Hillary Clinton speaking at a "Get Out the Caucus" rally in Des Moines, Iowa, as part of her 2016 presidential campaign

Hillary Clinton, the nominee of the Democratic Party for president of the United States in 2016, has taken positions on political issues while serving as First Lady of Arkansas (1979–81; 1983–92), First Lady of the United States (1993–2001); as U.S. Senator from New York (2001–2009); and serving as the United States Secretary of State (2009–2013).

In accordance with longstanding custom, during her time as Secretary of State she largely avoided taking stances on most domestic political issues.[1][2] In 2015, she announced her candidacy for the presidency. Clinton won the Democratic primaries and formally became the party's nominee at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. She lost the electoral college and the 2016 US presidential election to billionaire real estate mogul Donald Trump.

Over her career, Clinton has developed a reputation as a "policy wonk" who frequently consults with expert advisors and is deeply involved in the details of policy proposals.[3][4][5] By August 2016, the Clinton campaign had released 38 policy proposals and 65 fact-sheets, totaling 112,735 words.[6]

Political philosophy [ edit ]

In her own words [ edit ]

In her 1996 book It Takes a Village, Clinton writes, "Most of us would describe ourselves as 'middle of the road'—liberal in some areas, conservative in others, moderate in most, neither exclusively pro- nor anti-government."[7] Clinton has stated that she prefers the term "progressive" to "liberal", explaining that "Unfortunately, in the last 30, 40 years, [the word 'liberal'] has been turned up on its head and it's been made to seem as though it is a word that describes big government, totally contrary to what its meaning was in the 19th and early 20th century. I prefer the word 'progressive,' which has a real American meaning, going back to the Progressive Era at the beginning of the 20th century."[8] Yale historian Beverly Gage claims this was due to the fact that "liberal" was considered "a term of opprobrium" by the time Bill and Hillary became involved in national politics, while the term "progressive" has consistently referred to vaguely positive notions of progress, from Republicans and Democrats alike, especially with regard to the Progressive Era.[8]

At a Democratic primary debate in June 2007, in response to the question of whether she would describe herself as a liberal, Clinton said: "I consider myself a modern progressive, someone who believes strongly in individual rights and freedoms, who believes that we are better as a society when we're working together and when we find ways to help those who may not have all the advantages in life get the tools they need to lead a more productive life for themselves and their family. So I consider myself a proud modern American progressive, and I think that's the kind of philosophy and practice that we need to bring back to American politics."[9]

In a September 2015 Women for Hillary event, Clinton said, "You know, I get accused of being kind of moderate and center. I plead guilty."[10]

When asked by Anderson Cooper in October 2015 how she reconciles being both a progressive and moderate, "Do you change your political identity based on who you're talking to? Just for the record, are you a progressive or a moderate?", Hillary answered "I'm a progressive. But I'm a progressive who likes to get things done. And I know how to find common ground, and I know how to stand my ground, and I have proved that in every position that I've had, even dealing with Republicans who never had a good word to say about me, honestly."[11]

Scales and rankings [ edit ]

Clinton's 2015 Crowdpac rating was −6.4 on a left-right scale, where −10 is the most liberal and 10 is the most conservative.[12] The score is an aggregate of primarily campaign contributions but also votes and speeches.[12] This represents a slight rightward shift from her 2008 rating of −6.9.[12]

Clinton is rated a "Hard-Core Liberal" according to the OnTheIssues.org scale, which is based on her public statements on social and economic issues.[13] According to FiveThirtyEight's review of this and other analyses, "Clinton was one of the most liberal members during her time in the Senate",[14] slightly more liberal than Barack Obama, "as liberal as Elizabeth Warren and barely more moderate than Bernie Sanders".[14] A New York Times analysis found that Clinton and Bernie Sanders voted the same 93 percent of the time in the two years they shared in the Senate (2007–2009), but also noted key areas of disagreement which possibly reflected "political calculations by Mrs. Clinton, who was preparing for a presidential run in 2008"[15]

Clinton "was the 11th most liberal member of the Senate" according to DW-NOMINATE, a multidimensional scaling method based on legislative votes.[16]

Interest groups [ edit ]

Clinton's lifetime rating from the American Conservative Union (based on Senate votes) is 8.13%, similar to that of Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and lower than that of President Barack Obama's rating while he served in the Senate.[17]

Economic policy [ edit ]

According to Vox, Clinton was more liberal on economic issues than President Barack Obama and former President Bill Clinton, and had a more liberal voting record than Obama when they both served in the United States Senate.[18]

According to a report by Moody's Analytics on Clinton's 2016 economic proposals, "Secretary Clinton's economic policies when taken together will result in a stronger U.S. economy under almost any scenario."[19] Clinton's proposals would, if enacted, create 10.4 million jobs during a four-year presidential term (3.2 million more than expected under current law).[19] GDP growth would be 2.7%, as opposed to the 2.3% expected under current law until 2020.[19][20] The report noted that her immigration proposal would increase the number of skilled workers in the economy, her infrastructure spending would help business productivity, and her paid family leave proposal would bring more people into the workforce.[19][21]

According to a Financial Times survey of economists, roughly 70% of the economists polled between July 28–29 said a Clinton victory in November would be positive for U.S. economic growth (compared with just under 14% for Trump).[22] According to a survey of National Association for Business Economics (NABE) members, 55% of business economists feel that Clinton would do the best job as president of managing the U.S. economy (with 15% choosing Gary Johnson, 15% saying that they did not know or did not have an opinion, and 14% choosing Donald Trump).[23] According to a survey by the Wall Street Journal, 13 of the 20 former Democratic members of the White House Council of Economic Advisers openly support Clinton, and none of the 20 opposes her.[24] Nineteen Nobel laureates in economics signed a letter endorsing Clinton, saying "Hillary Clinton is by far the superior presidential candidate for our economy and our country" than Donald Trump.[25][26]

Clinton's "infrastructure plan has been widely praised by economists across the political spectrum."[27] However, John H. Cochrane, an economist at the conservative Hoover Institution, argues that Clinton's infrastructure spending plan would have limited effects on economic growth.[28] He has also said that "a President Trump 'could be responsible for more lost jobs than anyone.'"[29]

The 2016 Clinton campaign's in-house economic advisors include Michael Shapiro and Michael Schmidt, who worked on economic policy in the Obama administration at the National Economic Council and Treasury Department, respectively.[30][31] The campaign's external advisory group includes Princeton professor Alan Krueger, former Treasury official and former chairperson of the U.S. Council of Economic Advisers; Princeton professor Alan Blinder, a member of the Council of Economic Advisers and a Federal Reserve official in the 1990s; liberal Columbia professor Joseph Stiglitz, a Nobel laureate, former World Bank chief economist and chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, and prominent critic of free-market fundamentalism and the management of globalization; MIT professor Simon Johnson, a former chief economist of the IMF; Duke professor Aaron Chatterji; Berkeley professor Christina Romer, a former chair of the Council of Economic Advisers in the Obama administration; and Heather Boushey, an expert on inequality and paid family leave who serves as the executive director and chief economist of the Washington Center for Equitable Growth.[31][32][33][34]

Bankruptcy [ edit ]

In 2001, Clinton voted to advance a bankruptcy reform bill that would have made it more difficult for borrowers to discharge their debt as part of bankruptcy proceedings. Clinton stated that her vote for the legislation was contingent on the inclusion of provisions intended to protect women, including allowing women to collect child support payments after the father has declared bankruptcy.[35] Credit card companies and banks supported the overhaul, as did women's groups, while consumer groups opposed the legislation. When explaining her vote, Clinton stated, "I will not vote for final passage of this bill if it comes back from conference if these kind of reforms are missing ... I am voting for this legislation because it is a work in progress, and it is making progress towards reform." The bill did not come up for a final vote that legislative session. When similar legislation came up again in 2005 but without the amendments added by Democrats in 2001, Clinton opposed the legislation.[35][36]

In 2006 and 2007, while in the Senate, Clinton introduced the Student Borrower Bill of Rights. The legislation "would have made it easier for cash-strapped student borrowers to pay back their loans, have their loans refinanced, qualify for income-based loan payments, and discharge student debt in bankruptcy."[37] The legislation did not pass at the time.[37]

Campaign finance [ edit ]

Clinton has said that she would, if elected President, introduce a constitutional amendment within the first 30 days of her presidency to overturn the Supreme Court's controversial decision in Citizens United v. FEC (2010),[38] which "launched a new era of unbridled fundraising" in U.S. elections.[39]

Clinton says that she would appoint Supreme Court justices who would overturn Citizens United, stating: "I will do everything I can to appoint Supreme Court justices who protect the right to vote and do not protect the right of billionaires to buy elections."[40] Clinton also pledged, if elected, to push for legislation demanding more "effective" disclosure of political spending by outside groups and, if Congress does not act, to sign an executive order requiring federal government contractors to disclose all political spending.[41][42][43]

In 2002, Clinton voted in favor of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (McCain-Feingold Act), which imposed restrictions on soft money and political campaign advertising.[44] In 2007, Clinton spoke in favor of public financing of some campaigns: "I believe we have to move, eventually in our country, toward a system of public financing that really works for candidates running for federal office. I will support that as president."[45] At the same time, her own fundraising allowed her to opt out of the 30 year old public financing scheme for presidential elections, a move followed by the other candidates for the democratic nomination: Barack Obama and John Edwards.[45] In 2016, Clinton proposed a public financing system that would amplify small contributions.[46]

Capitalism and economic philosophy [ edit ]

In a 1996 interview, Clinton commented on the relationship between government and the private sector, saying: "I just believe that there's got to be a healthy tension among all of our institutions in society, and that the market is the driving force behind our prosperity, our freedom in so many respects to make our lives our own but that it cannot be permitted just to run roughshod over people's lives as well."[47]

In a speech in October 2014, Clinton stated "Don't let anybody tell you that it's corporations and businesses that create jobs. You know that old theory, trickle-down economics. That has been tried; that has failed. It has failed rather spectacularly."[48]

In a July 2015 speech at the New York University Stern School of Business, Clinton condemned what she called "short-termism" and "quarterly capitalism"—"the obsession with share prices and quarterly earnings over real value creation, which Clinton views as dangerous to the economy."[49][50] Clinton called for "new, creative, disruptive ideas to save capitalism"[50] and has said that capitalism "needs to be reinvented, it needs to be put back into balance."[49]

In a Democratic primary debate in October 2015 with Senator Bernie Sanders, her then-primary rival, Clinton said: "When I think about capitalism I think about all the business that started because they had the opportunity and the freedom to do that and to make a good living for themselves and their families ... We would be making a grave mistake to turn our backs on what built the greatest middle class in history."[51] Unlike Sanders, Clinton is not a supporter of the Nordic model, saying in the same debate: "We are not Denmark. I love Denmark, but we are the United States of America, and it's our job to rein in the excesses of capitalism so it doesn't run amok."[51][52] and "what we have to do every so often in America ... is save capitalism from itself."[52]

Noting that the U.S. economy has performed better under Democratic presidents than Republican ones since World War II, Clinton has said: "The economy does better when you have a Democrat in the White House and that's why we need to have a Democrat in the White House in January 2017." Analysis by Max Ehrenfreund in The Washington Post noted that Clinton's statement was accurate but also noted it was difficult to say how much credit the White House could take for such economic upturns; or if other factors boost the economy and Democrats "just got lucky".[53]

In March 2016, she laid out a detailed economic plan, which The New York Times called "optimistic" and "wide-ranging".[54] Basing her economic philosophy on inclusive capitalism, Clinton proposed a "clawback" which would rescind tax relief and other benefits for companies that move jobs overseas; providing incentives for companies that share profits with employees, communities and the environment, rather than focusing on short-term profits to increase stock value and rewarding shareholders; increasing collective bargaining rights; and placing an "exit tax" on companies that move their headquarters out of America in order to pay a lower tax rate overseas.[54]

Child care [ edit ]

In 2015, Clinton proposed to cap the expenses that a household spends on child care by at 10 percent of a household's income.[55] Clinton intended to accomplish the 10 percent cap with tax credits and subsidized child care.[55]

Financial regulation and Wall Street reform [ edit ]

Clinton called for more robust financial regulation early on in the financial crisis of 2007–08. Clinton specifically called for regulations to crack down on financial derivatives and subprime mortgages and strengthen oversight of financial institutions and private-equity markets.[56][57] In a 2007 speech, Clinton "called for major federal intervention in the market for subprime loans, arguing that 'we need to acknowledge that Wall Street has played a significant role in our current problems, and in particular the housing crisis.'"[57] Clinton supported the subsequent Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, a major overhaul of U.S. financial regulations enacted in the wake of the Great Recession.[58][59] Several key architects and supports of the Dodd-Frank Act, including Barney Frank and Gary Gensler, are Clinton supporters who advise her on financial regulations during her 2016 campaign.[59] Clinton has proposed to impose a tax on types of high-frequency trading that she describes as "harmful". Her official platform says, "In particular, the tax would hit HFT strategies involving excessive levels of order cancellations, which make our markets less stable and less fair."[60][61][62]

On December 7, 2015, in a New York Times op-ed, Clinton outlined her plans for regulating Wall Street.[63] Clinton wrote: "As president, I would not only veto any legislation that would weaken financial reform, but I would also fight for tough new rules, stronger enforcement and more accountability that go well beyond Dodd-Frank."[63] Clinton also called for an enhanced Volcker rule that would close "loopholes that still allow banks to make speculative gambles with taxpayer-backed deposits."[63] Clinton does not support reinstating the Glass-Steagall Act, a law (repealed in 1999) that mandated the separation of commercial and investment banks,[64][65][66] preferring instead other tools to combat systemic risk, including "a 'risk fee' on the financial institutions with assets over $50 billion, regulations on the 'shadow banking' sector (i.e. hedge funds) and guidelines for prosecuting financial wrongdoing."[65]

Clinton has received criticism for her ties with Wall Street.[67][68] Her claim in April 2016 that "I'm the only candidate in the Democratic primary, or actually on either side, who Wall Street financiers and hedge fund managers are actually running ads against," received a "Pants on Fire" rating from PolitiFact. The fact checking service found that all the candidates had been the target of attacks by "Wall Street funded groups", and that Trump had received the most Wall Street funded attacks of all the presidential candidates. Also the Clinton-affiliated super PAC, Priorities USA Action, received a third of its contributions from the financial industry.[69] According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Clinton received 53 percent of campaign contributions from Wall Street in March 2016, up from 32 percent and 33 percent in January and February respectively.[70]

Fiscal policy and taxation [ edit ]

In a May 2016 report, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) estimated that Clinton's "proposals would cost $1.80 trillion over a decade with interest, and they would be nearly fully paid for with $1.60 trillion of offsets – primarily from taxes on high earners."[71] Among the major initiatives proposed by Clinton are the enactment of the "New College Compact"; an expansion of the Affordable Care Act; an expansion of early childhood education and paid family leave; increased spending on infrastructure, increased funding for veterans, and expanded research funding.[71] The CRFB concluded that "Secretary Clinton's policies would not substantially add to current law debt levels" but would keep debt at historically high post-war levels, which are currently on track to increase from 74% of GDP in 2015 to 86% in 2026.[71] A December 2015 analysis by McClatchy newspapers similarly concluded that Clinton's proposals "would cost at least $1.1 trillion over 10 years as she looks to pump billions of additional dollars into reducing college costs, increasing treatment for drug addiction and helping employers pay for mandatory family and sick leave," mostly offset by new revenue.[72]

During her 2016 campaign for the presidency, Clinton has pledged not to raise taxes on working and middle-class families, defined as those with annual incomes below $250,000. Clinton's pledge has been controversial within the Democratic Party.[73][74] In April 2016, Clinton expressed support for taxes on sugary drinks, a policy opposed by Clinton's primary rival, Senator Bernie Sanders, who opposes such taxes and contends that they would violate Clinton's pledge not to raises taxes of families with incomes below $250,000.[75] A Coca-Cola executive later said that she had received assurances from the Clinton campaign that they would no longer comment on the soda tax.[76]

A March 2016 analysis by the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center summarized Clinton's tax proposals as follows: "Hillary Clinton proposes raising taxes on high-income taxpayers, modifying taxation of multinational corporations, repealing fossil fuel tax incentives, and increasing estate and gift taxes. Her proposals would increase revenue by $1.1 trillion over the next decade. Nearly all of the tax increases would fall on the top 1 percent; the bottom 95 percent of taxpayers would see little or no change in their taxes. Marginal tax rates would increase, reducing incentives to work, save, and invest, and the tax code would become more complex. The analysis does not address a forthcoming proposal to cut taxes for low- and middle-income families."[77] Clinton specifically has proposed a 4% surcharge on taxpayers earning over $5 million a year; a 30% minimum tax rate on millionaires, defined as those with adjusted gross incomes above $1 million (the "Buffett Rule"), a 28% cap on most deductions, and increased taxes on long-term capital gains. The proposal also increases several business taxes, and seeks to penalize excessive risk-taking in the financial sector while at the same time creating incentives for business programs that would help workers and communities in distress.[78][79] The Tax Policy Center estimates that Clinton's plan, on average; would: leave the poorest earners' taxes essentially unchanged; increase middle-income households' taxes by $44 (a 0.001% change); increase the top 1%'s taxes by $78,000; and increase the top 0.1%'s taxes by $520,000.[78]

Clinton has proposed a number of new tax credits.[80] Clinton has proposed a new caregiver tax credit of up to $1,200.[78][80] Clinton has also proposed a tax credit for up to $5,000 per family to those paying out-of-pocket healthcare costs in excess of 5 percent of their annual income[81] and a tax credit aimed at families paying for college.[80] Clinton has also proposed to simplify tax filings for small businesses, citing research showing that small businesses currently spend 20 times more per employee to prepare their taxes.[82]

In December 2015, Clinton outlined a plan to crack down on the use of corporate tax inversions.[83][84] Clinton specifically criticized Pfizer's plan to make use of the controversial tax-avoidance maneuver by means of its proposed merger with Allergan.[83][84] Richard Phillips, senior policy analyst at Citizens for Tax Justice, praised Clinton for her support for limiting inversions (which he described as "a loophole through which U.S. companies pretend to be foreign in order to avoid taxes"), but criticized her proposal to use the new revenue to reduce corporate taxes, arguing that the revenue should go toward public investments or deficit reduction instead.[85]

Clinton has expressed support for stripping tax benefits from companies that outsource jobs overseas.[86][87]

Howard Gleckman, senior fellow at the Tax Policy Center, said that Clinton's proposals "would make the tax code more complex, especially for high-income households, and would reduce incentives to work, save, and invest."[88]

The conservative Tax Foundation estimated in January 2016 that, in the long term, the plan would decrease economic growth by 1%, wages by 0.8% and jobs by 311,000.[79][89] The Tax Foundation estimates an increase in revenues of $498 billion, but applied dynamic scoring analysis to that figure and reduced it to $191 billion due to weaker economic growth.[79][89] The Clinton campaign "said the Tax Foundation's analysis is misleading and doesn't take into account her tax relief for businesses and individuals, nor her investments that would promote growth."[79]

In a 2005 fund-raising speech in San Francisco, she was highly critical of the George W. Bush tax cuts, saying that "Many of you are well enough off that ... the tax cuts may have helped you. We're saying that for America to get back on track, we're probably going to cut that short and not give it to you. We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good."[90] In January 2008 Clinton called upon Congress to pass an economic stimulus package totaling as much as $110 billion, to deal with the effects of a possible recession. The package would consist of funds to help deal with the effect of the subprime mortgage crisis, to help lower-income families pay for higher home energy costs, to extend unemployment insurance, and to possibly provide some tax refunds.[91]

Health care [ edit ]

A 2016 RAND Corporation report analyzed four of Clinton's major proposed health-care policies and concluded that their combined effect, relative to current law, would be "to increase the number of insured by 9.1 million and increase the federal deficit by $88.5 billion."[92] The report found that Clinton's plans would lower expenses, mainly for low- and moderate-income people;[93] the greatest reductions in out-of-pocket spending under Clinton's plan would benefit Americans with incomes between 139 and 250 percent of the federal poverty level (i.e., $33,534 to $60,750 for a family of four).[92]

Medicaid [ edit ]

Her 2016 plan proposes to encourage states to expand Medicaid by giving each signatory state a 100% match for the first three years.[94] Her 2016 plan proposes an investment of $500 million per year in advertisement to encourage those eligible for Medicaid but not enrolled to enroll.[94]

Medicare [ edit ]

Under Clinton's 2016 health care plan, people over 55 years old would be allowed to buy into Medicare if they wanted to.[95][96][97] Currently, only those age 65 and over are covered by under Medicare.[95] According to experts consulted by PolitiFact, nothing in Clinton's health care plan would undermine Medicare or harm current beneficiaries.[95]

Clinton supports allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices.[98][99]

Mental health [ edit ]

On mental health, Clinton has proposed investing in brain and behavioral science research; fully enforcing existing laws that require mental health coverage to be an essential benefit in health insurance plans; creating a national suicide prevention initiative; expanding the reimbursement structures in Medicare and Medicaid; tasking the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation to create and implement the new payment models; emphasizing; treatment over jail for low-level criminal offenders with mental health issues; and creating new housing and job opportunities for mentally ill Americans.[100][101][102] Clinton's plan states that "the next generation must grow up knowing that mental health is a key component of overall health and there is no shame, stigma, or barriers to seeking out care."[101]

As Senator, Clinton sponsored the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, which requires that limits on mental health benefits to be no lower than the limits for medical and surgical benefits offered by health insurance plans.[102]

Other [ edit ]

Clinton supported a 2007 proposal to increase funding for the State Children's Health Insurance Program by $35 billion over five years.[103]

Prescription drugs [ edit ]

Clinton has proposed to redirect subsidies that go to direct-to-consumer drug company advertising to research and development of drugs.[97][99] According to her plan, health insurance plans will be required to place a monthly limit of $250 on covered out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for individuals.[97][99] She proposes to "fully fund the FDA's Office of Generic Drugs to clear out their multi-year generic drug approval backlog."[97][99] She proposes to lower the exclusivity period of "biologics" from 12 to 7 years to "spur greater competition" and save government spending.[97][99] Her prescription drug plan says that she will seek to prohibit "pay for delay" arrangements, referring to arrangements where patent holders make payments to potential competitors to stop them from entering the market with generic drugs.[97][99]

In June 2015, when TPP was still being negotiated, Clinton said that drug firms that benefit from deal should offer discounts.[104] One of her stated reasons for opposing the final version of the TPP agreement is that it puts "the interests of drug companies ahead of patients and consumers".[105]

Universal health care and the Affordable Care Act [ edit ]

In a speech to Harvard Medical School on June 4, 1998, Clinton outlined general support for federal universal affordable health care for Americans. "There are 41 million people without health insurance. Who will take care of these people in the future? How will we pay for their care? How will we pay for the extra costs that come when someone is not treated for a chronic disease or turned away from the emergency room? The job of health care reform cannot be done when access to care depends on skin color or the neighborhood they live in or the amount of money in their wallet. Let's continue to work toward universal affordable, quality health care."[106]

Reportedly, Clinton expressed support when she was First Lady for universal single-payer health care in the U.S. during multiple private conversations, while sometimes indicating that she believed such an approach would not be politically tenable.[107][108][109]

Clinton later said that health care coverage improvements need to be made incrementally, in contrast to the more ambitious, wide-ranging plan that failed in 1993 to 1994.[110]

In September 2007, as part of her presidential campaign, Clinton proposed her own health system reform plan (dubbed the "American Health Choices Plan"), which would require that individuals have health care coverage from some source. Clinton explained that the coverage options available would be enrollment in private insurance plans via an "individual mandate" and an "employer mandate" requiring employers to provide health care benefits, or enrollment in a public program via an expanded version of Medicare or federal employee health plans.[111][112] The projected cost of the plan was $110 billion annually and would require all employers to cover their employees' health insurance or contribute to the costs of their employees' health insurance coverage; tax credits will be provided to companies with fewer than 25 employees to help cover costs.[111][113] In order to pay for the program's estimated $110 billion per year cost, Clinton favored repealing some of the Bush tax cuts for those earning more than $250,000.[113]

In January 2016, Clinton said that single-payer healthcare "will never, ever come to pass."[114] She does not disagree with the idea of single-payer healthcare (which she has advocated in the past), finding it instead impractical.[114] She proposes to defend the Affordable Care Act from efforts to repeal it; she will build upon it.[96][115] In July 2016, Clinton proposed to make Affordable Care Act funding for Federally Qualified Health Centers (such as community health centers) permanent, and expand the funding by $40 billion over the next 10 years.[116]

Clinton claimed during a debate in January 2016 that "We now have driven (health care) costs down to the lowest they've been in 50 years".[117] PolitiFact rated this statement "false," noting that "although the rate of growth has been at historic lows, the actual per-person cost of health care has increased steadily over the last half century."[117]

Public option [ edit ]

Clinton supports federal and state efforts to create Medicare-like "public option" health insurance plans to compete against private insurers.[116] According to a RAND Corporation study, Clinton's public option would provide insurance to 400,000 additional Americans and reduce the deficit by $700 million.[92][93]

Vaccines [ edit ]

According to Vox, of the top four 2016 presidential candidates (Clinton, Donald Trump, Gary Johnson, and Jill Stein), Clinton is "the only candidate not pandering to the anti-vaccine movement" and the only candidate with views on vaccines that are consistent with the scientific consensus.[118] During her campaign, Clinton has written: "Through vaccinations and vaccine science, I am committed to protecting our nation's children, as well as populations worldwide, from infectious disease threats."[119] Clinton has said that if elected president, she will work globally toward the elimination of vaccine-preventable infections such as measles, whooping cough, and diphtheria and domestically to "educate parents about vaccines, focusing on their extraordinary track record in saving lives and pointing out the dangers of not vaccinating our children."[119] Clinton has criticized Republicans who have called vaccine science into question, writing, "The earth is round, the sky is blue, and #vaccineswork. Let's protect all our kids."[120][121]

On a candidates' questionnaire in 2008, when asked whether "vaccines should be investigated as a possible cause of autism?," Clinton wrote: "I am committed to make investments to find the causes of autism, including possible environmental causes like vaccines. ... We don't know what, if any, kind of link there is between vaccines and autism — but we should find out."[120] This statement was made two years before 2010, when a study published in 1998 alleging that the MMR vaccine caused autism was retracted after it was found to have been fraudulent.[120]

In 1993, as first lady, Clinton was a key supporter of the program that became the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Vaccines for Children program, which provides free inoculations for eligible children.[120][122]

Jobs, labor, and employment [ edit ]

Job creation [ edit ]

An independent report by Moody's Analytics issued in 2016 found that Clinton's proposals would, if enacted, create 10.4 million jobs during a four-year presidential term (3.2 million more than expected under current law).[19] The report used a forecasting model similar to those used by the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) and the Federal Reserve.[19]

Clinton has proposed to put her husband Bill "in charge of revitalizing the economy" in her administration, citing economic growth under his Presidency (1993–2001).[87][123]

Infrastructure [ edit ]

Her 2016 official platform claims that investments in "infrastructure, clean energy, and scientific and medical research" will create jobs during her administration.[124] In November 2015, her five-year, $275-billion federal infrastructure program "aimed at creating middle-class jobs" was described by the New York Times as "the most sprawling — and costliest — government program of her campaign to date".[125] She has proposed a $30 billion plan for coal-producing areas, which is partly intended to help displaced coal workers find new jobs.[126]

Regulations and licensing [ edit ]

In her book Hard Choices, Clinton wrote that there were regulatory hurdles for businesses to create jobs in America and India, saying, "There were still too many barriers and restrictions, but American companies were slowly gaining access to Indian markets, creating jobs and opportunities for people in both countries."[127]

Clinton proposes to reduce unnecessary occupational licensing requirements to ease burdens on small business owners.[128][129] She argues that this will help small businesses, in particular, by reducing the time and costs associated with licensing.[128][129] She has proposed to incentivize states and localities to make licensing cheaper, easier and streamlined by providing federal funding to support innovative programs and offset forgone licensing revenue.[128][129] She says she will work with states to standardize licensing requirements and reduce barriers for Americans seeking to work across state borders.[128][129]

Labor unions [ edit ]

While a U.S. senator, Clinton "was a reliable labor ally, co-sponsoring, for instance, the pro-labor Employee Free Choice Act ('card check'), which cleared the House in 2007, 241-185, but was filibustered in the Senate."[130] During her 2016 campaign, Clinton has pledged to "restore collective bargaining rights for unions and defend against partisan attacks on workers' rights."[131]

In August 2016, Clinton said that "strengthening unions doesn't just serve members – it leads to better pay, and benefits, and working conditions for all employees."[82] According to NPR, there is evidence to support that assertion.[82]

Manufacturing [ edit ]

Clinton has stated that "manufacturing is critical to the U.S. economy."[132] Clinton wants to create tax incentives to encourage investment in communities that face significant manufacturing job losses, and has proposed a tax penalty for companies that move jobs or production overseas.[132][133] She has said that she will "aggressively [combat] trade violations" by other countries.[132][134]

Clinton has pledged to build and expand upon President Obama's support for a National Network for Manufacturing Innovation, which focuses on developing and commercializing manufacturing technologies through public-private partnerships between U.S. industry, universities, and federal agencies.[132][135]

Minimum wage [ edit ]

During her 2016 campaign, Clinton proposed raising the federal minimum wage to $12 an hour.[136] Clinton has expressed support for the "Fight for $15" campaign for higher minimum wages in individual states and cities (such as New York, Los Angeles, Detroit and St. Louis).[136][137][138] At a Democratic primary debate in 2016, Clinton said that if Congress passes a bill for a $15 federal minimum wage, she would sign it.[139] She explained her decision to support a $12 an hour federal minimum wage by invoking the research of Princeton professor Alan Krueger.[140]

As a Senator, Clinton voted for an increase in the federal minimum wage.[141] In 2014, Clinton said: "Don't let anyone tell you that raising the minimum wage will kill jobs – they always say that. I've been through this. My husband gave workers a raise in the 1990s. I voted to raise the minimum wage and guess what, millions of jobs were created or paid better and more families were secure." She followed that statement by saying "[a]nd don't let anybody tell you that it's corporations and businesses that create jobs. You know that old theory, trickle-down economics. That has been tried, that has failed. It has failed rather spectacularly."[142][143][144][145] She has described the current federal minimum wage of $7.25 as a "starvation wage".[citation needed][146]

Paid family leave [ edit ]

Clinton supports 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave at a minimum two-thirds wage replacement rate.[147][148] She would pay for this plan with increased taxes on the wealthy.[148] She opposes pending similar legislation, called the Family Act, because it relies on a small increase to the payroll tax.[148]

Social Security [ edit ]

Clinton opposes cutting Social Security.[149] She instead supports an expansion of Social Security: boosting survivor benefits and creating a caregiver benefit for those who left the paid workforce to care for children, parents or ailing family members.[149] Her expansion of Social Security has been criticized by the Progressive Change Campaign Committee for not going far enough.[149] Clinton opposes a raise in the retirement age.[150]

In 2008, Clinton supporting retaining the cap on the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) tax, the payroll tax which funds Social Security and Medicare. Under the cap at that time, the FICA tax applied to income up to $102,000, with income in excess of this amount (earned by the top 6% of income-earners) not taxable. Clinton said that a repeal of the FICA tax cap would amount to a "tax increase on the middle class."[151]

Student loans [ edit ]

Clinton's plan for student debt relief is to allow those carrying existing student debt to refinance their student loans at current rates available to students taking out new loans.[152] The Clinton campaign asserts that her plan "will cost around $350 billion over 10 years—and will be fully paid for by limiting certain tax expenditures for high-income taxpayers."[152][153] The campaign estimates that 25 million borrowers will obtain relief, with the average borrower saving about $2,000 in total.[152][153]

Clinton proposes to permit start-up founders and early employees to forgo payments on their federal student loans for up to three years.[154] Those who launch businesses that provide social benefits would also be permitted to apply for forgiveness of up to $17,500 of their debt after five years.[154]

Subprime mortgage crisis relief [ edit ]

On December 5, 2007, Clinton unveiled her plan to ameliorate the effects of the 2007 subprime mortgage financial crisis on homeowners. She called for a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures, in order that lenders and mortgage servicers have sufficient time to get through paperwork complications and an expected high volume of troubled borrowers without having to shut out the lights, and a five-year freeze on the interest rates of adjustable rate mortgages, so that borrowers would not get slammed by expected 30, 40 or more percent increases in monthly payments due to the effects of the crisis and of unwise initial borrowing decisions.[155]

In late 2008, Clinton voted for the Troubled Asset Relief Program which provided $350 million to purchase toxic assets and equity from financial institutions to strengthen the financial sector during the subprime mortgage crisis.[156]

Clinton claimed during a nationally televised townhall meeting in February 2016 that "You are three times more likely to be able to get a mortgage if you're a white applicant than if you're black or Hispanic, even if you have the same credentials." PolitiFact rated this claim "false," noting "while there is evidence of disparities in mortgage acceptance rates by race ... Experts say the gaps are not as drastic as Clinton says once you equalize for other key factors, such as income and credit history."[157]

Trade [ edit ]

Clinton opposes the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), supports the U.S. Export-Import Bank, and holds that "any trade deal has to produce jobs and raise wages and increase prosperity and protect our security".[158][159] As Senator (2001–2009), her record on trade was mixed, voting in favor of some trade agreements but not others.[158] She favors Trade Adjustment Assistance, a measure that would help retrain and provide aid to workers displaced by globalization.[160][161]

NAFTA [ edit ]

During the 1993 internal debate over the North American Free Trade Agreement, Clinton made clear her feeling that its passage was getting higher priority within the administration than it should, especially compared to the Clinton health care reform plan.[162][163][164][165] By most accounts, Clinton was also unenthusiastic about the merits of the agreement, believing it would cause a loss of American jobs and would be politically unpopular.[162][163][166][167] Once her husband decided to proceed with NAFTA, Clinton as First Lady participated in at least five meetings at the White House aimed at securing Congressional passage of the agreement,[168] which Gergen and former official Robert J. Shapiro felt showed she had been a "good soldier" in getting behind a settled decision,[166][167] but which other attendees interpreted as showing Clinton was in fact behind the agreement.[164] During later years of the administration and in her memoir, Clinton touted her husband's support for NAFTA.[169]

Clinton has since 2008 repeatedly called for renegotiating the "core labor and environmental standards" of NAFTA.[170] During her 2008 presidential campaign, Clinton repeatedly criticized the NAFTA agreement,[168][171] despite it being one of the major achievements of her husband's administration.[169] She said, "NAFTA did not do what many had hoped. NAFTA was a mistake to the extent that it did not deliver on what we had hoped it would."[169] She did say that she believed in the underlying idea behind trade agreements such as NAFTA: "I believe in the general principles it represented. But what we have learned is that we have to drive a tougher bargain. Our market is the market that everybody wants to be in. We should quit giving it away so willy-nilly. I believe we need tougher enforcement of the trade agreements we already have."[167] She promised that if elected, she would work to implement changes to it that would benefit American workers,[168] saying "I want to be a president who focuses on smart, pro-American trade. I will review every trade agreement. I'm going to ask for revisions that I think will actually benefit our country, particularly our workers, our exporters ... And NAFTA will be part of that review, to try to reform and improve it."[169]

Other [ edit ]

In 2005, while representing New York in the U.S. Senate, Clinton said: "During my tenure as senator, I have voted for every trade agreement that has come before the Senate, and I believe that properly negotiated trade agreements can increase living standards and foster openness and economic development for all parties."[172] Later in 2005, Clinton voted against the Central America Free Trade Agreement,[173] believing that it did not provide adequate environmental or labor standards.[174] As Secretary of State, Clinton adhered to the position of the Obama administration on the United States–Colombia Free Trade Agreement, supporting the agreement that she had opposed in the 2008 campaign given her "concerns about the history of violence towards trade unionists in Colombia".[175][176][177]

Clinton, together with fellow New York Senator Charles Schumer, welcomed a 2006 decision by the United States Commerce Department that called for a 108.3% duty on imports from Chinese candlemakers, as the imports sought to circumvent an Anti-dumping Duty Order.[178] Clinton stated, "This is a real victory for the Syracuse candle-making industry."[179]

Clinton supports the U.S. Export-Import Bank, a decades-old trade promotion agency.[158] She has asserted that "across our country, the Export-Import Bank supports up to 164,000 jobs."[158]

In August 2016, Clinton promised to create a new position of trade prosecutor and to triple the number of enforcers.[82] In the same speech, she said that "China and other countries have gamed the system for too long","Enforcement — especially during the Bush administration — has been too lax" and that "Investments at home that would make us more competitive have been blocked."[82] She said, however, that "the answer is not to rant and rave – or to cut ourselves off from the world. That would kill even more jobs."[82]

Trans-Pacific Partnership [ edit ]

Former top Obama adviser David Axelrod said on MSNBC that when Hillary Clinton was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013, she "owned" the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).[172] During her tenure as Secretary of State, she spoke of the TPP negotiations in glowing terms: "exciting," "innovative," "ambitious," "groundbreaking," "cutting-edge," "high-quality," "high-standard" and "gold standard."[180] During a 2012 visit to Australia, Clinton referred to the TPP as "the gold standard in trade agreements."[172] In February 2013, Clinton left her job with the general framework of TPP in place.[172] In her 2014 memoir Hard Choices, she wrote:

"Because TPP negotiations are still ongoing, it makes sense to reserve judgment until we can evaluate the final proposed agreement. It's safe to say the TPP won't be perfect -- no deal negotiated among a dozen countries ever will be -- but its higher standards, if implemented and enforced, should benefit American businesses and workers."

In an April 2015 presidential campaign stop in New Hampshire, Clinton said, "Any trade deal has to produce jobs and raise wages and increase prosperity and protect our security".[172] Upon the completion of the TPP negotiations in October 2015, Clinton stated her opposition to the TPP, indicating that the final agreement did not meet the high standards she had set for such agreements.[181][182][183] PolitiFact rules her shifting stance on TPP as a flip-flop.[180] In August 2016, Clinton said, "I will stop any trade deal that kills jobs or holds down wages – including the Trans-Pacific Partnership. I oppose it now, I'll oppose it after the election, and I'll oppose it as president."[82]

Clinton has named former Senator Ken Salazar, who is a prominent supporter of TPP, to chair her presidential transition team.[184][185]

Energy and environment policy [ edit ]

Clinton supports energy conservation, releasing oil reserves, increasing the number of hydrogen-powered vehicles, and ratification of the Kyoto Protocol. She opposes drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge[186] and the Bush administration's energy policy.[186]

Clinton supports cap-and-trade, which allows companies to trade carbon credits, seeks an 80% carbon cut by 2050, seeks a 10% national energy reduction by 2020, advocates a zero emission policy for federal buildings by 2030, calls for raising gas mileage standards to 35 mpg ‑US (6.7 L/100 km) within 10 years (having indicated a willingness to use administrative power if Congress fails to act on this), and opposes drilling in the Atlantic.[187]

Clinton was endorsed by the League of Conservation Voters in 2015.[188]

Climate change and renewable energy [ edit ]

Clinton accepts the scientific consensus on climate change and criticizes climate-change deniers "who still refuse to accept the settled science of climate change."[189] Clinton called climate change "an urgent threat" and "the most consequential, urgent, sweeping collection of challenges we face as a nation and a world."[190]

Clinton writes in her memoir Hard Choices that during her tenure in the State Department she played an instrumental role in the push toward an enforceable international agreement to reduce carbon emissions.[191] In December 2009, as secretary of state, Clinton endorsed a climate-change adaption plan, stating: "The United States is prepared to work with other countries toward a goal of jointly mobilizing $100 billion a year by 2020 to address the climate change needs of developing countries." The commitment was welcomed by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and others as a solid first step, although the European Union made a more ambitious proposal for 100 billion euros a year (44% higher than the value Clinton mentioned). Clinton did not say specifically how much the U.S. would contribute, but did say that U.S. funding of climate-change mitigation efforts would be conditional upon China and other nations agreeing to "transparency" and verification of cuts in greenhouse gas emissions.[192]

In July 2015, Clinton set forth two ambitious renewable energy goals for the United States: to generate enough clean renewable energy to power every U.S. home within ten years after taking office, and to install 500 million solar panels within her first term.[188][193] Clinton aims to generate one-third of America's electricity from renewable sources by 2027.[194] Clinton said in February 2016 that these proposals aim to "move from fossil fuels to clean energy ... in a quick, but thoughtful way"[188] and to "reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 30 percent in 2025 relative to 2005 levels and chart a path to cut emissions more than 80 percent by 2050."[190] Clinton states: "I want more wind, more solar, more advanced biofuels, more energy efficiency."[193] Clinton supports the wind energy production tax credit and has called for making it permanent,[188] and in the past has praised efforts to use vegetable oils as alternative energy.[195]

Clinton has emphasized the jobs that renewable energy creates, saying in an April 2016 town-hall event broadcast on MSNBC that the U.S. must "use clean renewable energy to create more jobs."[188] Clinton has said that "somebody is going to be the 21st century clean energy superpower. It's either going to be China, Germany or us. I want it to be us because there will be a lot of jobs, again, that have to be done right here in America."[188] On one occasion in December 2015, Clinton stated that "we now have more jobs in solar than we do in oil"; PolitiFact found that this was not true, although the number of workers in the oil and gas industry has been declining while the number of workers employees in the solar industry has increased.[196]

Clinton has praised the international Paris Agreement reached at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, saying: "The Paris agreement is testament to America's ability to lead the world in building a clean energy future where no one is left out or left behind ... as president, I will make combating climate change a top priority from day one, and secure America's future as the clean energy superpower of the 21st century."[190] Clinton has promised to implement the U.S. commitment to the Paris Agreement.[190]

In her official 2016 presidential platform, Clinton proposes to:

"Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 30 percent in 2025 relative to 2005 levels and put the country on a path to cut emissions more than 80 percent by 2050."

"Reduce American oil consumption by a third through cleaner fuels and more efficient cars, boilers, ships and trucks."

"Cut energy waste in American homes, schools, hospitals and offices by a third and make American manufacturing the cleanest and most efficient in the world."

Support the Clean Power Plan.

"Launch a $60 billion Clean Energy Challenge to partner with states, cities, and rural communities and give them the tools and resources they need to go beyond federal standards in cutting carbon pollution and expanding clean energy."

"End wasteful tax subsidies for oil and gas companies."

"Cut emissions of methane, a powerful greenhouse gas, by 40-45 percent and put in place strong standards for reducing leaks from both new and existing sources."[197][198][199]

While in the Senate, Clinton had long opposed ethanol subsidies before she introduced a bill in May 2006 to create a $50 billion fund to expand the use of ethanol and other alternative fuels.[200] In 2007, Clinton expressed support for corn ethanol as a biofuel.[201] In August 2015, the Clinton campaign said that she would "strengthen" the Renewable Fuel Standard to promote development of advanced biofuels and access to ethanol products.[202]

Fossil fuels [ edit ]

Coal [ edit ]

During a debate in March 2016, Clinton said that "we need" to implement "all of the president's executive actions" on the environment and that we need to "quickly move to make a bridge from coal to natural gas to clean energy."[203]

Speaking at a CNN town hall forum in March 2016, Clinton said: "I'm the only candidate which has a policy about how to bring economic opportunity using clean renewable energy as the key into coal country. Because we're going to put a lot of coal miners and coal companies out of business, right? And we're going to make it clear that we don't want to forget those people. Those people labored in those mines for generations, losing their health, often losing their lives to turn on our lights and power our factories. Now we've got to move away from coal and all the other fossil fuels, but I don't want to move away from the people who did the best they could to produce the energy that we relied on."[204]

When confronted about her "out of business" statement while campaigning in West Virginia, Clinton stated "I don't know how to explain it other than what I said was totally out of context for what I meant because I have been talking about helping coal country for a very long time. It was a misstatement because what I was saying is the way things are going now, they will continue to lose jobs. It didn't mean that we were going to do it. What I said is that is going to happen unless we take action to help and prevent it."[205][206]

She has a $30 billion plan intended to revitalize coal communities and aid them in the transition away from coal. The plan calls for increased job training, small-business development, and infrastructure investment, especially in Appalachia. The plan also seeks to safeguard miners' healthcare and pensions.[207][208]

Fracking [ edit ]

Clinton supports allowing hydraulic fracturing (fracking) but only when it meets her conditions regarding local choice, stronger environmental regulation and chemicals.[209] In a March 2016 debate, Clinton outlined her position as follows: "I don't support it when any locality or any state is against it, No. 1. I don't support it when the release of methane or contamination of water is present. I don't support it — No. 3 — unless we can require that anybody who fracks has to tell us exactly what chemicals they are using. So by the time we get through all of my conditions, I do not think there will be many places in America where fracking will continue to take place. And I think that's the best approach, because right now, there are places where fracking is going on that are not sufficiently regulated."[209] According to PolitiFact, the implementation of Clinton's three conditions "would uphold existing bans and add new ones to the mix."[210] PolitiFact notes that there are 11 states with noted cases of spills (which could be covered under her second condition) and two fracking states where there are no rules on chemical disclosure on the books (which would be covered under her third condition).[209][211]

As Secretary of State under President Obama, Clinton promoted fracking services by American companies to various countries as "part of a broader push to fight climate change, boost global energy supply, and undercut the power of adversaries such as Russia that use their energy resources as a cudgel."[209][212]

Keystone XL pipeline [ edit ]

In 2010, Clinton stated that she was inclined to support the issuance by the State Department of a cross-border permit for the Northern leg of the Keystone XL pipeline.[213] Through June 2015, she delayed announcing her position on the pipeline, noting that as Secretary of State, she had set in motion the review process a number of years previously to evaluate the pipeline, and preferred to allow time for her successor John Kerry, and President Obama to make the decision. "I will refrain from commenting because I had a leading role in getting that process started," Clinton had said, "and I think that we have to let it run its course."[214] In September 2015, Clinton announced her opposition to Keystone.[215] The Keystone XL pipeline was officially rejected by Secretary of State Kerry and President Obama in November 2015.[216] PolitiFact found that Clinton had not flip-flopped on the issue.[217]

Dakota Access Pipeline [ edit ]

In a Los Angeles Times op-ed in September 2016, Democratic platform member Bill McKibben was critical of the disparity between the Democratic platform – which calls for recognition of the "right of all tribes to protect their lands, air, and waters" – and Clinton's silence on the issue.[218] In October 2016, young Native American activists met outside of Clinton headquarters in Brooklyn to protest her lack of a position on continued pipeline construction and to give her a letter. In an email to Democracy now!, campaign spokesperson Tyrone Gayle said that everyone should be heard on federal infrastructure agreements, a position that Bill McKibben characterized as "say[ing] literally nothing".[219]

Nuclear power [ edit ]

Clinton wants to renew permits for existing nuclear power plants that are safe to operate and increase public investment in advanced nuclear power.[220][221]

At a February 2007 campaign rally in Columbia, South Carolina, Clinton stated, "I think nuclear power has to be part of our energy solution ... We get about 20% of our energy from nuclear power in our country ... other countries like France get much much more, so we do have to look at it because it doesn't put greenhouse gas emissions into the air."[222] Subsequently, in a July 2007 Democratic debate, when asked about nuclear power as an alternative energy source, she said, "I'm agnostic about nuclear power. Until we figure out what we're going to do with the waste and the cost, it's very hard to see nuclear as a part of our future. But that's where American technology comes in. Let's figure out what we're going to do about the waste and the cost if we think nuclear should be a part of the solution."[223]

In Democratic primary debates in 2016, Clinton said that she supported greater oversight of the Indian Point nuclear power plant, which had experienced calls for closure following leaks and other problems.[224] Clinton said any action "needs to be done in a careful, thoughtful way" and that: "We also have to be realistic and say, 'You get 25% of the electricity in the greater New York City area from Indian Point.' I don't want middle-class taxpayers to see a huge rate increase."[224]

Environment [ edit ]

Evaluating all her votes throughout Clinton's Senate career, the League of Conservation Voters (LCV) has given Clinton a lifetime 82 percent pro-environment action rating.[225]

Clinton accepts the scientific consensus on climate change.[226] In a December 2014 speech to the LCV, Clinton said, "The science of climate change is unforgiving, no matter what the deniers may say. Sea levels are rising; ice caps are melting; storms, droughts and wildfires are wreaking havoc. ... If we act decisively now we can still head off the most catastrophic consequences."[226] Clinton has called climate change "the most consequential, urgent, sweeping collection of challenges we face as a nation and a world."[227]

In 2007, Clinton co-sponsored the Climate Stewardship and Innovation Act (a greenhouse gas cap-and-trade initiative proposed by John McCain and Joseph Lieberman which aimed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 60 percent from 2000 levels by 2050) and the Global Warming Pollution Reduction Act (a more ambitious plan propose by Bernie Sanders and Barbara Boxer which sought to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent from 2000 levels by 2050).[228] Clinton's then-colleague Barack Obama also cosponsored both bills.[228]

Clinton is a supporter of the Clean Power Plan (proposed by the Obama administration's EPA), which would regulate carbon emissions from power plants.[226] In her speech to the LCV, Clinton stated that "the unprecedented action that President Obama has taken must be protected at all costs."[226]

Clinton has supported offshore oil drilling, and in 2006 voted for a bill to open new Gulf Coast areas to drilling.[226]

In a speech to the AFL-CIO, Clinton stated that she supports a green building fund and green-collar job training.[229]

Clinton supports the protection of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, and would not allow drilling there. She co-sponsored the Roadless Area Conservation Act.[230]

Some environmentalists have expressed concern about the millions of dollars of contributions from major fossil fuel companies accepted by the Clinton Foundation.[226][227]

Clinton opposes issuance by the State Department of a cross-border permit for the Northern leg of the Keystone XL pipeline.[231]

Clinton was endorsed by the Sierra Club in her 2000 Senate campaign.[232]

Animal protection [ edit ]

The Humane Society gave Senator Clinton scores of 100 in the 108th and 109th Congresses, and an 83 in the 110th Congress on her actions on legislation that would protect animals.[233] The Humane Society endorsed Clinton in the 2016 Presidential Race, saying that she "has a clear, compelling record of support for animal protection".[233]

Immigration policy [ edit ]

The Clinton 2016 platform proposes to:[234][235][236][237]

"Fight for comprehensive immigration reform legislation with a path to full and equal citizenship."

"Defend President Obama's DACA and DAPA executive actions."

Promote the naturalization of the estimated nine million lawful permanent residents in the United States who are eligible to become U.S. citizens.

Support immigrant integration through the creation of a national Office of Immigrant Affairs, $15 million in new grant funding for integration services, and an increase in federal resources for adult English language education and citizenship education.

Conduct more humane and targeted immigration enforcement, by detaining and deporting those individuals who pose a violent threat to public safety; ending family detention and closing private immigrant detention centers.

Legal rights [ edit ]

Clinton's stance on illegal immigration has softened over time.[238] In a 2003 radio appearance, Senator Clinton said: "We've got to do several things and I am, you know, adamantly against illegal immigrants. ... Certainly we've got to do more at our borders. And people have to stop employing illegal immigrants."[238] However, also during her time in the Senate, Clinton cosponsored a bipartisan amnesty bill for many illegal workers in the agricultural industry; backed a bill by Senator Edward M. Kennedy that would grant permanent resident status to some illegal immigrants who had been in the country for at least five years and worked for at least two years; and supported college tuition relief for young people who had entered the county illegally.[239] In April 2006, speaking to the U.S. Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Clinton said her work for her New York constituents could fall afoul of the Border Protection, Anti-terrorism and Illegal Immigration Control Act of 2005, since some of her constituents are illegal immigrants. "I realize I would be a criminal, too. My staff would be criminal. We help people with all kinds of problems."[240] On March 8, 2006, she strongly criticized H.R. 4437, a bill passed by the House of Representatives in December 2005 and sent to the Senate, Clinton called the measure "a rebuke to what America stands for" and said it would be "an unworkable scheme to try to deport 11 million people, which you have to have a police state to try to do." She believed the solution to the illegal immigration problem was to make "a path to earned citizenship for those who are here, working hard, paying taxes, respecting the law, and willing to meet a high bar for becoming a citizen."[241][242]

In May and June 2007, Clinton cast preliminary votes (in terms of amendments and cloture) in support of the high-profile, compromise-based but very controversial, comprehensive immigration reform bill known as the Secure Borders, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Reform Act of 2007.[243] When the bill was again brought forward, she continued to vote in favor of cloture motions to consider it.[244] In October 2007, Clinton voted in favor of a small subset of the previous bill, the DREAM Act.[245]

In 2007, Clinton called for an increase in the number of H-1B visas.[246]

At a debate at Drexel University in Philadelphia on October 30, 2007, Clinton committed to support of New York Governor Eliot Spitzer's plan to give driver's licenses to illegal immigrants. Two minutes later, she recanted the position and blamed the Bush administration for not passing immigration reform.[247] The following day, she clarified her position in a prepared statement by coming out in support of Spitzer's bill.[248] Two weeks later, after Spitzer abandoned the plan due to widespread opposition, Clinton reversed her position on the issue once again, stating: "I support Governor Spitzer's decision today to withdraw his proposal. As president, I will not support driver's licenses for undocumented people and will press for comprehensive immigration reform that deals with all of the issues around illegal immigration, including border security and fixing our broken system."[249] On November 16, when asked again if she supported granting driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants, she gave a one-word answer: "No."[250]

In 2008, Clinton received a rating of "D-" from Americans for Better Immigration, an anti-immigration organization.[251]

In 2014, Clinton stated that children from Central America who entered the United States illegally "should be sent back as soon as it can be determined who responsible adults in their families are, because there are concerns whether all of them should be sent back. But I think all of them who can be should be reunited with their families."[252] She added: "We have to send a clear message. Just because your child gets across the border, that doesn't mean the child gets to stay. We don't want to send a message that is contrary to our laws or will encourage more children to make that dangerous journey."[238][252]

On May 5, 2015, Clinton stated that allowing illegal immigrants to have a path to citizenship "is at its heart a family issue."[253] Clinton also "sharply criticized Republican presidential candidates who favor granting legal status for some undocumented immigrants, but oppose citizenship," saying: "When they talk about 'legal status,' that is code for 'second-class status.'"[253] Clinton said that she supported President Obama's Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which grants undocumented youth (those who entered the U.S. as children) the chance to apply for a stay of deportation.[253]

In 2015, Clinton said that she wanted the United States to accept 65,000 Syrian refugees, a significant increase to the 10,000 that the Obama administration pledged to accept.[254]

On July 14, 2016, Clinton expressed support for Obama's Deferred Action for Parental Accountability (DAPA) program, which would allow up to five million undocumented immigrants to gain deferral of deportation and authorization to legally work in the United States, and she promised to expand it.[255][256]

Border barrier [ edit ]

In September 2006, Clinton voted for the Secure Fence Act, authorizing the construction of 700 miles (1,100 km) of fencing along the United States–Mexico border.[257] In 2015, Clinton said, "I voted numerous times when I was a senator to spend money to build a barrier to try to prevent illegal immigrants from coming in. And I do think you have to control your borders".[258]

Foreign and defense policy [ edit ]

Africa [ edit ]

Libya [ edit ]

Clinton reportedly played a key role in persuading Obama to militarily intervene in Libya during the Libyan Civil War,[259] and deemed it worthwhile to intervene due to fears of further atrocities by Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi; calls to action from Britain, France, and the Arab League; and a belief that the Libyan opposition could govern in the aftermath of an intervention.[259] After the conclusion of the Libyan Civil War and the demise of Gaddafi, there remained factional violence in Libya until it erupted into renewed civil war in 2014. Terrorist groups have taken refuge in Libya, and large numbers of refugees have fled to neighboring countries and across the Mediterranean.[260] When asked to defend her record on Libya, Clinton called it "a classic case of a hard choice" and found that the overthrow of Gaddafi represented "smart power at its best."[260] When told of news reports of Qaddafi's death by an aide in between formal interviews, Clinton laughed and replied with "We came, we saw, he died".[261]

Clinton has said that history's judgment on the intervention, and her role in it, are not yet final. In November 2015, she said to the Council on Foreign Relations that "the Libyan people have voted twice in free and fair elections for the kind of leadership they want. They have not been able to figure out how to prevent the disruptions that they are confronted with because of internal divides and because of some of the external pressures that are coming from terrorist groups and others. So I think it's too soon to tell. And I think it's something that we have to be, you know, looking at very closely."[262]

Asia [ edit ]

East Asia [ edit ]

China [ edit ]

Clinton described the U.S.-China relationship in Hard Choices as one that does not fit "neatly into categories like friend or rival".[263] According to the Council on Foreign Relations, "Clinton was a central actor in the Obama administration's strategic 'pivot' to Asia" during her tenure as Secretary of State.[263] She has criticized China for its cyberattacks and industrial espionage against the U.S., and for behaving in threatening ways towards U.S. allies such as the Philippines.[264]

Clinton stated in 2010 that competing maritime claims in the South China Sea were a U.S. national interest: "The United States has a national interest in freedom of navigation, open access to Asia's maritime commons and respect for international law in the South China Sea."[265] The Chinese foreign minister responded, saying that "remarks were in effect an attack on China".[266][267]

Clinton has repeatedly criticized the Chinese government's human rights record.[268] In 2011, for example, she described the Chinese government's human rights record as "deplorable"[269] and its crackdown on dissent as "a fool's errand."[268] Clinton has criticized Chinese leader Xi Jinping's record on gender inequality, accusing the Chinese regime of "persecuting feminists," referring to the detention of five Chinese women activists (Wei Tingting and four others) who had campaigned against sexual harassment.[270][271] As First Lady, she criticized China's one-child policy.[263] She has been criticized by Chinese state media and "government-affiliated opinion writers," as well as by Chinese social media commentators, for her forceful human rights critiques and her opposition to China's activities in the South China Sea.[268] In 2008, she called on President Bush to boycott the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympics, citing political violence in Tibet and China's failure to pressure Sudan to halt the violence in Darfur.[263] As Secretary of State, Clinton warned against "new colonialism" in Africa, referring to China's involvement in Africa.[272][273] On a trip to Africa in 2011, Clinton said that China was not a role model for governance.[272] In a trip to Africa the following year, Clinton launched the trip by contrasting the U.S. commitment to "democracy and human rights" with rival powers' desire "to look the other way and keep the resources flowing"—a comment that was widely interpreted as a veiled attack on China.[274]

North Korea [ edit ]

Clinton says that she wants to increase sanctions on North Korea to curtail its nuclear weapons program, urge China to put pressure on North Korea to curtail its nuclear weapons program, and bolster the ballistic missile shield with allies Japan and South Korea.[275][276] She supported the Obama administration's pivot to Asia, in part because the United States needed a greater military presence in the region to counter the North Korean threat.[276]

South Asia [ edit ]

Afghanistan [ edit ]

Clinton supports President Barack Obama's decision to keep 5,500 U.S. troops in Afghanistan through the end of his term in January 2017.[277] She has said that the primary goal of these forces should be to support and train the Afghan National Army rather than to engage in "on-the-ground combat."[277] When asked in June 2014 about U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Clinton said that it would depend upon "conditions on the ground and what was being asked for."[277]

As Secretary of State under Obama, Clinton advocated more hawkish policies than other senior administration officials; "Clinton's more activist philosophy" occasionally clashed with Obama's "instincts toward restraint."[278] Clinton supported the 2009 increase in U.S. troop levels in Afghanistan.[277] During the administration's Afghanistan War review in 2010, Clinton endorsed General Stanley McChrystal's recommendation for 40,000 more troops to Afghanistan, before endorsing a fallback proposal (ultimately accepted by Obama) for 30,000 troops.[278]

In January 2010, Clinton supported a $500 million plan developed by NATO, Britain, and the Afghan government to reintegrate low-level Taliban insurgents into Afghan society. The plan, to be funded by a "Peace and Reintegration Trust Fund,"[279] Clinton set three end conditions for any reintegration of insurgents: the renunciation of violence, a break with al-Qaeda, and a commitment to abide by Afghan law, including an Afghan Constitution guaranteeing "the rights of all individuals, especially women."[279][280] Mary Akrami of the Afghan Women Skills Development Center, were "initially dubious" of the plan, given the Taliban's record of threatening and attacking girls and women.[279] Marc Grossman (who served as U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan at the time) stated that "the moral ambiguity of talking to insurgents was clarified by our commitment to the principles Secretary Clinton had laid out before we started to talk."[280]

U.S.-Taliban talks lasted from mid-2011 to March 2012 and were ultimately unsuccessful.[280] In October 2011, Clinton said that a door for a negotiated peace as part of an inclusive political process was still open to the Taliban, and that the Taliban would face "unrelenting" attacks if they refused.[280] Clinton also said at the time that Pakistani cooperation was vital to Afghan security and urged the Pakistani government "to deny safe haven to extremists sheltering across the border."[281] Clinton stated in her memoir Hard Choices: "I acknowledged, as I had many times before, that opening the door to negotiations with the Taliban would be hard to swallow for many Americans after so many years before. Reintegrating low-level fighters was odious enough; negotiating directly with top commanders was something else entirely. But diplomacy would be easy if we had to talk only to our friends. That's not how peace is made."[282]

During internal U.S. government talks in 2011-12, Clinton was highly skeptical of the exchange of five Taliban detainees for U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. Clinton pushed for stricter conditions as part of any agreement and was "disinclined to trust the Taliban or the Haqqani network in Pakistan," which held Bergdahl prisoner.[283]

Southeast Asia [ edit ]

Burma [ edit ]

Clinton has described Burma's transition to democracy as "a high point of my time as Secretary."[35] While noting that obstacles toward full democracy remain, Clinton emphasized her role in nudging the nation toward political reform.[284] Clinton praised the landmark free elections held in Burma in 2015, calling them "an important, though imperfect, step forward in the country's long journey toward democracy" and saying that they represented "an affirmation of the indispensable role the United States can and should play in the world as a champion of peace and progress."[284]

West Asia [ edit ]

Iran [ edit ]

Clinton has described Iran as a long-term strategic challenge to the United States, its NATO allies, and Israel. In 2006, she called for sanctions to deter Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons[285] and refused to rule out a military strike, saying: "We cannot take any option off the table in sending a clear message to Iran that they will not be permitted to acquire nuclear weapons."[286] In 2007, she accused Iran of state-sponsored terrorism and using its surrogates to supply explosives that kill U.S. troops in Iraq. She criticized the Bush administration for refusing to talk to Iran about its nuclear program; meanwhile, Iran allegedly enhanced its nuclear-enrichment capabilities.[287] On September 26, 2007, Clinton voted for a symbolic non-binding amendment to label Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a "foreign terrorist organization," and to use diplomatic economic, intelligence economic, and U.S. military "instruments" to enforce U.S. policy against Iran and "its proxies" within Iraq.[288] Clinton insisted that she continued to support vigorous diplomacy with Iran, defending her vote by saying Iranian arms shipments to Iraq have slowed down since the Senate resolution passed. But her Democratic opponents criticized her for contributing to what they said was Bush administration saber rattling on Iran.[289] In October 2007, Clinton cosponsored a bill prohibiting the use of funds for military action in Iran without "explicit Congressional authorization."[289] On April 22, 2008, Clinton threatened Iran with nuclear annihilation if they attacked Israel with nuclear weapons, saying "If Iran were to launch a nuclear attack on Israel what would our response be? I want the Iranians to know that if I'm the president, we will attack Iran. That's what we will do. There is no safe haven." She continued, "Whatever stage of development they might be in their nuclear weapons program in the next 10 years during which they may foolishly consider launching an attack on Israel, we would be able to totally obliterate them."[290]

During Clinton's tenure as Secretary of State, "upping sanctions on Iran was a clear priority."[291] Clinton was personally involved in the U.S. State Department's successful efforts to convince other nations, including Russia and China, to rapidly ramp up international sanctions against Iran.[291] Clinton also successfully secured the passage of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1929 in June 2010, which added strict new sanctions on Iran, including an arms embargo and limits on the country's financial and shipping activities.[291][292] The sanctions imposed on Iran by the U.S. during Clinton's tenure are generally regarded as one of several factors that compelled Iran to go to the negotiating table over its nuclear program.[291]

According to experts, "Clinton's team also played a role in the sanctions that Congress passed" during Clinton's tenure, although "Congress did pass some sanctions that went further than the administration's wishes."[291] One such measure, placing sanctions on the Iran's central bank, was enacted by Congress and signed into law by President Obama over the objections of State Department officials.[293] The State Department ultimately implemented it, although it issued waivers from the sanctions for several countries, prompting criticism from some lawmakers and advocacy groups.[293]

During her 2008 election campaign, Clinton criticized Obama for being willing to negotiate with Iran without preconditions.[294] As Secretary of State, Clinton helped arrange secret lower-level talks with the nation in 2012 and in 2013.[294] After resigning as Secretary of State, she stated that negotiations were the most likely way for the U.S. to influence the country's nuclear development.[295]

On April 2, 2015, Clinton confirmed her support for an agreement to lift economic sanctions on Iran in exchange for limits on the country's nuclear program, calling it "an important step" in controlling the nation's security.[296] In January 2016, Clinton said, "I'm very proud of the Iran Nuclear Agreement. I was very pleased to be part of what the president put into action when he took office. I was responsible for getting those sanctions imposed which put the pressure on Iran. It brought them to the negotiating table which resulted in this agreement. But I think we still have to carefully watch them."[297]

Iraq [ edit ]

On October 11, 2002, Clinton voted in favor of the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq, commonly known as the Iraq War Resolution, to give President Bush authority for the Iraq War.[298] In an interview on December 18, 2006, she expressed regret for the vote: "Obviously, if we knew then what we know now, there wouldn't have been a vote, and I certainly wouldn't have voted for it."[299] By February 2007, Clinton failed to state that her vote was a mistake, or to apologize for it, as anti-war Democrats demanded. "If the most important thing to any of you is choosing someone who did not cast that vote or has said this vote was a mistake, then there are others to choose from," Clinton told an audience in Dover, New Hampshire.[300]

In the second Democratic debate of the 2008 presidential race, Clinton said that she voted for the resolution under the impression that Bush would allow more time for UN inspectors to find proof of weapons of mass destruction before proceeding. Reporter Carl Bernstein and others have questioned why Clinton would have voted against the Levin Amendment, which would have required President Bush to allow more time to UN weapons inspectors and also would have required a separate Congressional authorization to allow a unilateral invasion of Iraq, if her vote was simply a vote for strong diplomacy.[301][302][303]

During an April 20, 2004 interview on Larry King Live, Clinton was asked about her October 2002 vote in favor of the Iraq war resolution.

Obviously, I've thought about that a lot in the months since. No, I don't regret giving the president authority because at the time it was in the context of weapons of mass destruction, grave threats to the United States, and clearly, Saddam Hussein had been a real problem for the international community for more than a decade. ... The consensus was the same, from the Clinton administration to the Bush administration. It was the same intelligence belief that our allies and friends around the world shared.

But, she said, the Bush Administration "really believed it. They really thought they were right, but they didn't let enough sunlight into their thinking process to really have the kind of debate that needs to take place when a serious decision occurs like that."[304]

In a November 29, 2005 letter to her constituents, Senator Clinton said, "There are no quick and easy solutions to the long and drawn out conflict [the Bush] Administration triggered ... I do not believe that we should allow this to be an open-ended commitment without limits or end. Nor do I believe that we can or should pull out of Iraq immediately."[305]

On June 8, 2006, Clinton said of the U.S. airstrike that killed Abu Musab al-Zarqawi: "I saw firsthand the terrible consequences of Zarqawi's terrorist network when Bill, Chelsea and I visited the hotel ballroom in Amman, Jordan last November where Zarqawi's followers had detonated a bomb at a wedding, killing and wounding innocent people. We owe our thanks to our men and women in uniform and others in Iraq who have been fighting Zarqawi and other insurgents and who are responsible for today's success."[306]

In a speech on June 13, 2006, Clinton sharply criticized President George W. Bush's handling of the Iraq War,[307] saying that Bush "rushed to war" and "refused to let the UN inspectors conduct and complete their mission ... We need to be building alliances instead of isolation around the world ... There must be a plan that will begin to bring our troops home."[308] In the same speech, Clinton reiterated her longstanding opposition to a timeline for U.S. withdrawal, saying: "I do not think it is a smart strategy either for the president to continue with his open-ended commitment which I think does not put enough pressure on the Iraqi government, nor do I think it is a smart policy to set a date certain."[307][308]

On February 17, 2007, she announced the Iraq Troop Protection and Reduction Act of 2007. This act would compel President Bush to begin relegating troops from Iraq within 90 days of remote passage, or, according to Clinton, Congress would have to dismantle their authorization for the war. The Act would also end the blank check to the Iraqi government and submit them to harsh consequences if boundaries are violated. Lastly, the Act would require the Secretary of Defense to verify the condition, in terms of supplies and in terms of their training, of all Iraqi troops before they are sent.[citation needed]

In March 2007 she voted in favor of a war spending bill that required President Bush to begin withdrawing troops from Iraq within a certain deadline; it passed almost completely along party lines but was subsequently vetoed by President Bush.[citation needed]

In May 2007, Clinton, along with then democratic rival Obama and 12 other senators, voted against a compromise war funding bill that removed previously vetoed withdrawal deadlines but tied funding to progress benchmarks for the Iraqi government. She said, "I fully support our troops [but this measure] fails to compel the president to give our troops a new strategy in Iraq."[309]

While calling for ending the war in Iraq, Clinton's indicated in July 2007 that she advocates keeping a reduced number of U.S. troops in Iraq for the foreseeable future, stating "we cannot lose sight of our very real strategic national interests in this region."[310] In the speech, she posited redeploying U.S. forces to protect the Kurdish region in the north, to engage in targeted operations against al-Qaeda in Iraq, and to train and equip Iraqi forces.[310] Clinton's position is similar to that of the Iraq Study Group in that she highlights the need for political reconciliation in Iraq, supports the withdrawal of U.S. combat brigades, and favors keeping a reduced number of troops to serve in training and support roles such as protection of the U.S. Embassy.[310]

On August 22, 2007, Clinton credited the troop surge and related new tactics with helping to produce the Anbar Awakening in Al Anbar Governorate,[311] but said that overall the increase in troops had not met stated goals: "The surge was designed to give the Iraqi government time to take steps to ensure a political solution to the situation. It has failed to do so. The White House's report in September wont change that. It is abundantly clear that there is no military solution to the sectarian fighting in Iraq. We need to stop refereeing the war, and start getting out now."[312] Furthermore, Clinton, following the lead of Senate Armed Services Committee chair Carl Levin, called on the Iraqi Parliament to replace Nouri al-Maliki as Prime Minister of Iraq with "a less divisive and more unifying figure," saying that Maliki had failed to make progress in bridging differences between the hostile factions within Iraq: "Iraqi leaders have not met their own political benchmarks to share power, modify the de-Baathification laws, pass an oil law, schedule provincial elections, and amend their constitution."[313]

By late November 2007, with still more evidence that the surge and other tactics and developments had led to a significant lessening of the civil violence in Iraq,[314] Clinton acknowledged the successes but said that the underlying equation had not changed: "Our troops are the best in the world; if you increase their numbers they are going to make a difference. The fundamental point here is that the purpose of the surge was to create space for political reconciliation and that has not happened, and there is no indication that it is going to happen, or that the Iraqis will meet the political benchmarks. We need to stop refereeing their civil war and start getting out of it."[315]

At the January 16, 2008 Democratic debate in Las Vegas, Clinton, along with Senators Barack Obama and John Edwards, maintained that they cannot guarantee the removal of all U.S. troops by the end of their first presidential term due to continuing support roles. All three pledged to begin the withdrawal of combat brigades within 60 days of taking office. Additionally, Clinton used the opportunity to ask Senator Obama to co-sponsor legislation to prevent President Bush from signing long-term agreements with the government of Iraq without the express consent of congress, stating: "So I've introduced legislation that clearly requires President Bush to come to the United States Congress. It is not enough, as he claims, to go to the Iraqi parliament, but to come to the United States Congress to get anything that he's trying to do, including permanent bases, numbers of troops, all the other commitments he's talking about as he's traveling in that region."[316]

Israel [ edit ]

Clinton has stated that she is "an emphatic, unwavering supporter of Israel's safety and security."[317] CNN noted in 2016 that Clinton "has a long and detailed track record on supporting Israel in efforts to find a two-state solution throughout her time in the Senate and as secretary of state."[318] In her speech to the 2016 AIPAC conference, Clinton reaffirmed her longstanding support for a negotiated two-state solution as "the only way to guarantee Israel's long-term survival as a strong Jewish and democratic state."[319] In 1998, Clinton said that such an arrangement would "be in the long-term interests of the Middle East."[320]

In 2010, as secretary of state, Clinton presided over three sessions of direct face-to-face talks between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.[319] In her 2016 AIPAC speech, Clinton said that if elected president she would continue to pursue direct Israel-Palestinian negotiations but would "vigorously oppose any attempt by outside parties to impose a solution, including by the U.N. Security Council."[319]

Clinton has condemned the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement and "all efforts to malign, isolate and undermine Israel and the Jewish people."[319]

Clinton is opposed to Israeli settlement expansion, arguing that a settlement freeze is key for peace talks to succeed.[321][322][323]

In July 2006, Clinton expressed support for Israel's efforts in the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict: "We are here to show solidarity and support for Israel. We will stand with Israel, because Israel is standing for American values as well as Israeli ones."[324]

In November 2005, Clinton said that she supports the creation of the West Bank barrier, stating: "This is not against the Palestinian people. This is against the terrorists."[325]

As a senator and throughout her career, Clinton has said that she regards Jerusalem as the "eternal and indivisible capital of Israel," and Clinton supported legislation requiring the U.S. government to identify Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the U.S. Embassy to Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem (the Jerusalem Embassy Act).[326][327][328] In 2011, as Secretary of State, Clinton filed a brief with the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Zivotofsky v. Clinton, involving an act of Congress requiring that U.S. passports for persons born in Jerusalem read "Jerusalem, Israel" (rather than "Jerusalem") under place of birth.[328] Consistent with the U.S.'s policy of the last 60 years recognizing no state as having sovereignty over Jerusalem,[329] Clinton's brief argued that "any American action, even symbolically, toward recognizing Jerusalem as the capital of Israel" might have an influence on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.[328] The Supreme Court subsequently struck down the passport law on separation-of-powers grounds, holding that Congress had intruded upon the president's constitutional power to recognize foreign states.[329]

During an interview while the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict was ongoing, Clinton said that Hamas had intentionally provoked Israel by firing rockets into that country. In regard to whether Israel's response against Hamas had been proportionate, she said, "I'm not a military planner, but Hamas puts its missiles – its rockets – in civilian areas. Part of it is that Gaza's pretty small and it's very densely populated. They put their command and control of Hamas military leaders in those civilian areas. Israel, I know, has sent warnings and tried to get people to move, but in any kind of conflict there are going to be civilian casualties, and we need to try to get to a cease-fire as soon as possible."[330]

Turkey [ edit ]

During the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt, Clinton said: "We should all urge calm and respect for laws, institutions, and basic human rights and freedoms - and support for the democratically elected civilian government."[331]

Armenian Genocide [ edit ]

During her time in the Senate, Clinton was a co-sponsor of the Armenian Genocide Resolution, and as senator twice wrote to President Bush calling on him to refer to the Armenian Genocide in his annual commemorative statement.[332][333] (The use of the word "genocide" is contested by the government of Turkey.)[333] In 2008 (the year Clinton unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for president), Clinton stated that "I believe the horrible events perpetrated by the Ottoman Empire against Armenians constitute a clear case of genocide."[333]

As secretary of state under Obama, Clinton shifted her position on the atrocity; consistent with administration policy, neither Clinton nor the Department of State used the word genocide, which angered Armenians and the Armenian National Committee of America.[333][334] At a State Department event in January 2012, Clinton stated that the atrocity "has always been viewed, and I think properly so, as a matter of historical debate" causing "high emotions" and "that is the right posture for the United States Government" to avoid using the word.[333]

After leaving office as secretary of state, Clinton resumed using the term genocide. A Clinton aide told Newsweek in April 2015 that Clinton "has a record of expressing her own view that this was a genocide."[333]

Europe [ edit ]

Russia and Ukraine [ edit ]

As secretary of state, Clinton oversaw the completion of the New START nuclear arms control treaty between the United States and Russia, and successfully pushed for its ratification.[335][336] In April 2016, the Clinton campaign ran an advertisement claiming credit for Clinton in "securing a massive reduction in nuclear weapons" through the treaty. FactCheck.org found that this ad overstated Clinton's nuclear achievement, noting that New START limits the number of deployed strategic nuclear warheads but does not require either side to destroy nuclear weapons or reduce their nuclear stockpile, that Russia was below the limit when the treaty took effect, and that the country has increased them since then.[337]

The New START treaty was part of Clinton's broader role in the 2009 "reset" of U.S.-Russia relations. Clinton defended the "reset" in 2014, saying that the signing of the New START treaty, enhanced sanctions on Iran and the securing of supply lines to American troops in Afghanistan were all successes that came from the reset.[338]

In an interview with a Russian journalist in 2010, Clinton stated "One of the fears that I hear from Russians is that somehow the United States wants Russia to be weak. That could not be farther from the truth. Our goal is to help strengthen Russia. We see Russia with the strong culture, with the incredible intellectual capital that Russia has, as a leader in the 21st century. And we sometimes feel like we believe more in your future than sometimes Russians do."[339][340] After Russia's 2011 elections, Clinton said that they were "neither free nor fair", a statement that was consistent with claims by elections observers and the statements by other Western leaders.[341]

Clinton has criticized Russian president Vladimir Putin on a number of occasions for his aggressive conduct, particularly after Russia annexed Crimea and supported separatists in eastern Ukraine, which led to ongoing increased tensions with the West.[342] In July 2014, Clinton said that Putin "can be dangerous" and that "his latest aggression in Ukraine must be answered with a joint reaction by the West."[343] In January 2015, Clinton called for increased financial aid, military equipment, and military training to Ukraine (contingent on measures to ensure accountability) to "help Ukraine defend its borders" and combat Russian-backed separatists.[342]

North America [ edit ]

Cuba [ edit ]

Cl