There’s only one way to say that you’re not running for president: “I will not accept if nominated and will not serve if elected.”
Boom. Done and done.
But Hillary Clinton didn’t say that — not by a long shot.
Asked by a reporter at News 12 Long Island what her 2020 intentions are, she said this: “I’m not running, but I’m going to keep on working and speaking and standing up for what I believe.”
So Hillary’s answer can certainly raise questions. “I’m not running” can mean, at least to the Clintons, that she’s not currently running for president. And that’s true, she’s not.
While the story was everywhere — and always definitive (“COUNT ME OUT!” said the blaring Drudge Report headline) — the whole tale took another turn a few hours later.
“Spoke to someone close with Clinton in contact with her today. They say she wasn’t trying to be emphatic and close the door on running when she spoke to a local reporter yesterday, and that she was surprised by how definitively it played,” New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman wrote on Twitter.
Spoke to someone close with Clinton in contact with her today. They say she wasn’t trying to be emphatic and close the door on running when she spoke to a local reporter yesterday, and that she was surprised by how definitively it played. 1/2
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) March 6, 2019
The person also says she is extremely unlikely to run, but that she remains bothered that she’s expected to close the door on it when, say, John Kerry isn’t. She has told her team she is waiting at least to see the Mueller report. 2/2
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) March 6, 2019
“The person also says she is extremely unlikely to run, but that she remains bothered that she’s expected to close the door on it when, say, John Kerry isn’t. She has told her team she is waiting at least to see the Mueller report.”- READ MORE