Clinton’s spokesman has said for the last two weeks that the former secretary of state’s public schedule would be quiet, and it won’t be until Jan. 21the day after President Barack Obama delivers the State of the Union addressthat Clinton will return the spotlight with two events in Canada.
The dearth in events is noticeable, even with the natural quiet of the holidays, when compared to her Republican counterparts and considering Clinton’s prevalence last year. She headlined random trade conferences in massive convention centers, went from bookstore-to-bookstore hawking her new memoir and picked up paychecks all over the country for paid, high-profile speaking gigs. But for the last month — as Clinton approaches the point where other Democrats says she has to make up her mind — none of that has happened.
Clinton’s absences also comes at a time when the Republican side of the 2016 race is feverishly heating up:
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The Washington Post also reported on Tuesday that Clinton has recruited Joel Benenson as a chief strategist and Jim Margolis as a media advisor. Politico has also reported that Benenson, an operative who worked for Obama in 2008 and 2012, has signed on to help Clinton.
Even as Clinton sits back, Democrats thinking about running haven’t been making waves like Republicans. Jim Webb had knee surgery this month, but has shied away from any media interaction, opting, instead, to continually update his Twitter. Elizabeth Warren has given high profile speeches, but emphatically said “no” on Tuesday when asked whether she will run for president in 2016. And politicians like Sen. Bernie Sanders and Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley have continued to reiterate that they are strongly considering a run at the presidency.
CNN’s Ashley Killough, Jeremy Diamond, Mark Preston and Peter Hamby contributed to this report.
