Majority of Americans want Hillary Clinton to run in '16

http://www.globalpost.com/

Hillary Clinton's popularity is booming, and the majority of Americans said they would like to see the secretary of state and former first lady make her own run for the White House in 2016. According to an ABC/Washington Post poll, 57 percent of Americans, including 23 percent of Republicans, would support Clinton if she were to run for president in the next election. Clinton earned her most positive ratings among women, with 66 percent saying they would support her in 2016. That number jumps to 75 percent among those under 50 and drops to 54 percent among those aged 50 and up. Forty-nine percent of men back a Clinton bid, regardless of their age, reported the Washington Post. It's not only die-hard Democrats who overwhelmingly favor a Clinton bid. Fifty-nine percent of independents and 65 percent of moderates would vote Clinton into office in 2016. Come January, Clinton will be ducking out of public office when her term as secretary of state ends. She has repeatedly said she plans to take time off and isn't planning any immediate return to politics, reported POLITICO. But according to the New York Daily News, Clinton is hinted at a run by airing what is essentially a campaign video at the Saban Forum for Middle East Policy last Friday. The Daily News said the tribute video "is not about Clinton's accomplishments at the State Department. It's a celebration of her essence, of her supposed strength of conviction, her personality, even her smile."POLITICO also suggests that Clinton is positioning herself for a run by sending letters to a handful of Democratic congressional candidate who lost their races in November. She is also expected to embrace same-sex marriage after leaving the Obama administration. Marc Ambinder at The Week said last month that Clinton would be one of the best qualified candidates in modern history and has "proven she has the fortitude to BE president." "She has been humbled, first by her husband's affair and later by the 2008 primary campaign, and has pulled herself up each time, becoming a better politician and person," Ambinder said. But since President Obama's second term hasn't even started yet, it will certainly be a while before anyone is sure what Clinton's presidential plans are.