For the first time in his 22-year political career, Iowa Congressman Leonard Boswell has endorsed a Democratic presidential candidate in the heat of the primary season. Boswell announced this morning that he and his family are backing Hillary Clinton’s bid for his party’s presidential nomination.
"I’m not against anybody but we have to make a decision. This country is in peril. Our world is crying out and I want somebody that can win and can bring experience to this. As (my family) went through all this…we kept coming back to Hillary every time because we’ve got to win," Boswell said, slapping his hand on the lectern to emphasize his point.
Boswell plans to campaign with Clinton and on her behalf in the three weeks that remain in the Caucus campaign. According to Boswell, he was swayed by Clinton’s stances on a variety of issues from energy to education to the economy.
"She gets it. She understands," Boswell said. "She sees the need…You listen to what she’s said and what she’s done and what her experience factor is — she gets things done so I’m endorsing. My family’s endorsing with enthusiasm because we want to win and we’ve got to pull on the best experience we possibly can."
Clinton calls Boswell’s endorsement a "red letter day" in her campaign. "His endorsement is a real vote of confidence both because he believes I would be the best president and because he knows I can win," Clinton said. "We have to win. That is the bottom line for everybody Caucusing on January 3rd and all the contests that follow. We need to nominate a candidate who can win."
During a news conference this morning at Iowa Public Television, Clinton brushed aside any notion she regrets deciding to compete in Iowa for support in the Caucuses. "I guess I’ve been in enough campaigns over a lot of years to know that there is no predictability and there certainly is no inevitability. You have to get out and work for every single vote," Clinton said. "That’s what I have always done. I don’t know any other way to do it."
Clinton is the guest on this evening’s "Iowa Press" program on IPTV.
Click on the audio link below to listen to this morning’s news conference featuring Boswell and Clinton.