Politics

McCaskill endorses independent effort to lay groundwork for Hillary Clinton campaign

Alexis Levinson Political Reporter
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Missouri Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill has endorsed Hillary Clinton for president in 2016, getting behind an independent group’s effort to lay the groundwork for her expected campaign.

McCaskill was an early endorser of then-Sen. Barack Obama over Clinton in the Democrats’ hard-fought 2008 primary, and reportedly had a less-than-friendly relationship with the former first family.

But on the final day of Clinton’s term as Secretary of State in February, McCaskill changed her tune, saying she hoped Clinton would run in 2016, and that if she did, McCaskill would be “working my heart out” to help her win.

On Tuesday, McCaskill endorsed Ready for Hillary, an effort independent of the Clinton’s that is trying to raise money and lay the groundwork for a run by Clinton.

“Hillary Clinton had to give up her political operation while she was making us proud, representing us around the world as an incredible Secretary of State, and that’s why Ready for Hillary is so critical,” McCaskill said in a statement released by the group. “It’s important that we start early, building a grassroots army from the ground up, and effectively using the tools of the Internet – all things that President Obama did so successfully – so that if Hillary does decide to run, we’ll be ready to help her win.”

“They aren’t only reaching out to folks who supported Hillary in 2008,” McCaskill said of the group. “They’re helping to show that regardless of who you supported for President back then, we can all agree today that there is nobody better equipped to be our next President than Hillary Clinton.”

Polls show that Clinton would be the frontrunner for the Democratic nomination if she entered the race. She has not yet announced any decision.

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