Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton may be in Chicago in what some are calling a pre-cursored campaign move for the 2016 presidential election, but it's her husband, former President of the United States Bill Clinton that is making headlines.
Clinton sat down with Arizona Senator John McCain, a harsh President Barack Obama critic, on Tuesday in a private event for the McCain Institute for International Leadership in Manhattan. Though the event was closed to press, POLITICO obtained a number of audio recordings from attendees.
Clinton agreed that President Obama should take greater action against anti-Assad rebels in Syria, claiming the American public elects government officials to make the tough choices, "to see down the road," and "to win," according to what can be heard on the recordings.
The former president also told Senator McCain that in his experience, especially overseeing decisions on Kosovo and Bosnia in his administration, that, as acting President, it is better to do something than nothing at all.
"Some people say, 'Okay, see what a big mess it is? Stay out!' I think that's a big mistake. I agree with you about this," Clinton told McCain, according to the recordings. "Sometimes it's just best to get caught trying, as long as you don't overcommit - like, as long as you don't make an improvident commitment."
"Nobody is asking for American soldiers in Syria," the POLITICO recordings played. "The only question is now that Russians [and others] are in there head over heels, 90 miles to nothing, should we try to do something to try to slow their gains and rebalance the power so that these rebel groups have a decent chance, if they're supported by a majority of the people to prevail?"
While Clinton was sharing his opinion on foreign policy, his wife, Hillary, was visiting Chicago reigniting rumors of a presidential run in 2016, aligning herself in images with President Obama and sitting alongside former chief of staff Rahm Emmanuel during the annual CGI confab.
According to The Independent, the former first lady will be speaking on the panel at the confab, organized by her husband, called "American Dreams, American Realities" will position her as to whether she is on board for a presidential run.
The panel will take place on Thursday.
