Hillary Clinton Hasn’t Answered a Press Question in 21 Days; Opponents Taking Notice

ABC News (WASHINGTON) — Tuesday is the one month anniversary of Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign. It also marks 21 days since she answered a question from the press.

During this “ramp up” phase of her candidacy, Clinton has kept her distance from the media, answering only a handful of questions from the reporters following her on the campaign trail.

As the days go by, Clinton’s opponents have begun to take notice and Clinton’s limited engagement with reporters is becoming an issue.

Likely Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush took a shot at Clinton for not taking questions, saying in an interview with Fox News on Monday that he wants to run a campaign where he doesn’t “have a protective bubble.”

And last weekend, Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina rolled out a fresh attack line.

“Like Hillary Clinton, I’m also running for president, but unlike her, I’m not afraid to answer questions about my record,” Fiorina noted at the South Carolina Freedom Summit. “She’s answered seven on-the-record questions since April 12th; I’ve answered over 200 on the record since Monday.”

Not surprisingly the press is also taking notice: The New York Times launched a new feature called “Questions for Hillary,” dedicated to posing hypothetical questions that they would ask Clinton (if they had the chance).

By ABC News’ count, Clinton has responded — in one way or another — to a grand total of eight questions from reporters since she launched her campaign last month. Most recently, on April 21 she answered a question from a reporter about her position on the Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Agreement.

Clinton has not answered any questions from reporters since — though she has fielded her fair share from voters in events her campaign has organized.

Here’s how Clinton campaign spokesman Jesse Ferguson explained the approach: “The focus of our ramp up period is to hear from voters about the issues they care about. She’s enjoyed engaging in hours of public question and answers sessions and, as the campaign progresses, looks forward to more engagement with voters and the press as well.”

Clinton has participated in multiple roundtable discussions and coffee chats with voters during campaign swings through Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada. But, in some instances those voters were chosen by her own campaign.

Clinton is not the only 2016 hopeful who has been steering clear of inquisitive journalists lately. Wisconsin governor and likely Republican presidential candidate, Scott Walker, has largely ducked encounters with the media since he told the Washington Post in February he did not know if President Obama was really a Christian. This week, Walker is on a trip to Israel (the national press were not invited).

Even so, Clinton’s strategy differs from that of many other announced or likely presidential candidates such as Bush and potential Democratic rivals Bernie Sanders and Martin O’Malley, who have been doing regular television interviews and answering multiple questions on their campaign stops.

Clinton herself, however, has suggested things could change.

As reporters swarmed during her first official campaign stop last month in Iowa, Clinton dodged their questions but offered this: “They’ll be plenty of time to talk later.”

Follow @ABCNewsRadio
Copyright © 2015, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.