Clinton plans weekend swing through Iowa, aides say

Clinton plans weekend swing through Iowa, aides say
By MIKE GLOVER, AP Political Writer
DES MOINES (AP) --- New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, the newest entrant in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, will make her initial foray into Iowa next weekend, aides said Saturday.

Details of the upcoming campaign swing were still being finalized, but spokeswoman Lorraine Voles said an official announcement would come within days.
Clinton's decision to enter the race, and to compete in Iowa's leadoff precinct caucuses, reshuffles the Democratic contest in the state.
"This is going to be a real donnybrook," said Jeff Link, a veteran Democratic strategist who is advising former Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack in his bid for the nomination. "I think the race is completely up in the air."
Former Iowa Democratic Chairman Gordon Fischer said he got a call from Clinton aides advising him of her plans, which were announced on her Web site early Saturday morning.
"She will be a very formidable candidate," Fischer said. "It's not a shock. She has been calling people and asking for advice."
While Clinton lags behind other Democrats in building a campaign organization for Iowa's caucuses, she is very well known and traveled to the state often during here husband's two terms in office, and afterward.
Some political onlookers had suggested she would use Vilsack's presence in the race as an excuse to skip past Iowa's leadoff caucuses, but she has clearly decided against that strategy.
Her move comes after Illinois Sen. Barack Obama announced he will form an exploratory committee to ponder seeking the Democratic nomination, with a final decision expected Feb. 10. Despite starting later, key Iowa activists said Clinton is certain to be a force.
"I think she'll be a serious player here in Iowa and other places," said veteran strategist Ron Parker. "Once she starts touring Iowa, she'll have some of the same star power as Sen. Obama, and then you add on top of that her fundraising ability."
Clinton is seeking to become the first female president, and her ability to raise money sets her apart from other women candidates, many of whom have struggled with raising campaign funds. Clinton raised more than $40 million in winning a second term in the Senate in November, and still has $13 million in the bank.
"I think the great intangible in all this is the appeal she will have as a female candidate, with experience, with fundraising ability and as somebody who has been battle tested in a real campaign," Parker said.
Clinton has been calling leading Democrats in Iowa to keep them posted about her intentions. Among them is Senate Majority Leader Michael Gronstal, a Democrat from Council Bluffs, who said he spoke with her Saturday.
"I kind of said, 'Well, welcome to the race in Iowa,"' Gronstal said. "I told her the field was open in Iowa and we're welcome to basically anyone."
Link said Vilsack welcomes the competition in his home state, saying there's plenty of time until activists attend caucuses early next year.
"Everything has been turned upside down in the last two weeks," Link said. "I don't even think there's been enough time passed for there to be a conventional wisdom."
Parker agreed that Iowa's backing for the Democratic presidential nomination is up for grabs.
"Twelve months is a long, long time for all of the candidates," he said.
Clinton's decision comes as the pace of campaigning in Iowa is beginning to quicken. Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards swung through the state on Saturday holding a town hall meeting on the war in Iraq at the University of Iowa, and former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson was also spending time in eastern Iowa.
It's widely anticipated that Obama will make a stop in Iowa soon if he chooses to enter into the race early next month.
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