Hillary Clinton’s campaign takes meticulous steps to control the Democratic front-runner’s image during events despite concerted efforts to present her as relaxed and less-scripted.
The Associated Press reported Thursday that new emails show Clinton’s staff routinely reviewing introductory remarks prepared by college presidents and pitching audience questions ahead of events that reflected the former first lady’s campaign platform.
According to the AP:
The newly revealed exchanges, which surfaced in open-records requests, show the trappings of a Clinton campaign that touts off-the-cuff moments … But the campaign still injects itself into the minute details of the candidate’s appearances down to the stemless glassware in her green room. That fixation on planning has sometimes pulled local officials uncomfortably into the political arena.
For example, Clinton’s staff offered to write the introduction for South Carolina’s Greenville Technical College president Keith Miller ahead of an event, but the public relations office turned down the suggestion, according to the emails.
The campaign also proposed questions that Miller could ask the audience, including one regarding college affordability—a Clinton favorite. Miller rejected the recommendations as "bad questions" and said he would come up with his own, "probably after hearing her speech."
Another email detailed a Clinton South Carolina state director asking a separate college to "provide a list of 2 or 3 students that would be fitting to introduce the Secretary."
Clinton’s meticulous preparation appears to contrast Donald Trump’s off the cuff style that has become emblematic of the presumptive Republican nominee’s campaign. The revelations also give fuel to voter concerns that Clinton is stiff and unrelatable.