Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO) appeared on ABC's This Week and praised all things Hillary Clinton, saying she's so qualified, there is no need for another Democrat candidate. The senator said she is glad she doesn't have to make the tough choice she did in 2008, when she supported Barack Obama instead of Clinton.
"I think this is about who is most qualified to be a champion for working families in this country," the senator said. "I think the way she's going about this campaign shows she's not interested in a coronation, either," she added, implying being driven around in an Econoline van qualifies (she didn't mention the 29-inch flatscreen TV or the bed that extends with the touch of a button).
Giving "the bottom line," the senator said:
She's the most qualified. Anyone can challenge Hillary Clinton if they would like to. The reason they're not challenging her is because of her qualifications. You have a cast of thousands on the Republican side, because it's clear that many of them are reading Cliff's Notes to try and figure out this dangerous world right now.
But Martha Raddatz asked what has changed since 2008, when McCaskill decided Clinton was not the right person to lead the country: "You endorsed President Obama in 2008 -- if Hillary Clinton wasn't the right person to be president then, why is she the right person to be president now?"
McCaskill responded:
Listen, that was a tough choice. I am glad I don't have that kind of tough choice this time. This is not a hard choice and I don't think it'll be a hard choice for America. This is a woman who is tested, who has a strong resume of accomplishments in every important job she's had. She doesn't need to get briefed about the complicated world we live in. The reason this is not hard is because of who she is at this point in time in our country's history.
The senator was quick to brush off any attacks against Clinton's record, including the Benghazi debacle, as Republicans playing politics and also quick to bring up the Iraq War (but that's not politics-as-usual):
I think most Americans understand that this has turned into a political exercise. Benghazi has had more hearings, more documents produced, more investigative effort than the entire Iraq War. And at this point, it's pretty clear that she implemented all of the recommendations of an independent review, she has answered all of the questions and, so, I think they're really getting into dangerous territory, where it becomes blatantly obvious that this is just about politics and not about policy.
FLASHBACK -- Here is Sen. McCaskill giving an equally robust defense of Obama against the Clintons in a 2008 interview on CNN:
