Free Republic

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton's approval ratings are soaring. Sarah Palin is now a best-selling author. From this vantage point, it almost seems obvious: the United States is going to elect a woman president. Someday soon. Right? It would be easy, in the gauzy view of history, to forget how ugly the contest became for the two women who broke new ground in the 2008 presidential campaign. Remember Clinton's sagging eyes, splashed across the Drudge Report, as Rush Limbaugh asked whether the country would want to watch a woman grow old in office? Remember the collective gasp as the...

Hillary Clinton has said that she will meet a US senator to discuss claims that Amanda Knox was the victim of a flawed trial and anti-Americanism. The conviction of the 22-year-old Seattle student for murdering her British flatmate Meredith Kercher has opened the floodgates to a wave of antipathy in America towards the Italian justice system. As angry Americans promised to boycott Italian holidays, wine and food, a vociferous support group calling itself Friends of Amanda Knox urged people to email Barack Obama to ask him to support her appeal. Maria Cantwell, a US Democrat senator for Washington state has...

Unreal. Team Obama may allow US soldiers to be tried in the Hague for war crimes. The Wall Street Journal reported, via Jihad Watch: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed “great regret” in August that the U.S. is not a signatory to the International Criminal Court (ICC). This has fueled speculation that the Obama administration may reverse another Bush policy and sign up for what could lead to the trial of Americans for war crimes in The Hague. The ICC’s chief prosecutor, though, has no intention of waiting for Washington to submit to the court’s authority. Luis Moreno Ocampo says...

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says she's never met the one-time Republican vice presidential hopeful and former Alaska governor and thinks it would be very interesting to sit down and talk with her. WASHINGTON -- Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says she would be happy to talk to Sarah Palin over coffee. In an interview for broadcast Sunday on NBC television's "Meet the Press," Clinton says she's never met the one-time Republican vice presidential hopeful and former Alaska governor and thinks it would be very interesting to sit down and talk with her. Clinton was responding to a question...

Just announced. No follow-up yet.

Hillary Clinton Scrubs Ronald Reagan From History Nile Gardiner November 10th, 2009 It’s bad enough that President Obama could not be bothered to attend the celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. But Hillary Clinton’s refusal to even acknowledge the role played by Ronald Reagan in the Wall’s demise as well as the downfall of Communism was highly insulting towards one of the greatest figures of our time, and reeked of petty and partisan mean-spiritedness. The Secretary of State’s remarks yesterday in Berlin completely erased from history the huge contribution played not only by President...

The president does not plan to travel to Germany to attend the 20th anniversary celebration Monday of the fall of the Berlin Wall, drawing heated criticism from those who say he's ignoring a shining triumph of American-inspired democracy. In this July 24, 2008, photo, then-Sen. Barack Obama is seen greeting the crowd in Berlin. (AP Photo) President Obama squeezed in a trip to Copenhagen last month to lobby, unsuccessfully, for Chicago to host the 2016 Summer Olympics. He plans to travel to Oslo next month to accept the Nobel Peace Prize, an award that even Obama has said he does...

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle (R) introduces his partner Michael Mronz (L) to his U.S. counterpart Hillary Clinton during the Atlantic Council Awards ceremony at the Adlon hotel in Berlin, November 8, 2009, one day ahead of the celebrations marking the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach (GERMANY ANNIVERSARY POLITICS)

And then I'd like to read a statement on Honduras. Last week, Honduran negotiators came to an accord that spells out a step-by-step process for Honduras to reestablish democratic and constitutional order and move toward national elections with the support of the international community. In the wake of the Verification Commission visit November 3 and 4, the two sides made significant progress toward the formation of a unity government. For that reason, we were particularly disappointed by the unilateral statements made last night, which do not serve the spirit of the Tegucigalpa-San Jose Accord. We urge both sides to act...

Hillary Clinton's retreat from the previous US demand for a settlement freeze leaves the administration's strategy for Israeli-Palestinian peace in limbo. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton stepped from the frying pan into the fire this weekend, when she sparked a controversy regarding U.S. policy toward Israeli settlements right after some tough days of public and private diplomacy in Pakistan. But was the controversy as serious as it seemed? And what does it means for the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts? Here, a fact check on some settlement myths and misconceptions. 1. What is the significance of Clinton's linguistic acrobatics? Standing next...

MARRAKECH, Morocco – Trying to mute Arab criticism that the Obama administration had retreated from its tough stance on Israeli settlements, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Monday softened her praise for Israel's offer to restrain new housing in Palestinian areas. While Israel was moving in the right direction in its offer to restrict but not stop the settlements, Clinton said, its offer "falls far short" of U.S. expectations. Clinton said her earlier praise of Israel's offer, during a stop in Jerusalem, had been intended as "positive reinforcement." But her comment drew widespread criticism from Persian Gulf ministers...

Secretary of State Takes On a Complicated Mission in the Mideast as Obama's 'Engagement' Diplomacy Comes Under Pressure MARRAKESH, Morocco -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton used a diplomatic swing across the greater Middle East to reassert her role in foreign policy even as the trip exposed the strategic challenges facing the Obama administration's overseas agenda.Mrs. Clinton, during her first 10 months atop the State Department, has appeared at times a marginal player on a national-security team dominated by special diplomatic envoys and President Barack Obama himself. Foreign governments have questioned what role Mrs. Clinton was playing in formulating...

Now, instead of being embroiled in the Democrat’s lose-lose health care mess (a debacle that she no doubt would have been smack dab in the middle of as Vice President or as a senator), she has mostly been isolated from the political misfortunes of the Democrats. Those political misfortunes could very well cost the Democrats dearly in 2010 and could force Obama out in 2012 unless he is able to recover quickly. If Hillary can make it through the next few years without making any major foreign policy gaffes, she can launch a political comeback and tout these years as...

Al Qaeda leadership in Pakistan: Hillary Clinton * US taxes everything, and ‘that’s not what we see in Pakistan’ * Pakistan must start planning for challenges posed by population growth * US secretary of state meets COAS LAHORE: The leadership of Al Qaeda is in Pakistan, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Thursday. “I find it hard to believe that nobody in your government knows where they are and couldn’t get them if they really wanted to,” she added. “Maybe that’s the case; maybe they’re not gettable. I don’t know... As far as we know, they are in...

In a roundtable today with Pakistani editors, Hillary Clinton responded to a question about the Israeli-Palestinian issue with the now-familiar Obama administration litany: the problems are hard, they were inherited, they were ignored by the prior administration: I think that, look, we all know that the Israeli-Palestinian issue is one that is a very serious and difficult problem that we are working hard also to try to resolve. We inherited a lot of problems. If you remember, when my husband left office, we were very close to an agreement because he worked on it all the time. The next administration...

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has questioned Pakistan's commitment to hunt top al-Qaeda leadership hiding inside the country and accused it of failing to track them down. "Al-Qaeda has had safe haven in Pakistan since 2002... I find it hard to believe that nobody in your government knows where they are and couldn't get them if they really wanted to," Clinton told a group of senior Pakistani journalists in Lahore on Thursday. "Maybe that's the case, maybe they're not gettable. I don't know... As far as we know, they are in Pakistan," she said in unusually blunt remarks during...

JERUSALEM – Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is planning to press Israel over the weekend to cease Jewish construction in the eastern sections of Jerusalem, informed senior diplomatic officials told WND. Clinton is scheduled to arrive in Jerusalem Sunday in her first official trip to Israel since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took office in March. According to the informed diplomatic officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the Obama administration has been disappointed by a lack of progress on Israeli-Palestinian issues brokered by George Mitchell, the White House's envoy to the Mideast. Clinton is being sent by the White...

WASHINGTON -- The chairmen of the House and Senate foreign relations committees are asking the Law Library of Congress to retract a report on the military-backed coup in Honduras that they charge is flawed and “has contributed to the political crisis that still wracks” the country. The request, by Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass. and Rep. Howard Berman, D-Calif., has sparked cries of censorship from Republicans who say the Democrats don't like what the August report said: that the government of Honduras had the authority to remove President Manuel Zelaya from office. Zelaya has been holed up at the Brazilian embassy...

Concludes political crisis in Honduras The signing was delayed for several hours after the delegation of the deposed Manuel Zelaya gave its approval long - Updated: 30.10.09 12:50 am - Writing: Current Rating: 4 votes: 3 3 Comments Print Send Tegucigalpa, Honduras . Representatives of the government of deposed Roberto Micheletti Manuel Zelaya signed late Thursday in this capital an agreement to end the political crisis that took to Honduras in the air for 124 days. The agreement was signed under heavy pressure from the U.S. government decided to send his top heavy artillery led by the undersecretary of state...

Honduras' interim government has buckled under international pressure and agreed to allow the return to power of Manuel Zelaya, the ousted President who was toppled in a military coup four months ago. The breakthrough followed renewed pressure from senior US. officials who traveled to Honduras this week for a last-ditch effort to end the crisis. "It is a triumph for Honduran democracy," said Mr Zelaya after the rival sides agreed to a deal that could see him reinstated as President in the coming days. Earlier, Roberto Micheletti, the president of the interim government that took power after the coup on...

WASHINGTON: It was supposed to be a charm offensive, but as the day wore on she put away her charm and went on the offensive. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s public dressing down of Pakistan during a three-day visit there, including virtually accusing the country of complicity with al-Qaida, has shaken Washington as much as it stunned her hosts. "Her inner voice became her outer voice," Martha Raddatz, a veteran NBC correspondent said on the network, explaining that while many in the administration believed what she said to be true (that Pakistan is coddling terrorists), it was rare for America's...

Hillary Clinton meets Pakistani Prime Minister

Notebook: Sec. Clinton | October 23, 2009 As Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton's approval rating is at 65 percent, higher than both Michelle and President Barack Obama's. Katie Couric comments that even conservatives are changing their tune.

(3rd LD) U.S. vows unlimited deterrence against N. Korea By Sam Kim SEOUL, Oct. 22 (Yonhap) -- The U.S. pledged Thursday to mobilize its warfighting assets to their maximum capacity if needed to defend South Korea against North Korea, which continues to develop its nuclear and missile capabilities. U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates "reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to provide extended deterrence for the ROK, using the full range of military capabilities, to include the U.S. nuclear umbrella, conventional strike, and missile capabilities," according to a joint statement with South Korean Defense Minister Kim Tae-young.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has fallen for Iran's line that it is not developing nuclear weapons, but only wants the ability to develop one to achieve its place in the sun among the great nations of the earth. In an interview on a Sunday show and in a leak in The New York Times that seems to have come from her (since it uses the same language), she notes that "there's a small space for doubt [about Iran's intention to build a bomb] because there are some contrary indicators. There is no doubt in my mind that they...

A week of hard negotiations between the United States and Russia netted what Secretary of State Hillary Clinton classified as “significant breakthroughs in our two countries’ relationship.” Among the breakthroughs cited by Secretary Clinton—Russia will be allowed to inspect US nuclear weapons sites, Russia retains the right to preemptive, first-strike use of nuclear weapons, and Russia will not assist the United States in seeking sanctions against Iran’s acquisition of nuclear warheads. “By acceding to their demands we are showing them that we do not pose a threat to their interests,” Clinton explained. “A gesture of submission on our part eases...

Hillary Clinton Now Viewed More Favorably Than Barack Obama, Especially Among Republicans Thursday, October 15, 2009 By Susan Jones, Senior Editor (CNSNews.com) - A new Gallup Poll gives Hillary Clinton a higher "favorable rating" than Barack Obama, the man who beat her in the Democratic presidential primary. The poll, conducted Oct. 1-4 (before Obama won the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize) gives Secretary of State Clinton a 62 percent favorable rating to Obama's 56 percent. In January 2009, Obama's favorable rating stood at 78 percent, compared with 65 percent for Clinton. Clinton's highest favorable rating of 67 percent came in late...

The president's current favorable rating of 56% is down 22 percentage points since January.

KAZAN, Russia — US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Wednesday visited Kazan, the capital of Russia's predominantly Muslim Tatarstan region, lauding it as an example of multi-ethnic tolerance and peace. .... Over half of the region's population are Tatars, a Muslim Turkic people who live alongside a large ethnic Russian Orthodox Christian population and other minorities. Clinton, donning a yellow headscarf and taking off her shoes in line with Islamic custom, visited the gigantic Kul Sharif mosque in the Kazan Kremlin alongside the regional leader Mintimer Shaimiyev. "You are well known as someone who has fostered religious tolerance. It's...

Hillary Rodham Clinton might be regretting her promise never to run for president again -- a new poll shows the secretary of state is now more popular than President Obama. Some 62 percent of respondents rated Clinton favorably, compared to Obama's 56 percent rating, according to a new Gallup poll. Obama's approval has been declining since peaking at 78 percent when he came into office -- one of the highest ratings since Gallup began its popularity poll in 1992. But the dismal economy, battles for health-care reform and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are taking their toll.

Hillary Rodham Clinton may not be president -- but she is more popular than Barack Obama. The secretary of state has a 62 percent favorable rating -- compared to Obama's 56 percent, according to a new Gallup poll. Clinton, who lost the Democratic nomination last year to Obama following a bitter primary, said earlier this week that she will never run for president again. The results are based on a Gallup survey conducted during the first four days of October. The poll was conducted before Obama was named the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, which Gallup said "could have...

Hillary Clinton recently claimed that she won't ever run for prescient again and the DUmmies actually believe her. Of course, Hillary would never lie. Right? In fact, not only do I believe that Hillary Clinton will run again for president, I think she can't wait for 2016 to arrive and will challenge Barack Obama in the 2012 Democrat primaries. So sure am I of this that I even POSTED the exact date of what I think will be her official announcement in the Free Republic: September 12, 2011. Think Ted Kennedy challenging Jimmy Carter. However, the DUmmies completely buy...

Ann Curry she has no intention of recycling those "Make History!" presidential campaign buttons wasn't the only headline Hillary Clinton made this week. On Tuesday, Clinton emerged from her meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov insisting that Russia and the U.S. were united on Iran's nuclear program even though Lavrov dismissed joining the U.S. in threatening Iran with sanctions as "counterproductive" at this point. The secretary of state called the position of Russia and the United States on Iran a "very strong, united approach." Clinton said that the United States had "always looked at" potential sanctions against Iran if...

Clinton: I'd have hired Obama By: Andy Barr October 14, 2009 10:54 AM EST Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Wednesday that if she had won presidential election, Barack Obama would “absolutely” have served in her Cabinet. Recalling the conversation she had with then-president-elect Obama about her joining the administration during an interview on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Clinton said that she was at first surprised when the president offered her the secretary of state post. “It was, you know, about … five, six days after the election. And my husband and I were out for a walk, actually, in...

Washington will tone down its criticism of Russia's human rights record in order to win Kremlin backing for possible sanctions against Iran, it has been claimed. It is the latest in a number of concessions the US has made to Moscow in order to improve relations and encourage co-operation on international issues. The plan emerged as Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, visited Russia to discuss a range of issues including Iran's rogue nuclear programme. Mrs Clinton's trip was part of what Washington is calling a "reset" with Moscow, a new more constructive relationship with the Kremlin that President...

In the middle of a diplomatic mission through Europe, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made headlines at home this morning when she closed the door on another bid for the presidency. In an interview on the "Today" show, Ann Curry asked if Clinton ever wishes she, rather than Barack Obama, was setting U.S. policy as the commander-in-chief. "I have to tell you," Clinton said, "it never crosses my mind." Curry followed up, "Will you ever run for president again?" "No," Clinton said. "No?" "No, no" Clinton insisted, laughing. "This is a great job. It is a 24-7 job. And I'm...

Hillary Clinton has made her first, and last, run for the presidency. The secretary of state replied “no” when asked in an interview that aired this morning on NBC’s “Today” show whether she’ll run again. “This is a great job,” Clinton said of being secretary of state. “It is a 24/7 job. And I’m looking forward to retirement at some point.”

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA - North Korea interrupted moves toward dialogue on its nuclear program Monday by reportedly test-firing five short-range missiles off its east coast. A South Korean official, briefing the Korean media, said two short-range KN-02 missiles were fired in the morning and three more in the afternoon. The missiles, with a range of 75 miles, were shot from mobile launch pads near where North Korea fired a long-range Taepodong-2 missile on April 5. The timing of the tests, the North's first in three months, is particularly significant since North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il has shown clear interest in...

In a black BMW outside a chalet-style hotel in the foothills of the Swiss Alps, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton used high-drama cellphone diplomacy to clinch a historic Armenian-Turkish deal. "There were several times when I said to all of the parties involved that 'this is too important, this has to be seen through, you have come too far,'" the chief US diplomat recalled afterward on the plane from Zurich to London.

Hillary Clinton says she won't run for president again Posted: October 12th, 2009 09:48 AM ET From CNN Political Editor Mark Preston WASHINGTON (CNN) – Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Monday she would not run for president again, and brushed off suggestions that she is being marginalized in the Obama White House. Clinton, who lost the Democratic presidential nomination to Barack Obama, said "No" three different times when asked by NBC's Ann Curry "Will you ever run for president again? Yes or No?" "This is a great job," Clinton said in the interview broadcast Monday. "It is a 24-7...

Confirming what we all believe... Hear that Barack? This means if you get crushed in the mid terms, look for Hillary to give you a primary challenge in 2012 UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton liked being president on Wednesday -- at the U.N. Security Council. "I kind of like being president, so this may go on a little longer than anticipated," she said, prompting laughter from members who were meeting to discuss women, peace and security."

The secretary of state jokes during an address to the U.N. Security Council.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says she doesn't believe Iran can convince the U.S. and other world powers that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, putting Tehran on course for tougher economic penalties beyond the current "leaky sanctions." Defense Secretary Robert Gates played down the effectiveness of military strikes against Iran's newly disclosed secret uranium-enriching facility. Gates and Clinton said economic and diplomatic pressure would have a better chance of changing Iranian policies. "The reality is, there is no military option that does anything more than buy time," he told CNN's "State of the Union" in an interview...

Today local radio America has spread a version that states that the US embassy in Tegucigalpa would host the paralell govt. of Manuel Zelaya. The version says that the ambassador Hugo Llorenz has ready 6 limousines ready to transport the members of Zelaya's cabinet to the embassy. Some of his top officials are wanted by honduran justice.

The Talk Shows Sunday, September 27th, 2009 Guests to be interviewed today on major television talk shows: FOX NEWS SUNDAY (Fox Network): Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., Kit Bond, R-Mo.; Virginia Republican gubernatorial candidate Bob McDonnell; conservative filmmaker James O'Keefe.MEET THE PRESS (NBC): Former President Bill Clinton, New York Gov. David Patterson and Sens. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., and Jim Webb, D-Va.FACE THE NATION (CBS): Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.THIS WEEK (ABC): Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.STATE OF THE UNION (CNN): Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Sen. Evan Bayh, D-Ind.

When Pres. Obama did the Fox-less Full Ginsburg last week, his toughest moment came when George Stephanopoulos cited Merriam Webster to suggest that PBO's proposal to force people to buy health insurance amounts to a "tax." Some were surprised that Stephanopoulos would put a Dem president on the spot that way. But appearing on today's Fox News Watch, Jim Pinkerton posited an intriguing provenance for the tough question—none other than . . . Hillary Clinton.

Midtown Manhattan this week has been turned into an extra-specially intense maze of flashing lights, motorcades and those dudes selling noxious candied peanuts -- the former heralding the advent of the U.N. General Assembly and the latter simply a New York Thing That Will Not Go Away, Ever. This year's festivities will probably best be remembered for Muammar Qaddafi's theatrical hijinks (the tent, the rant, the shredding) and for the triumphant return of the United States to the world forum -- but on the sidelines of these conventions, there's been some significant (and long overdue) attention paid to the role...

After getting complaints from Congress─and an inquiry from NEWSWEEK─the State Department backed away Thursday from awarding foreign-aid funds to two foundations headed by the children of Libyan dictator Muammar Kaddafi.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Costa Rican President Oscar Arias said Monday that ousted leader Manuel Zelaya's surprise return to Honduras offers an opportunity to end the country's political crisis. "Now that President Zelaya is back it would be opportune to restore him to his position under appropriate circumstances, get on with the election that is currently scheduled for November, have a peaceful transition of presidential authority and get Honduras back to constitutional and democratic order," Clinton told reporters as she met with Arias in New York. Arias, who brokered failed peace talks between the Zelaya camp and...