WASHINGTON – Hillary Rodham Clinton turned her battle against Sen. Barack Obama into a clash of divas yesterday, rolling out the endorsement of Barbra Streisand to counter the buzz over talk-show star Oprah Winfrey’s decision to stump for Obama.
“Madame President of the United States . . . it’s an extraordinary thought,” Streisand gushed in a statement released by Clinton’s campaign. “We truly are in a momentous time, where a woman’s potential has no limitations.”
Although she often gets ridiculed by the right for her views, Streisand is a force in Democratic politics and the nation’s top-selling female vocalist.
She is also a major party fund-raiser, helping Bill Clinton scoop up Hollywood cash during his 1992 presidential campaign.
Streisand’s spokesman, Ken Sunshine, said Streisand will be an asset on the campaign trail.
“She creates a certain stir wherever she goes. Nobody disputes her talent or her longevity,” Sunshine said.
Although she is close to Bill Clinton, Streisand stayed on the fence earlier in the year by cutting $2,300 campaign checks to Clinton, Obama and John Edwards.
The Clinton campaign revealed the endorsement a day after Obama announced that Winfrey would campaign for Obama in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina.
Obama’s camp hopes that Winfrey, who commands a media empire and draws several million viewers each day, can electrify Obama’s rallies and draw new voters to the polls.
Clinton, who trumpeted the endorsement of black ministers in South Carolina today, also dropped the name of former Secretary of State Colin Powell, saying, “As soon as I’m elected, I’m going to be asking distinguished Americans of both parties – people like Colin Powell” to represent the country and improve its image abroad.
But Powell’s spokeswoman said he had had “no conversations” with Clinton, and Powell told ABC News, “I have not seen what she has said. I don’t know the context of it. I have admiration for Mrs. Clinton but I have no comment.”
Powell has had meetings where he offered his advice to Obama, and he has also met with GOP candidates. He also made the administration’s case for the war in Iraq before the United Nations, which may not sit well with some Democratic voters.
Meanwhile, Bill Clinton stumped for his wife in Iowa, where she is tied with Obama in two recent polls, with Edwards running close behind.
The former president spoke against the Bush tax cuts, saying, “Even though I approved of Afghanistan and opposed Iraq from the beginning, I still resent that I was not asked or given the opportunity to support those soldiers.”