When Hillary Clinton said she was going to hit the road, she meant it.
The newly declared presidential candidate is on her way to Iowa, from New York, in a van after announcing her candidacy online Sunday afternoon.
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The former secretary of state, who is trying to become the first female president, is set to appear in Iowa the influential early-voting state on Tuesday for a series of small, private events. But first, shell be driving with two campaign aides Nick Merrill and Huma Abedin making unplanned stops along the way.
While she has no planned pit stops on her road trip which was her own idea the candidate stopped by a gas station in Pennsylvania on Sunday. She later tweeted a picture of the stop, saying, Road trip! Loaded the van & set off for IA. Met a great family when we stopped this afternoon. Many more to come. -H
Clinton asked top aides whether a road trip was feasible about a month ago, one of her staffers said. Instead of a motorcade, she is traveling in a three-car caravan, the smallest possible arrangement given the former first ladys security constraints.
We know at some point shell get OJed like the White Bronco, said one campaign aide, anticipating a highly-watched drive. But its worth the risk If she gets mobbed or we have a circus-type scene, thats one day in an 18-month campaign, and we can deal with it.
Clinton is not filming ads during her road trip, the aide said, adding that the trip will allow Clinton reap the political benefits of small, spontaneous events without a large crowd or media contingent. Even the launch video was filmed in-house, under the eye of digital strategist Teddy Goff, partially to avoid leaks.
Clintons much-anticipated launch came in the form of a web video on Sunday afternoon, ending months of speculation about her intentions. Her campaign kick-off is expected to include a series of low-key events with private citizens, as opposed to large speeches and her road trip reflects that plan. The presumptive Democratic front-runner is not planning any major speeches or campaign rallies until May.
Glenn Thrush contributed reporting.
Source: http://www.politico.com/story/2015/04/hillary-clinton-2016-hits-the-road-116911.html
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