When asked if she would take a role in a potential Biden administration, former secretary of state and 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton didn’t entirely rule it out. But for now, she’s focused on getting Joe Biden and his running mate, Kamala Harris, elected.
“I’m ready to help in any way I can because I think this will be a moment where every American — I don’t care what party you are, I don’t care what age, race, gender, I don’t care — every American should want to fix our country,” Clinton said in a conversation with 19th Washington correspondent Amanda Becker. “So if you’re asked to serve, you should certainly consider that.”
In the conversation, part of The 19th Represents Summit, Clinton said she will continue to fundraise for Democratic candidates, both virtually and in person, and support organizations that strengthen the country’s voting infrastructure and increase voter turnout. She is especially focused on defending vote-by-mail and combating what she called a “hostile takeover” of the United States Postal Service by the Trump administration.
The mail has been slowed down, and there are reports of people not receiving medication, bills or Social Security checks on time, she said. In addition, postal workers’ hours have been cut and the cost of sending bulk mail — including ballots — has increased, she added.
“I have every reason to believe that Trump is not going to go silently into the night if he loses,” Clinton said. “He’s going to try to confuse us. He’s going to try to bring all kinds of lawsuits.”
Clinton is optimistic about the Biden-Harris ticket, saying that a bigger voter turnout would limit the chance for Trump to undermine the outcome of the election. She reminded everyone to make sure they were registered and encouraged people to take a picture of their ballots to keep a record of the vote. (Note: Many states have prohibited photographing and posting a ballot on social media, and some states have prohibited the use of cameras in polling places altogether.)
“The idea that your vote doesn’t count is an idea that is promoted by people who don’t want your vote to count,” she said.
When asked about why women in the United States seem to have more difficulty ascending to the top office than in some other countries, Clinton said women in this country face significant “social and cultural hurdles,” often based on stereotypes about what a president should be. She pointed out that there is some analysis that countries run by women, such as New Zealand, Germany, Taiwan, Finland and Denmark, have done better in the pandemic with better outcomes for the people.
Clinton said she was the only woman on stage in 2008 and again in her primary in 2016. Since then, many female candidates have reached out to discuss what they could expect on the campaign trail.
“I still hope, especially with Kamala on the ticket, that the coverage of women running for president or vice president will be less sexist, less sensationalist, less trivializing,” she said. “I told them that they would just have to be ready for that and be able to ride through it.”
She was glad to see a number of women running for office this time around.
“If you get more women running, then it’s like more men running,” Clinton said. “You know, men come in all sizes and shapes and colors and heights, you know the whole deal. And so you get more women — it accustoms people to thinking about women in that highest leadership position.”