President Obama said Saturday he thinks Hillary Clinton would make “an excellent president.”
Clinton is expected to unveil her much-anticipated 2016 presidential campaign Sunday. It will be her second campaign for president, after falling short of the Democratic nomination to Obama in 2008.
{mosads}During that campaign, the two sides had an often-frosty relationship that seemed to continue at times after Obama entered the Oval Office.
Obama said Saturday while in Panama that Clinton was a “formidable candidate” before, and that should she run again, she would have some “strong messages to deliver.”
He mentioned her work on foreign policy, as well her having domestic policy views of “one [who] cares about working families.”
The president noted Clinton become supportive of him during the general election in 2008, and also agreed to be his secretary of State from 2009-2013.
“She was a supporter of mine in the general election, she was an outstanding secretary of State, she is my friend,” Obama said.
“I think she would be an excellent president,” he added.
Clinton is reportedly aiming to portray herself as a “tenacious fighter” for average Americans, according to an Associated Press report.
Speculation over how Clinton would handle her relationship with Obama has escalated recently, heading into her expected campaign launch.
Many Democratic lawmakers up for reelection during the 2014 midterms kept their distance from Obama, who remained deeply unpopular in polling, while Republicans immediately worked to cast voting for Clinton as voting for Obama’s third term.
Still, Obama is reportedly expected to help Clinton fundraise, as well as campaign for her in key areas during the 2016 cycle, primarily places he did best during both of his presidential campaigns.
– Updated at 7:45 p.m.