Two decades ago, Bill Clinton was ready to take on Cuomo and his philosophy — although his approach never involved a repudiation of the Democratic past. He always found a way to blend old and new. But today, the question is how much Hillary Clinton will feel the need to accommodate those who yearn for a Warren candidacy. How much will she move left, while remaining largely rooted where she is?
In the end, Hillary Clinton could end up as her husband did, without the party’s contemporary liberal icon in the presidential field. Warren appears as or more reluctant than Cuomo did in 1991. Although she couches her denials in present tense — “I am not running for president — there is nothing that she is yet doing to suggest preparations for a serious campaign. Perhaps that will change.
In 1992, Cuomo ended up delivering the nominating speech for Bill Clinton at the Democratic convention in New York. He offered a robust, fulsome embrace of the young New Democrat. If Warren stays out of the 2016 race, and if Hillary Clinton runs and wins the nomination, could we see the Massachusetts senator in the role of Mario Cuomo at the next Democratic convention?
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