Elizabeth Warren seeks to drive the 2016 Democratic platform

Whether or not she decides to run, Elizabeth Warren’s themes have already made it into the discussion among top Democrats likely seeking the presidency in 2016. Even Hillary Clinton has adopted some of Warren’s rhetoric on economic issues.

Report from Yahoo News:

As Warren continues to insist she won’t run for president, and all of politics is waiting for Hillary Rodham Clinton to announce her candidacy, it was a notable omission during Warren’s speech at a conference sponsored by the AFL-CIO.

Bill Clinton famously declared “the era of big government is over” in 1996, and Warren’s indictment of three decades of economic policy referenced complaints among liberals that the policies of Democrats contributed to Wall Street excess in the past decade.

“Pretty much the whole Republican Party — and if we’re going to be honest, too many Democrats — have talked about the evils of ‘big government’ and called for deregulation,” Warren said, arguing the policies turned loose “big banks and giant international corporations” and “juiced short-term profits even if it came at the expense of working families.” [Emphasis added]

That sort of rhetoric has some liberals pining for Warren to enter the Democratic presidential contest, a move that would likely pit her against Hillary Rodham Clinton, the party’s leading contender should she enter the campaign as is widely expected.

It wasn’t just Warren who didn’t mention a Clinton by name. One panelist, Jennifer Epps-Addison of Wisconsin Jobs Now, won applause from the audience when she suggested the party was hurting itself by appearing ready to simply anoint the apparent favorite as its next presidential nominee.

The thing about Warren that is respectable is her honesty about where she stands. Many politicians, who may share her beliefs, are not so open about praising expanded government. Democrats in the party base are eating this up since Hillary Clinton is typically very discerning in her rhetoric to appear more moderate on economic issues and the scope of government.