A12-year-old girl in Brooklyn named Olivia put a lot of effort into a short letter she wrote to Hillary Clinton, hopeful the presidential candidate and former Secretary of State would respond to her offer of helping the campaign. Her letter, complete with emoticons, mentions her two dads, marriage equality, public education, her learning and reading challenges, and feminism in one short burst that Clinton, gunning to be America's first female president, couldn't resist.
Olivia closed her letter by wishing the candidate well and expressing her happiness that her fathers' relationship is legally recognized. It was signed, "Your hopeful friend, Olivia."
"I am a huge fan of yours, and I really hope you become President," Olivia wrote. "I am a little feminist growing up to help all women with equal rights. I hope you can be the first woman President of the United States!"
"By the way, I'm really glad that there is now gay marriage legal around the whole 50 states of America!"
Clinton responded to Olivia's letter and posted a portion of it on her campaign website.
"Thank you for writing to me; it put a smile on my face," Clinton wrote. "Please know that I join your dads in cheering you on for great success. Keep up the great work, always care deeply about what you believe in, and never stop reaching for the stars!"
A new poll shows Clinton widening her lead in the Democratic primary race following the candidates's first televised debate. The Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll found Clinton leading with 49 percent compared with 29 percent for Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, and 15 percent for Vice President Joe Biden, who has not announced whether he is running for the nomination to succeed President Obama.
The survey also looked at her chances without the vice president on the ballot. That gave Clinton a far wider lead over Sanders: 58 percent to 33 percent -- a boost of 10 percentage points from the last WSJ/NBC poll taken before the Democratic debate.
This is a key week in the Clinton campaign, as she is scheduled to appear Thursday before the Select Committee investigating the deadly attack on the U.S. Mission in Benghazi, Libya, in September 2012.
