Biden’s Poll Lead Evaporates If Clinton Runs in 2016

JIM WATSON/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- A world without Hillary Clinton looks pretty good for Joe Biden.

Indeed, if the former secretary of state decides against running for president in 2016, a new Quinnipiac University poll released Thursday shows the vice president not only looks like a leading contender, he leaves other potential Democratic hopefuls in the dust.

More than three years from Election Day 2016, Biden commands the support of 45 percent of Democratic voters, the poll found. He’s 30 points ahead of his closest competitor, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who draws 15 percent support, followed by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick at 6 percent, Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley at 3 percent and Virginia Sen. Mark Warner rounding out the group of five possible candidates with 2 percent.

In such a match-up, 26 percent of registered and leaning Democrats said they do not know for whom they would vote if the election were held today, according to the poll, which was conducted between April 25 and 29 and has a margin of error of 3.8 percentage points.

Regardless of whether Clinton is in the equation, “none of the other younger potential candidates for the Democratic nomination currently has anything approaching widespread support from party voters,” Quinnipiac pollster Peter A. Brown said.

Biden, 70, has remained relatively quiet about another presidential bid, which would be his third run for the White House if he chooses to run. In April, son Beau Biden, Delaware’s attorney general, said in an interview with The New York Times, “It’s no secret that he’s thinking about this,” but added, “he hasn’t made up his mind.”

Joe Biden heads to Columbia, S.C., this weekend where he will deliver remarks at the South Carolina Democratic Party’s annual Jefferson Jackson Dinner and attend Jim Clyburn’s World Famous Fish Fry, two opportunities for the vice president to test the waters in the early primary state.

But if Biden has designs on moving from the vice president’s residence to the White House in 2016, today’s poll suggests that Clinton poses a grave threat.

Put the former first lady and New York senator, 65, back into the presidential mix and, at this point, she blows the rest of the field out of the water, amassing the support of 65 percent of Democrats. Biden drops from the top of the heap to the low double digits -- 13 percent -- creating a Grand Canyon-like 52 percentage point gap between the two potential candidates.

In such a scenario, the rest of the field -- Cuomo, 55, Patrick, 56, O’Malley, 50, and Warner, 58--  are all languishing in the low single digits. At the same time, the percentage of Democratic voters who say they don’t know who they would support eases to 14 percent.

An earlier Quinnipiac poll taken in March showed Clinton’s beating three possible Republican contenders in head-to-head match ups: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Wisconsin congressman and former GOP vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan.

Quinnipiac released Thursday’s poll on the same day that the Democratic group, Emily’s List, started a campaign to put a woman in the White House. Emily’s List is being careful not to make the effort a cheering session for Clinton, but its president, Stephanie Schriock, acknowledged the obvious in a CNN Op-Ed.

“There’s one name on all our minds: Hillary Clinton,” she wrote. “Voters across the country are excited about her possible run.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Founder of Hillary Clinton SuperPAC: ‘No Doubt She’s Gonna Run’ in 2016

ABC/Martin H. Simon(WASHINGTON) -- Hillary Clinton had not even stepped down from her post as Secretary of State, when a superPAC supporting her run for president in 2016 was filed with the Federal Election Commission.  The superPAC's website launched over the weekend.

Allida Black is the chair and founder of the group, and says she is, as the superPAC is named, "Ready for Hillary."

"I've been waiting for Hillary all my life.  But I am more than ready this time," says Black, who campaigned for Clinton in 14 states in 2008.

Clinton has not said whether she will throw her hat in the ring, telling ABC News in her last television interview as secretary of state that she is "flattered and honored" at the intense interest in whether she might run for president in 2016.

"I have no doubt she's gonna run," says Black.  "She knows there's this huge groundswell.  She sees the challenges.  She's not gonna say no.  Not because of her, but because of us."

But there are a lot of other big résumé Democrats out there as potential 2016 candidates, like New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Vice President Joe Biden.  Black says it is not their time.

"Hillary is the leader that the country needs.  I mean she's been president of the world really for the past four years," says the George Washington University professor and historian.  "She spent her whole life getting ready."

SuperPACs played a big role in the 2012 election; Mitt Romney's superPAC poured more than $80 million into his campaign.  Some were as well funded as entire presidential campaigns.  

Black did not have a specific goal for how much money "Ready for Hillary" will be able to raise, but expects a lot from supporters.

"We're gonna need that gazillion dollars.  And we will get that gazillion dollars," she says.  "We have the contacts, we have the skills, we have the passion, and we have the people on the ground to pull it off."

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Hillary Clinton Delivers Final Words as Secretary of State

AAMIR QURESHI/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton delivered her last official remarks as America's top envoy on Thursday, although the public undoubtedly has not heard the last from her.

Speaking at the Council on Foreign Relations, Clinton stayed on message in describing how the nation must move forward amid an ever-changing and increasingly dangerous international landscape.

According to Clinton, "We need a new architecture for this new world...We have to be smart about how we use our power...because as the world has changed, so too have the levers of power that can most effectively shape international affairs."

During her tenure, Clinton said she tried to employ various methods of widening America's engagement in world affairs that included staying on top of advancements in technology, supporting human rights and assisting the development of U.S. partners.

Meanwhile, the outgoing secretary of state, who will be replaced Friday by Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, said that the only way the world can truly progress is by recognizing that women from all nations must never be regarded as second-class citizens.

She told the Council, "If women and girls everywhere were treated as equal to men in rights, dignity, and opportunity, we would see political and economic progress everywhere."

Clinton has said her first goal upon retirement is to get some much-needed rest and then work on various projects.  Speculation is that if her health is good, Clinton will seek the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Obama, Hillary Clinton Go from Bitter Rivals to Bosom Buddies

SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- In something of a parting gift, President Obama is making abundantly clear his deep support and fondness for outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who is leaving wide open a possible presidential run in 2016.

Sitting together for their first joint interview, you could almost forget that they once politically bludgeoned each other in the 2008 Democratic primary.

“I’m going to miss her,” Obama told CBS News’ Steve Croft on 60 Minutes.  “Wish she was sticking around.”

“A few years ago it would have been seen as improbable,” Clinton admitted, before explaining that she ultimately agreed to take the position as secretary of state “because we both love our country.”

“I’ll tell you what I finally thought.  You know, if the roles had been reversed, and I had ended up winning, I would have desperately wanted him to be in my cabinet,” Clinton said.

Sitting casually next to each other, laughing and smiling, the president and Clinton praised one another effusively.

“I consider her a strong friend,” Obama said, while Clinton described their relationship as “warm” and “close.”

Obama said he proposed the joint interview because he wanted to publicly say “thank you” to Clinton for all of her hard work.  For those eagerly looking for hints of Clinton’s future ambitions, however, the interview certainly felt like a political endorsement.

Clinton notably offered no outright denial when asked about her plans for 2016.

“Obviously the president and I care deeply about what’s going to happen for our country in the future and I don’t think either he or I can make predictions about what’s going to happen tomorrow or the next year,” she said.

“I am still secretary of state and forbidden from even hearing these questions,” Clinton joked when asked about her future.

The president brushed off the question.

“You guys are incorrigible,” he told Croft of the press.  “I was inaugurated four days ago and you’re talking about elections four years from now.”

Clinton declared herself in good health, following her concussion last December that led to a blood clot.

“I still have some lingering effects from falling on my head and having the blood clot,” she said, still wearing her glasses.  “But the doctors tell me that will all recede.  And so, thankfully, I’m looking forward to being at full speed.”

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Poll: Hillary Clinton More Popular than Joe Biden

AAMIR QURESHI/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Of two potential Democratic successors to Barack Obama, one has a clear advantage in personal popularity: Hillary Clinton, whose favorability rating exceeds Joe Biden's by a hefty 19 percentage points in the latest ABC News/Washington Post poll.

Clinton, set to testify before Congress on Wednesday about the Benghazi attack, appears undamaged by the security failure that led to the death of the U.S. ambassador to Libya: Sixty-seven percent of Americans see her favorably overall -- numerically a new high in her long career in the public spotlight, and essentially unchanged in recent months.

Biden, for his part, is seen favorably by many fewer Americans, 48 percent, vs. 37 percent unfavorable.  That’s a slight improvement over his break-even rating this summer during the presidential campaign, but worse than the consistent majority positive ratings he received immediately preceding and following the 2008 campaign.

See a PDF with full results, charts and tables here.

The outgoing secretary of state also outperforms the vice president in intensity of sentiment in this poll, produced for ABC by Langer Research Associates.  More than twice as many Americans see Clinton “strongly” favorably than strongly unfavorably -- 35 vs. 14 percent -- while Biden breaks even, 22 vs. 23 percent, in this measure.

Not only the visibility of Clinton’s job as the country’s top diplomat, but also its relative distance from the political battles in Washington, likely have benefited her image.  Biden’s position as vice president carries greater risk, given his closer proximity to the political fray.  His reputation for sometimes controversial off-the-cuff comments likewise may have done him some harm.

Clinton also shapes up well against prominent Republicans, as measured in polling last summer.  Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) was largely unknown; Jeb Bush, former governor of Florida, was underwater, 36-45 percent favorable-unfavorable; and the public divided essentially evenly on Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI), the 2012 GOP nominee for vice president.

Clinton is more popular than Biden across groups -- notably, in partisan terms, among independents.  She’s seen more favorably than the vice president by 13 and 17 points among Democrats and Republicans, respectively, but by 23 points among independents, 65 percent vs. 42 percent for Biden.  This gap reflects both more negative opinions of Biden and greater indecision about him.

Clinton’s intensity advantage is apparent among partisans as well.  Six in 10 of her own party’s supporters see her strongly favorably, while 44 percent say so of Biden.  Among Republicans, more have a strongly negative opinion of Biden than Clinton, 45 vs. 32 percent.  And among independents, strongly positive views of Clinton outnumber intensely negative ones by 2-1, while for Biden, it’s reversed.

Clinton’s popularity surplus over Biden tops out among Hispanics (29 points, 73 vs. 44 percent favorable) in large part because many more have no opinion of Biden.  By contrast, both are broadly popular among blacks -- 83 and 79 percent, respectively.  Clinton outdistances Biden by the same amount among whites as she does overall.

Notably, no gender gap is apparent: Both possible 2016 competitors do better among women than men -- and Clinton outscores Biden by essentially the same amount among both sexes.  And finally, for the record: Neither has expressed an intention actually to run for president.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Hillary Clinton Ready to Testify About Benghazi in Two Weeks

SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- After weeks of speculation, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton fully intends to testify before Congress about the Sept. 11 U.S. consulate attack in Benghazi, Libya.

Clinton, who couldn't make the December hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee because of a concussion she suffered from a fall, is scheduled to speak with lawmakers on Jan. 22.

Sen. Bob Corker, who sits on the committee, told MSNBC on Tuesday that the outgoing secretary seems "anxious" to deliver testimony about the security failures that resulted in the deaths of Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans.

The Tennessee Republican also suggested that following Clinton's appearance, it's possible that senators could quickly move to the confirmation hearings for Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry, Clinton's presumed successor.

This could all take place the day after President Obama is sworn in for a second term.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

Hillary Clinton Returns to Work After Blood Clot

State Department photo by Nick Merrill/(WASHINGTON) -- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton got a standing ovation from colleagues as she returned to work on Monday. She was also the subject of some office ribbing as colleagues presented her with a football helmet and jersey.

Clinton had been away from work while recovering from a fall where she hit her head. Doctors later detected a blood clot.

The State Department released three new photos of Clinton at the staff meeting where she was surprised with the gifts by Deputy Secretary Tom Nides.

[ PHOTOS: Hillary Clinton Returns to Work (PHOTO 1) (PHOTO 2) (PHOTO 3) ]

According to State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland, Clinton entered the room to a rousing standing ovation from the 75 people gathered for the meeting of top State Department officials. Nides then presented her with a box and said, “As you know, Washington is a contact sport.”

In the box was the helmet with the State Department seal. Clinton is shown beaming as she holds it up in one of the photos. She also received a blue football jersey with the name Clinton on the top and with the number 112, which represents the number of countries that she has visited as Secretary of State.

“She loved it and thought it was cool,” said Nuland.

Nuland said Clinton stressed to the State Department’s top officials that she wants everyone to work hard to ensure that every recommendation by the Benghazi Accountability Review Board is implemented “by the time her successor is sworn in and takes up his duties.”

Nuland said Clinton said she will testify on the Hill about the Benghazi attack “while she is sitting Secretary of State,” and that she is doing other internal meetings Monday at the State Department.

Clinton had been out for weeks due to a series of medical concerns. She cancelled a trip to North Africa and the Middle East and appointments for testifying to Congress about the U.S. attack in Benghazi because of a flu, concussion and blood clot.

The day after Clinton was released from the hospital last week, the State Department announced her plans to return to work.

Last week Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., began making preparations at the State Department to take Clinton’s place once she steps down, as she has said she will, in coming months.

Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio

John Kerry to Be Nominated to Succeed Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State

Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- President Obama will on Friday nominate Sen. John Kerry to be secretary of state, likely succeeding Hillary Clinton, sources confirmed to ABC News.

Kerry, 69, the Massachusetts Democrat who was his party's nominee for president in 2004, chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and is unlikely to face fierce opposition from senators across the aisle.

Kerry's nomination is the only one expected from the White House Friday afternoon, although other cabinet members, including Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, are expected to leave the administration in the coming weeks.

An earlier possible State Department nominee, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice, withdrew from consideration for the position when Republicans began to mobilize against her.  At issue was Rice's involvement in the Obama administration's response to the deadly Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.

Kerry's nomination will create an opening in the Senate. Sen. Scott Brown, the moderate Republican who lost his bid for re-election in November to consumer advocate Elizabeth Warren, is expected to consider a run for Kerry's seat.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Is Hillary Clinton Faking Her Concussion?

FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- The State Department pushed back Wednesday against assertions made by conservatives that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is faking a serious injury to keep from testifying about the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya.

Earlier in the week, former United Nations Ambassador John Bolton, who served under then-President George W. Bush, told Fox News that the outgoing secretary had come down with what's referred to as a "diplomatic illness," which would give her an excuse not to answer lawmakers' questions they have on the Benghazi siege that left Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans dead.

Clinton has been laid up at home since last week when she reportedly collapsed from the effects of a stomach flu and suffered a mild concussion.

According to State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland, Bolton was out of line for insinuating that Clinton was feigning an illness, telling reporters, "I can assure you, [Bolton is] not privy to any inside information....It's really unfortunate that in times like this people make wild speculation based on no information."

Other conservatives have speculated that Clinton is faking a concussion, including blogger Lucianne Goldberg, who tweeted, "Hillary has given us a great new excuse.  Don't call in with a cold or a bad tooth.  Just say you have a concussion.  It can last for days."

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Benghazi Report Finds 'Systematic Failure' by State Department

GIANLUIGI GUERCIA/AFP/GettyImages(WASHINGTON) -- The State Department has released its independent, internal investigation into the Sept. 11 attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, concluding the attack was the result of the State Department's "systematic failure" in addressing the security needs of the consulate.

The 39-page unclassified report, released Monday, is highly critical of decisions made by senior officials from the Diplomatic Security and Near East Affairs bureaus as demonstrating "a lack of proactive leadership and management ability in their responses to security concerns posed by the Special Mission Benghazi, given the deteriorating threat environment and the lack of reliable host government protection."

The attacked killed Ambassador Chris Stevens, information specialist Sean Smith and former Navy SEALs Glen Doherty and Tyrone Woods, who were contractors working for the CIA.  Stevens' slaying was the first of a U.S. ambassador since 1988.

[ CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL REPORT ]

The investigation was conducted by the Accountability Review Board appointed by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in late September.  The five members spent the last two months interviewing over 100 officials and pouring over thousands of documents and watching hours of video, before issuing conclusions and recommendations to Clinton about what happened before the attack and how another attack may be prevented.

The board concluded that several decisions in Washington left the security posture at the Benghazi consulate "grossly inadequate to deal with the attack that took place."  However, the report did not single out any individual officials, finding no "reasonable cause to determine that any individual U.S. government employee breached his or her duty."

The report makes the point that the State Department has been subject to so many budget cuts from Congress over the years that there is a culture of "conditioning a few State Department managers to favor restricting the use of resources as a general orientation," and gives several examples of how Washington failed the staff at the Benghazi consulate, essentially vindicating claims made by regional security officers that senior officials in Washington consistently turned down security requests from the Embassy in Tripoli.

"Overall, the number of Bureau of Diplomatic Security (DS) security staff in Benghazi on the day of the attack and in the months and weeks leading up to it was inadequate, despite repeated requests from Special Mission Benghazi and Embassy Tripoli for additional staffing," said the report.  "Board members found a pervasive realization among personnel who served in Benghazi that the Special Mission was not a high priority for Washington when it came to security-related requests, especially those relating to staffing."

Though the state department has repeatedly pointed to the local militia in Benghazi as being an integral part of the security plan at the consulate, in reality, the militia proved inadequate and ineffective, according to the report's findings.

While the report had harsh criticism for the bureaucrats in Washington, it had nothing but praise for security officials on the ground, whom it said "performed with courage and readiness to risk their lives to protect their colleagues, in a near impossible situation."

The report sheds new light on the death of Stevens as well.  U.S. officials still do not know who exactly transported him to a Benghazi hospital after finding him in the consulate after the smoke cleared, calling them "good Samaritans."  The investigation found that doctors tried for 45 minutes to revive the ambassador, who was likely dead from smoke inhalation when he arrived at the hospital.

The Accountability Review Board also disputed any claims that the Pentagon did not respond in a timely manner or turned down assistance requests.  An unmanned drone was dispatched to Benghazi on the night of the attack, but other military options were too far away to provide immediate help.

"The interagency response was timely and appropriate, but there simply was not enough time for armed U.S. military assets to have made a difference," said the report, which went on to praise the military response.  "The safe evacuation of all U.S. government personnel from Benghazi twelve hours after the initial attack and subsequently to Ramstein Air Force Base was the result of exceptional U.S. government coordination and military response and helped save the lives of two severely wounded Americans."

Despite the sharp criticism for the State Department, the board does make it clear that the gunmen who carried out the attack are ultimately responsible.

"The Board remains fully convinced that responsibility for the tragic loss of life, injuries, and damage to U.S. facilities and property rests solely and completely with the terrorists who perpetrated the attack," the report said.

But the report finds that there were warning signs; a sharp increase of attacks on Western interests in Benghazi -- a knowledge from the intelligence community that even if there was no actionable intelligence on a future attack, it was known that radical Islamic groups were operating in the area -- that required better planning and protection than what the consulate had.

Clinton, who is at home recovering from a stomach flu that caused her to faint and suffer a concussion, received the report Monday morning.  After reviewing it, she issued eight-page cover letters to the House Foreign Affairs and Senate Foreign Relations committees, where she said that she accepted the report's conclusions in their entirety.

"The Accountability Review Board report provides a clear-eyed look at serious, systemic challenges that we have already begun to fix," said Clinton.  "I am grateful for its recommendations for how we can reduce the chances of this kind of tragedy happening again. I accept every one of them."

She added that she has already established a task force that met for the first time on Tuesday, which will make sure that the board's findings are implemented "quickly and completely."

Clinton also addressed the issue of chain-and-command and bureaucracy problems between the field and Washington.  She announced she is naming the first-ever Deputy Assistant Secretary of State of High Threat Posts, a senior level position devoted solely to focusing on security at high risk posts.  

She also said that in the future, regional Assistant Secretaries based in Washington at the highest levels will have greater responsibility and accountability for their people and posts in the field.

 Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio