Hillary Clinton Distances herself from Obama ahead of 2016 Presidential Election

Hillary Clinton's tenure as a member of the Obama administration was a complete and absolute disaster, the epitome of incompetence and convoluted ideology - just like Obama's 5½ years in office. Nevertheless, Hillary is still planning on running for the Presidency in 2016. Hence, she has no choice but to cunningly distance herself from Obama and his disastrous Presidency in the hope that the US electorate will lose sight of her own dreadful policies, twisted ideologies and complete ineptness.

From the Wall Street Journal:

Hillary Clinton has begun distancing herself from President Barack Obama, suggesting that she would do more to woo Republicans and take a more assertive stance toward global crises, while sounding more downbeat than her former boss about the U.S. economic recovery.

People are "really, really nervous" about their future, Mrs. Clinton said at an event in Colorado last week that included hints of her emerging strategy to convey that she would be more effective in the pursuit of Democratic policy goals than Mr. Obama has been during his time in office.

"They don't think the economy has recovered in a way that has helped them or their families," Mrs. Clinton said...

Mrs. Clinton hasn't repudiated Mr. Obama..., and comments aimed at highlighting her differences with Mr. Obama are often implied rather than stated bluntly.

But in tone and substance, the presumed presidential candidate has made clear in recent public appearances that she wouldn't be running for a de facto third Obama term in the White House. The strategy could help Mrs. Clinton tackle one of her biggest challenges if she decides to run: how to separate herself from Mr. Obama without alienating Democrats and Obama supporters.

The balancing act likely would be even trickier for Vice President Joe Biden, another potential Democratic candidate in 2016. Mr. Biden, closely tied to the White House and its foreign and domestic policies, could find it enormously difficult to chart an independent path if he launches a campaign...

Bill Whalen, a research fellow at the Hoover Institution and former chief speech writer for Pete Wilson when the Republican was California's governor, suggested that Mrs. Clinton's distancing strategy at least partly reflects Mr. Obama's lackluster popularity.

"If the president had 60% approval ratings, she would be hitching her wagon to him," Mr. Whalen said. "At 40%, he's an anchor." Still, given the delicate spot Mrs. Clinton is in, "to the extent that she throws him under the bus, she has to run over him at a very slow speed."...

Mrs. Clinton expressed skepticism of candidates with "beautiful vision" at a CNN event last month, while Mr. Obama still hammers on his 2008 campaign mantra: "Hope."

"I mean, some people can paint a beautiful vision," Hillary said at the CNN event last month. "And, thankfully, we can all learn from that. But then, can you, with the tenacity, the persistence, the getting-knocked down/getting-back-up resilience, can you lead us there?"...

As she mulls a presidential bid, Mrs. Clinton also has suggested that her husband's administration offers a more viable model for governing in polarized times than Mr. Obama's.

Partisanship in the 1990s was as grave as it is today, she suggested at the Colorado event. Nevertheless, Mr. Clinton made inroads with... Republican lawmakers, Mrs. Clinton said...

"Bill never stopped reaching out to them," she said...

Building those relationships on Capitol Hill "is something there is no rest from," she added.

Incidentally, Hillary's comments at last month's CNN event in which she said, "Some people can paint a beautiful vision..., but... can you lead us there?" is reminiscent of the remarks she made during her 2008 Democratic Presidential campaign when she mocked Obama and said the following:

"None of the problems we face will be easily solved... Now, I could stand up here and say, ‘Let’s just get everybody together! Let’s get unified! The skies will open, the light will come down, celestial choirs will be singing and everyone will know we should do the right thing and the world will be perfect!' Maybe I’ve just lived a little long, but I have no illusions about how hard this is going to be. You are not going to wave a magic wand..."

Nevertheless, Hillary's mocking of Obama aside, she still needs him, and she still needs his support, hence her criticism of Obama has been guarded and restrained, and she has been heedful not to throw him under the bus completely.

And while Obama can not possibly run for a third term in office, he still can not afford to alienate the Clintons and their supporters. Hence, he continues to be even more careful not to offend Hillary.

The Wall Street Journal, in the aforementioned article, noted that when it contacted the Obama administration and Hillary Clinton's office for comment, it received the following response:

A senior Obama administration official said the White House is supportive of Mrs. Clinton. Mr. Obama's team understands there will be moments when Mrs. Clinton and the White House aren't in lock step, the official said. Mrs. Clinton's office didn't respond to a request for comment.