Hillary Clinton Campaign Press Release - 24 Hours Later, the Reviews Are In

Top pundits on Hillary's announcement: 'brilliant,' 'bold,' 'I'm blown away' ... Clinton announcement hailed in blogs as 'handled perfectly,' 'profoundly moving,' 'news of a generation'

24 hours after Senator Clinton announced her intent to establish a presidential exploratory committee, the announcement is garnering rave reviews. Pundits from major news outlets and both parties hailed the announcement as "brilliant" and "bold," with bloggers calling it "exciting," "handled perfectly," and "profoundly moving."

Pundits Across The Spectrum

NPR'S MARA LIASSON -- 'VERY EFFECTIVE...CAME ACROSS AS VERY WARM AND ENGAGING': "I think in Mrs. Clinton's case, it allowed her to do something very effective. It was an extremely cozy setting. It looked like her living room in Chappaqua, and she came across as very warm and engaging. She was sitting on this big comfy sofa talking in a very conversational tone, and this is the way her supporters always say she is in smaller groups."

POLITICAL CONSULTANT PETER FENN -- THE 'KIND OF A BEGINNING' THAT WILL 'CONVINCE DEMOCRATS...SHE CAN WIN': "One of the things, by starting now, with this kind of a beginning is that it may do a lot to convince Democrats initially that she can win and then you move on to the Republicans. Look, she's got to do this in stages. She knows that. She is very smart. People around her are very smart. I think right now this puts her now more in the driver's seat than folks would have anticipated." [MSNBC, 1/20/07]

ANALYST CHARLIE COOK -- 'AN EXAMPLE OF WHAT'S TO COME...NOTHING LEFT TO CHANCE': "In addition to the video clip, the site includes a political analysis of recent polls suggesting she can win, as well as invitations to contribute and sponsor local events to support her. 'This is an example of what's to come,' Cook said. 'It has lots of bells and whistle. There's nothing left to chance.'" [LA Times, 1/20/07]

FOX NEWS' CARL CAMERON -- SUCCESS OF ANNOUNCEMENT SHOWS 'WHY TO SO MANY SHE WAS ALWAYS THE 800-LB GORILLA IN THE RACE': "Hillary Rodham Clinton is showing why to so many she was always the 800-pound gorilla in the race. She has dominated political news all week...her web site today was getting as many as 100 hits a minute." [Fox News, 1/20/07]

ABC'S MARK HALPERIN (co-author of THE WAY TO WIN)-- 'BOLD...MAKING IT CLEAR SHE IS READY FOR BATTLE': "The bold decision by Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., to launch her presidential campaign days before President Bush's State of the Union address on Tuesday is the kind of aggressive move that she has normally shied way from during her political career....With this first move, she is making it clear she is ready for the battle." [ABC News, 1/20/07]

TIME MAGAZINE'S MIKE ALLEN -- ANNOUNCEMENT DEMONSTRATES A 'REAL PLAN,' REPUBLICANS SHOULD 'BE CAREFUL WHAT TO WISH FOR': "Alex, you saw from the very beginning that Senator Clinton wants to make it clear that she is going to talk to people about this as opposed to try to go out there as some inevitable machine. The emails popped up on our blackberries and the emails of her supporters sometime between 9:00 and 9:25 this morning and it said the words everybody has been waiting for, Clinton campaign, let the conversation begin. Alex, Republicans now are getting what they've been wishing for, they've been blowing out their birthday cakes for years and years. The question is, did it get a little smoky because of that. We all know to be careful what to wish for. We have with this announcement the real plan that Senator Clinton has. [MSNBC, 1/20/07]

MSNBC MEDIA ANALYST STEVE ABUDATO -- 'HILLARY MADE A BETTER CONNECTION, MORE POWER, MORE PERSONAL CONNECTION THAT SHE EVER MADE BEFORE...I'M BLOWN AWAY': "Hillary made a better connection, a more powerful, more personal connection than she has ever made before. I have to tell you, I'm blown away by the fact that she comes across as softer, kinder, more accessible, more likable than I have ever seen before...My mother text messaged me and she said, son, this is big for women." [MSNBC, 1/20/07]

PAT BUCHANAN -- 'A BRILLIANT MOVE,' HILLARY 'AT HER BEST': "I find this a brilliant move this morning. I listened to twice to Hillary Clinton make that statement. She is at her best in that format. It is soft, it is feminine, it is conversational. That is where she is really at her best. I think this is going to run not only on the Internet --- we've run it a number of times today -- every other cable network will. It will be lead story on all the front pages tomorrow. Both Russert and Stephanopoulos and Schieffer will deal with it. I think the suddenness of the move, the surprise of it, the way she is going to come out next week and start having a daily conversation, this is Hillary's format." [MSNBC, 1/20/07 ]

LA TIMES -- ANNOUNCEMENT 'UNDERSCORES THE WELL-ORGANIZED NATURE OF HER BID': "Analysts said Clinton's announcement and the accompanying roll-out of her campaign Web site underscores the well-organized nature of her bid." [LA Times, 1/20/07]

POLITICAL CONSULTANT BOB SHRUM -- A 'BRILLIANT ANNOUNCEMENT...IT HAS REACHED EVERY DEMOCRATIC ACTIVIST IN THE COUNTRY': "Let me say in some ways I think this was a brilliant announcement. What better day could there be, than two days -- two years - before thank heaven we inaugurate a new president. She is going to dominate the Sunday talk shows. This is going to dominate the Sunday papers, and it has reached every democratic activist in the country." [MSNBC, 1/20/07]

Bloggers

LEFT COASTER (Steve Soto): "One piece of conventional political wisdom about a Hillary candidacy is that she cannot win a national election because women voters will not support her in enough numbers to offset the men who will vote against her automatically. Maybe this piece of CW is no longer operative. Hillary's support among women has gone up in the last twelve months, and especially amongst younger and older women."

DAILY KOS (Devilstower) -- "I'm overjoyed to see a woman running. I'd be happier if women candidates made up half the options (or heck, let's have all women for a season, just to help even things out), but right now I'm happy enough that a woman is running, and that she's considered a serious, first-tier candidate."

MYDD (Matt Stoller) - "Here's my sense of where the campaigns are. I'm no fan, but Hillary Clinton's announcement has been handled perfectly. The blog outreach was well-done, and it seems that calls went out to the right people at the right time.... Clinton is a very strong candidate and no one has the chops to take her down right now."

SEEING THE FOREST (Dave Johnson) - "People say Hillary Clinton has "baggage" and is "divisive." Actually she has been investigated more thoroughly than almost anyone in the country's history and they found nothing at all. It isn't Hillary who is divisive, it's the people making all the accusations."

THE CARPETBAGGER REPORT - "Clinton enters the race, without a doubt, at the top of the top tier. I've heard all the various concerns about her candidacy, but I don't have any doubt that she has what it takes to win. Indeed, Clinton brings an enormous amount of talent, experience, and intelligence to the table."

DAILY KOS DIARY (nyceve) - "I'm an open and honest person, and I'm profoundly moved by her announcement. What was unimaginable just a few decades ago, is now something we can almost touch."

TAYLOR MARSH - "Sitting in a living room setting, Senator Hillary Clinton made one simple statement that changed the landscape of the '08 presidential tournament to come. (To add, I got an email about this event this morning just after 6:00 a.m.) Because when the first woman to run for president, with an actual chance of winning, puts her name and reputation on the line, it becomes news of the day, week, even a generation."

TALK LEFT - It is exciting to have a serious female candidate for President.

MYDD (Jerome Armstrong) - "And as blogger savvy as John Edwards was in outreach, Clinton internet team had the emails of bloggers to notify them separate from the press (no such outreach from the Obama camp). The website has the clean, Kerry-2004 look about it. A smart "write our first post" call to action on the website. The announcement of "an unprecedented series of video webcasts beginning Monday, January 22nd at 7pm EST for three nights" creates a quick narrative of interaction and response around Bush's SOTU address."

OUTSIDE THE BELTWAY - After nearly eight years of speculation, Hillary Clinton has announced her candidacy for president.... she has done a remarkable job these past several years getting out of her husband's shadow, positioning herself as more moderate than previously thought, and garnering bipartisan praise for collegiality and hard work in the Senate.

DAILY KOS DIARY (Yellow Dog Blue) - "How has she survived and thrived? Not by heavying up her armor. Not by engaging and overwhelming her opponents. Not even by appealing for public sympathy. Instead Hillary has just gone her business being a Senator, building personal relationships and support, getting and using power. And I really admire that."