--- title: Hillary Clinton Hard Choices Book Tour: Fans Line Up Early To See Her description: Many see a book launch as the start of a campaign canonical: https://time.com/2853062/hillary-clinton-hard-choices-book-tour/ author: Joan E. Greve article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-06-10T19:36:48.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:41:23.234Z article:section: Politics og:title: Hillary Clinton mania comes to New York og:description: Many see a book launch as the start of a campaign og:url: https://time.com/2853062/hillary-clinton-hard-choices-book-tour/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9f7e2d601f2c56c6/698696f7cd68484211095273/450382582.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: Hillary Rodham Clinton Signs Copies Of Her Memoir "Hard Choices" og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Hillary Clinton mania comes to New York twitter:description: Many see a book launch as the start of a campaign twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9f7e2d601f2c56c6/698696f7cd68484211095273/450382582.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Hillary Clinton Mania Comes to New York > Sponsored content. 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Greve / New York Jun 10, 2014 7:36 PM UTC  Former US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton promotes "Hard Choices" at Barnes & Noble Union Square on June 10, 2014 in New York City. Former US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton promotes "Hard Choices" at Barnes & Noble Union Square on June 10, 2014 in New York City. John Lamparski—WireImage/Getty Images by [Joan E. Greve / New York](https://time.com/author/joan-greve/) ## Joan E. Greve / New York Jun 10, 2014 7:36 PM UTC The line stretched down the street and around the corner—then down the next street and around another corner. Fans of her political celebrity—young, old and everything in between—donned “I’m Ready for Hillary!” stickers, waiting hours just to get into a New York City bookstore. They had come early, hundreds of them, some as early as the night before, and all to get a glimpse of—and a book signed by—the woman they hope will be the next President of the United States: Hillary Rodham Clinton. Clinton, the former Secretary of State and would-be 2016 presidential candidate, kicked off [the tour for her new book _Hard Choices_](http://time.com/2845937/hillary-clinton-book-tour-hard-choices/) at a Manhattan Barnes & Noble on Tuesday. Forget Iowa and New Hampshire: For a few hours, Union Square was the epicenter of American politics, with all eyes on Clinton as she promoted a book that is widely seen as a prelude to one last run at the White House. She wasn’t scheduled to arrive until 11 a.m. Not wanting to miss out, some came at 9:30—the night before. Dana Watters, a 27-year-old New York grad student, said she was already behind several people in line when she arrived about 13 hours before the event. “I’m not 100 percent sure what came out of my mouth \[when meeting Clinton\], but it was somewhere along the lines of telling her I’ve been a fan of her since I was 6,” Watters said. “I asked her if it was too soon to call her ‘Madame President,’ and she said ‘Hillary’ was fine for now,” said Bert Feldstein, a 72-year-old retired human resources worker from Long Island. Clinton has said repeatedly—both in remarks and in her book—that she hasn’t decided whether or not to seek the White House again. But with a bus sponsored by the Ready for Hillary super PAC parked outside the night before, presidential politics were the first, second and third topics of conversation. “The main reason I’m here is because of my mom. She passed away two months ago, and it was her dying wish that Hillary become president,” Kevin Gussiaas, a 54-year-old health care worker in New York, said. “I don’t think there’s anybody who could replace her.” Republicans, convinced as anyone that the book tour is a campaign-in-waiting, wasted few opportunities to take Clinton down a peg. They highlighted bad [reviews](http://time.com/2853172/hillary-clinton-hard-choices-book-review/) of the book, drew attention to [off-tone remarks](http://time.com/2851938/hillary-clinton-dead-broke-obviously-blessed/) Clinton made earlier about [being “dead broke”](http://time.com/2847815/hillary-clinton-book-speeches/) after leaving the White House, and circulated “fact vs. fiction” opposition research about the book’s contents. The Drudge Report highlighted [a journalist’s Twitter post about the book being deeply discounted](https://twitter.com/tobyharnden/status/476379781647179777) atop its site with the banner headline “SLASHED.” “@HillaryClinton’s book launch facing poor reviews & stumbling messaging,” Republican National Committee chairman Reince Priebus wrote on Twitter. But outside the Union Square Barnes & Noble, Clinton supporters saw opportunity. [Warnings about security measures and that the former first lady wouldn’t be personalizing the signatures](https://twitter.com/maggiepolitico/status/476327200934088704/photo/1) on books didn’t seem to dent the mood. “I think it would be political malpractice to not take the energy and excitement around her and organize it around that today,” said Adam Parkhomenko, the executive director of Ready for Hillary, the super PAC that has been quietly blessed by Clinton allies and has raised more than $6 million. Bailey Ellicott, a 17-year old student from Manasquan, N.J., who woke up at 4:30 a.m. and missed school, hopes to cast her first vote in a Presidential election for Clinton. “She’s my role model. I look up to her,” Ellicott said. “I can’t picture myself voting for anyone else but her.” Others said their support for Clinton stretched back to her 2008 campaign and earlier, to when her husband was in the Oval Office. “When I voted for Bill Clinton, I was really voting for Hillary,” said Robert Shanley, a 63-year-old New York hotel worker. “I think she was really the brains behind Bill, and she’d make a great president. … I’ll be thrilled to see her in the White House.” “I would sell my soul to work on her campaign,” Watters said. Camille Desantis, the 53-year-old founder of a brand development company in New York, echoed many in expressing optimism that 2016 might finally see the first election of a female president. “I think it’s time for the country to have a woman president,” she said. “It’s time for that ceiling to go away,” Desantis said. “I don’t think we would be having some of the issues we’re having today if she were in the White House now.” ## Transcript [00:01] Hillary Clinton, in an interview with ABC News, found [00:03] herself in the awkward position of defending her [00:06] wealth. We came out of the White House not only dead [00:09] broke but in debt. We had no money when we got [00:12] there and we struggled to, you know, piece together [00:16] the resources for mortgages for houses, for Chelsea's [00:20] education. Houses plural. Clinton's opponents jumped [00:24] on that. Shamelessly out of touch the NRC declared. [00:28] America Rising, the leading anti- Hilary super pack [00:31] tweeted pictures of the Clinton's two multi- million [00:33] dollar homes and they Hampton's vacation rental. That [00:37] mistake aside. Clinton's first big interview as her new [00:40] memoir Hard Choices goes on sale showed a more [00:43] personal side. Even as she spoke about Monica [00:46] Lewinsky, who resurfaced last month writing an essay [00:49] for Vanity Fair. Is there anything you would say to her [00:53] about her life? I, I, well I would wish her well. I hope [00:55] that she is able to, you know, think about her future [00:59] and construct a life that she finds a meaning and, and [01:03] satisfaction in. She talked about moving beyond the [01:06] toughest time in her life. Somebody said forgiveness [01:10] is releasing the prisoner and discovering the prisoner [01:13] was yourself. I am 100 % in [01:17] the camp that says, forgiveness is mostly about the [01:21] forgiver. I know too many people, having now [01:25] lived as long as I have, who can never get over it. The [01:28] softer side of Hilary Clinton. One we haven't seen since [01:32] the 2008 campaign. This is very personal for me. It's [01:37] not just political, it's not just public. That appeal, [01:40] though convincing, came too late. Not this time. When [01:44] you're, in the spotlight, as a woman, you [01:49] know you're being judged constantly. I mean it is just [01:53] never ending. And, you get a little, you know, worried [01:57] about, okay. Well you know. People, over on this side, [02:00] are loving what I'm wearing, looking like, saying. [02:04] People, over on this side, aren't. And, how, you know, [02:06] you, your natural tendency is how do you bring people [02:09] together, so that you can better communicate? I'm [02:11] done with that. 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