Center for American Progress president and Hillary Clinton supporter Neera Tanden said Friday on MSNBC she hopes Clinton has a press conference soon.
MSNBC anchor Kate Snow noted Clinton had gone 272 days without holding a conference, which has earned her criticism for seeming to avoid difficult questions in a non-scripted setting. Clinton also just announced she would begin next week to allow her campaign’s press corps to travel with her on her plane.
"It’s simple. Yes or no, will she have a press conference?" Snow asked.
"You know, I hope she has a press conference soon," Tanden said. "She’s obviously going to be on the plane with the press ... starting on Monday she travels with the press."
Snow noted that Clinton’s decision to finally allow the press to travel alongside her was historically later than most campaigns, although opponent Donald Trump still is not allowing the media on his.
"That’s a helpful point I was just about to make," she said. "The Republican nominee is still not doing that. She’ll do that. I am sure the press will be asking her questions about the press conference."
"But you just said you think she should have a press conference," Snow said.
"The issue here is, is she talking to the press? Yes," Tanden said. "She’s held numerous interviews. She had interviews just last week ... There will additional interviews. We are having a very rich and robust debate about a particular format of conversation between the candidate and the press, which I’m sure is very enriching for most people, but she is talking to reporters. She is being interviewed ... I’m sure there will be more in the coming weeks."
Clinton became defensive when challenged on the subject last week while talking with CNN’s Anderson Cooper, saying, "Well, Anderson, I’m talking to you right now."