More Than 2K Show up at The Grove to See Hillary Clinton

Hillary Rodham Clinton signed copies of her memoir about her four years as secretary of state at The Grove and accepted an award from a lawyers' group in Century City today.

More than 2,000 people came to the Barnes & Noble store at The Grove to get her to autograph "Hard Choices," the Daily News reported. Some people waited as long as eight hours to get the book signed, according to the Daily News.

Clinton received the William O. Douglas Award from Public Counsel at its awards dinner tonight at the Century Plaza Hotel.

"Hillary Rodham Clinton embodies the very highest American values of civic engagement and public service," said Hernan D. Vera, president and CEO of Public Counsel, which bills itself as the nation's largest not-for-profit law firm and provides legal services and files lawsuits on behalf of people in need.

"She is a powerful voice for Americans who struggle with poverty and a symbol of hope for people around the world who are crying out for justice and the rule of law."

The award was presented to Clinton by Oscar-winning actress Mary Steenburgen, a long-time friend and Arkansas native.

The award is named for William O. Douglas, a Supreme Court justice from 1939 to 1975 known for his support of civil rights and freedom of speech. Past recipients include former President Bill Clinton, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Elie Wiesel and former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright.

Clinton's tour promoting "Hard Choices" has prompted responses from both critics and supporters.

The Republican National Committee began having a person dressed in a squirrel costume tail Clinton at her events Friday. The committee describes what it calls the HRC Squirrel as "a political animal determined to let Americans know that another Clinton in the White House would be nuts."

The committee has established a Twitter account on its behalf, @HRCSquirrel, and is offering an "Another Clinton in the White House is Nuts" bumper sticker in exchange for a $5 contribution.

"In recent days, Hillary Clinton has revealed just how out of touch she is and that she doesn't seem ready for prime time," Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said.

"As we continue to expose her failed record and bad choices, Democrats will start to worry whether it was wrong to put all their acorns in one basket for 2016."

Seth Bringman, the communications director for Ready for Hillary, a political action committee encouraging her to run for president in 2016, told City News Service that Clinton's "values and her strong record can easily withstand these baseless Republican attacks."

"Hillary has fought her entire life to make sure every family has a fair shot, every worker earns a fair wage and every child has a fair chance to live up to his or her potential," Bringman said.

Even before HRC Squirrel made its debut, Ready for Hillary had a bus making stops at the tour seeking "to expand our grassroots army of supporters," according to Bringman.

"The bus drives up enthusiasm among longtime supporters and helps us identify new supporters on the highway and events throughout the country," Bringman said.

The bus also has a Twitter account, @TheHillaryBus.

The bus was not be at The Grove event.

Clinton has repeatedly said she has not decided if she will run.

--City News Service