Saturday Morning News

Hillary Clinton to Become Official Candidate With Sunday Announcement

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MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Now, on to politics. The latest on election 2000, Hillary Rodham Clinton is making her official move from political wife to political candidate. Tomorrow, she formally announces her candidacy for U.S. Senate from the state of New York.

Kathleen Koch joining us now from the White House with more on that.

Good morning, Kathleen.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.

As you said, this is the weekend when Hillary Rodham Clinton transitions officially from having that conversation with New Yorkers to actually becoming a candidate for the New York Senate seat. Now, she will be making the announcement at 3:00 p.m. tomorrow at State University of New York in Purchase, and CNN will be carrying that announcement, of course, live.

Standing there at her side, where she has been for him throughout his political career, of course, will be President Clinton, though it's not exactly clear what role Mr. Clinton will play in the ceremony. Generally, the honor of introducing the candidate goes to the spouse or to the senior politician present and, of course, the president is both. But there are whisperings that because of lingering concerns over Mrs. Clinton's status as an outsider still in the state of New York that perhaps a New York politician will be tapped for that duty.

Afterwards, the Clintons plan to begin attending some campaign events and there is also a great deal of interest and it's somewhat of a mystery as to what role the president will play in the first lady's campaign.

Earlier this week, White House Press Secretary Joe Lockhart said that the president is going to "do whatever is going to be effective for her campaign" and that that would be determined as the campaign unfolds.

This, of course, will also be a very big weekend for the man who is expected to be the first lady's challenger for the New York Senate seat, Mayor Rudy Giuliani of New York. Not one to be ignored, he is going to be appearing on five Sunday morning news talk shows, count them, five. At that point we are expected to hear more about charges that came out this week that the first lady may not have adequately reimbursed taxpayers for campaign trips that she made on government aircraft. Just a taste, perhaps, of the nasty campaign to come.

So what will the White House do now with the mostly absent first lady? Press Secretary Joe Lockhart again says that the White House will manage. The first lady said that she's going to try to be here for special White House dinners, formal events with visiting dignitaries and Lockhart has said operations here won't be impacted. Where they need to fill in, they will.

Reporting live at the White House, I'm Kathleen Koch.

O'BRIEN: Of course, Mrs. Clinton will be the first first lady to run for U.S. Senate. What is the agenda? The answer might lie in what she did as first lady.

CNN White House Correspondent Kelly Wallace with a look at that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KELLY WALLACE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): From the beginning, Hillary Rodham Clinton broke new ground as first lady, leading her husband's efforts to make health coverage universal, testifying on Capitol Hill.

HILLARY CLINTON: I'm here as an American citizen concerned about the health of her family and the health of her nation.

WALLACE: The experience was a political disaster. Critics not only attacked the plan, but questioned the power she wielded in the White House. Now, Mrs. Clinton admits she's learned a few lessons.

CLINTON: But I now come from the school of smaller steps.

WALLACE: Smaller and often less public steps, she pushed for government health insurance for children of low income workers, now federal law.

SEN. CHRISTOPHER DODD (D), CONNECTICUT: When I want to get the child care numbers improved in the White House's budget I don't call the president, I don't call the Office of Management and Budget, I don't call the chief of staff, I call the first lady.

WALLACE: Most of Mrs. Clinton's policy efforts focused on children, including kids waiting to be adopted.

CLINTON: Foster care should never be a permanent solution.

WALLACE: She lobbied Congress to increase incentives for adoption. Her husband signed it into law. She also convened two White House conferences, one on child care, the other on brain development in early childhood. Matthew Melmed worked with Mrs. Clinton on programs for children under four.

MATTHEW MELMED, ZERO TO THREE: She had a very pragmatic approach about what was the art of the possible and how could we try to move that forward. And I believe that that's how she was able to accomplish as much as she has been able to accomplish.

WALLACE: Mrs. Clinton also traveled to more countries than any other first lady, focusing attention on women's health in Pakistan, promoting women's rights in China and advocating micro loans in South Africa. Aides say the first lady's policy achievements are an untold story.

LISA MUSCATINE, PRESS SECRETARY TO HILLARY CLINTON: I think that after '94 a lot of people just assumed that because health care didn't go quite the way she wanted it to, that was going to be the end of her involvement and quite the opposite has been true.

WALLACE (on camera): And if the first lady makes her way to the Senate, her aides say the venue might change but her focus on children and families will not.

Kelly Wallace, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

O'BRIEN: CNN is planning live coverage of Mrs. Clinton's announcement. It begins tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Mrs. Clinton's expected opponent will be among the guests tomorrow on CNN's LATE EDITION. New York City's Republican Mayor Rudy Giuliani is Wolf Blitzer's guest, noon Eastern Time for that.

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