Clinton Finds a Target in Bush

Rick Klein: “As Republicans prepare for their debate, it’s clear that Hillary Clinton is already involved in hers – or, at least, the one she wants to be having. While GOPers tangle with each other, she is choosing to debate Republicans rather than her fellow Democrats. Not just any Republican, either (though she’d gladly take on Donald Trump when given the opening): Twice in the past week she’s gone out of her way to engage Jeb Bush directly on the campaign trail.””

Tuesday’s swift attack, on Twitter and later at a campaign event, engaged Bush on a quote where he later said he ‘misspoke,’ when he said as an aside in a riff on Planned Parenthood, ‘I’m not sure we need a half a billion dollars for women’s health issues.’ That’s in Clinton’s campaign wheelhouse, of course. The broader point, though, is that she’s looking for pitching on that part of the plate, so long as it’s served up by a Republican.”

“Any day Clinton can have herself running against an opponent, not just compared against herself, is a win in that campaign’s scorebook. It’s actually a dynamic that fuels the theory that a Joe Biden candidacy is good for Clinton. For now, though, she’s happy to swing at the easiest Republican pitching she can find.”