Hillary Clinton has yet to declare her intentions to run for president, but she already has the makings of a campaign team and donor network — many of whom are meeting in New York Friday – and now she has something resembling a campaign ad.
At a meeting of top donors and strategists associated with the Clinton effort Friday, the pro-Clinton group Correct the Record will unveil a slickly produced four-minute video promoting Clinton’s would-be presidential campaign. The video includes interviews with dozens of Americans who want Clinton to run in 2016. It will be first played at the event hosted by another pro-Clinton group, Ready for Hillary.
Related: Can anyone stop Hillary Clinton?
The only thing missing from this would-be candidate introduction ad, called, “The American Dream: Hillary Clinton Writing A New Chapter,” is the candidate herself. Clinton appears in video snippets of speeches she delivered on behalf of Democrats in Iowa and Louisiana this year, but mostly the video focuses on Americans explaining straight-to-camera why they want Clinton to run for president in 2016.
“As the video highlights, folks from across the country voiced their enthusiasm about Hillary Clinton’s strength, resiliency and her vision for the future,” said Correct the Record’s Adrienne Elrod. “The prevailing message heard was ‘run, Hillary, run!’”
The video is not actually a campaign ad, as there is no Hillary Clinton campaign. And Correct the Record, as a project of a super PAC, is legally prohibited from coordinating with candidates. But it’s one more sign that the people around Clinton are doing everything they can to pave the way for her to run.
Alex Seitz-Wald