Friday, July 29, 2016

Chelsea Clinton's big moment By Amie Parnes

Chelsea Clinton's big moment

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PHILADELPHIA — Chelsea Clinton has played an influential role in her mother’s campaign. She sat in on early meetings to help with the rollout, held events as a chief surrogate and even made headlines as she defended her mom's policies during the Democratic primaries.

But her arguably biggest moment yet will come under the bright lights of the Wells Fargo Center on Thursday evening, where she is being called upon to introduce her mother at the Democratic National Convention.

As Hillary Clinton's campaign faces pressure to improve her image, the former first daughter is expected to sketch the intimate portrait of her mother that she alone can deliver, according to Clinton friends and surrogates.

While former President Bill Clinton attempted to humanize his wife Tuesday night, telling of how they met and how Hillary Clinton helped their daughter line her drawers when she left for college, it’s up to Chelsea Clinton, 36, to round out the picture.

Just as Ivanka Trump — who happens to be a friend of Chelsea Clinton’s — aimed to highlight what motivates her father during last week’s Republican National Convention, Hillary Clinton's daughter can do the same, according to the campaign.

“She needs to tell stories about her mom and show a side of her mom that few people see,” said one Clinton surrogate. “It’s a tall marching order, but Chelsea is the one to do it.”

One longtime aide to Hillary Clinton said Chelsea Clinton’s goal for the speech will be to portray "the Hillary that calls on your birthday, the Hillary that calls when you're in the hospital, the Hillary that pushes you and gives you bits and pieces of her life that relate to where you are in yours."

David Wade, a Democratic strategist, said the youngest Clinton can be “an incredibly powerful messenger.

“People don't take their cues from politicians or scripted convention portrayals. They crave authenticity,” Wade said. “To the audience at home, Chelsea's apart from politics, and every parent in America values what their children think of them. So Chelsea's an especially relatable, approachable, comfortable validator.

“The Clintons got high marks for how they raised their daughter in the White House, and now America will hear from her as an adult,” he added. “She doesn't have to reinvent her mother. She just has to reveal her mother for the slice of the electorate that's on the fence. These are the voices that speak to character, and character is central to the presidency.”

But Chelsea Clinton has to walk a fine line in her remarks, trying to humanize her mother without trying to upstage her.

As one Clinton campaign aide put it: “I think the idea is, tonight’s Hillary’s night. No one can upstage her tonight.”

Erika Gudmundson, a spokeswoman for Chelsea Clinton, said she in her introduction will "talk about why both as her mother's daughter and now as a mom herself, she is so proud and excited to see her mom accept the nomination and be there with her for such a historical and special moment."

In an interview with NBC’s Matt Lauer that aired on Thursday morning, Chelsea Clinton said the image Republicans tried to depict of her mom last week at their convention isn’t “the person that I know.”

“That’s not the person I grew up with, that I’m so proud to stand behind and to introduce here in Philadelphia,” Clinton said.

While she was protected from the cameras when she was growing up in the White House, the Clinton daughter has had a much more public role in recent years. She emerged during the 2008 election cycle as a powerful surrogate to her mom who could not only regurgitate talking points but also speak at length about policy.

And in recent years, Chelsea Clinton has played a major role in her family’s foundation, first in ironing out glitches and then taking on issues such as elephant poaching while traveling alongside her father on trips to Africa.

During the 2016 campaign, Clinton has traveled the country and appeared in more than 100 public events, a campaign aide said, speaking about issues such as equal pay, LGBT rights and affordable heathcare.

This week, in the lead-up to her mother accepting the Democratic presidential nomination, Clinton has watched the convention’s proceedings each evening from a skybox with her husband, Marc Mezvinsky, and a rotating parade of guests that has included Sen. Elizabeth Warren, (D-Mass.) who was on the Hillary Clinton's shortlist of running mates.

Clinton’s blue eyes could be seen welling up as her father spoke about their family unit during his speech Tuesday night. She has also had a presence around Philadelphia all week. She attended a Human Rights Campaign luncheon where she was well-received by crowd, according to attendees. She also participated in an event hosted by Glamour magazine and Facebook on Tuesday alongside two high profile surrogates, America Ferrera and Lena Dunham.

Those close to Chelsea Clinton suggest that she might continue to play a role in the family business, just as she did with the Clinton Foundation. The New York Times reported on Thursday that she could have a role in helping the East Wing run and help with the transition of Bill Clinton's role.