare turns nasty/Interjects race
Race backfires on Hare/Hare cries
Hare’s crying wins next race
Hare attempts to change into Eagle/Image Change 3
Tortoise takes lead and never looks back
Hare attempts to change rules of race
Hare changes back and says it’s a real Hare
Hare lies and says it was shot at while running
Hare lies about hospital patients
Hare lies about Irish Peace Plans
Hare lies about shooting guns
Hare’s right hand image maker has MAJOR conflict of interest
Hare doesn’t fire right hand image maker/demotes him
Hare lies about going to church
Hare gets other Hares to help gang up on the tortoise to slow him down
(Doesn’t work)
Americans are tired of the hare

Tortoise wins, all with a smile on his face

Ahhhhhh, the silly season of politics

Posted by: Common Sense | Apr 18, 2008 11:05:59 AM

Hillary won the nomination Wednesday night. How McLaughlin saw this coming, I will NEVER know. But he did. The more ObamaNation and their feet of clay idol wail, the more superdelegates they lose, no matter what the massaged GOP MSM "polls" show (those damn things have been 90% inaccurate since Obama entered the race, polling ONLY 75% and up of their databases of ObamaNation).

Barry NEVER had what it takes to be President. Falling for the love lavsihed on him by the GOP and the GOP-owned MSM pundits and thinking the days of Rovian-style politics from them was over "because the American People were tired of it", was his first and most fatal mistake. They will continue to do in no matter what anyone says BECAUSE IT ALWAYS WORKS.

Even Rove is p'o'ed at his Tool. Campaign must be floundering after they decided it was best to cool it with the campaign advice.

Even Rove sees the writing on the wall. Too many people got wind of his strategy too quick. And much kudos to LS who came out seven months before Rove intended to reveal him. And to the folks who figured out his strategy and unleashed every weapon in his arsenal LONG before he was able to.

Only one candidate can win against McCain, and it's been the truth of the matter since the very beginning. Even back when Obama was god, racism would have knocked him on his rear.

Posted by: xbjllb | Apr 18, 2008 11:06:30 AM

LET'S ALL DO THIS HIGH SCHOOL CHEER FOR OBAMA....GO.......

'OBAMA, OBAMA, HE'S OUR MAN. IF HE CAN'T TAKE IT, HILLARY CAN!"""

Obama, stop crying. Get use to it, you baby!!!!!

Posted by: no time for obama | Apr 18, 2008 11:07:11 AM

what's great is that this time the strength is coming from the people...

I think ABC will tell you the force of political motivation that hit them yesterday. NBC reported today a story about the superdelegates and looking at what happened just in reaction to the debate. The force of the people behind Obama...is like nothing we have seen in a long time.

It's amazing what happens when the right candidate comes along. The supers, I am sure are paying attention to the fact that they can see which supporters are more motivated to work to get the right candidate in ...the right way. Which candidates campaign alone (like you all say actions speak louder than words) shows who will be most likely to turn the page.

and which candidates' campaigns will probably turn the page back.

Posted by: dl | Apr 18, 2008 11:07:46 AM

Posted by: George Bernard | Apr 18, 2008 11:08:58 AM

We Americans deserve answers to all those questions asked in the last debate about Obama's dubious relationships with men who hate or damn America, after all he is being considered for the Presidency of the United States of America and whoever is elected will be the Commander in Chief responsible for the security of our country. We didn't get clear answers and we will continue to ask the tough questions, but in our mind the main question still remains:
Does Obama love or hate America?

Posted by: Manolete | Apr 18, 2008 11:09:05 AM

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