(AP) Democratic presidential candidate HIllary Rodham Clinton pushed hard dozens of times for the Pacific Rim trade deal she now opposes as a presidential candidate.
But she also urged caution, reserved judgment and called for a "trade timeout'' the last time she ran for president. Then, as now, she sought the support of critical labor groups who oppose free trade.
President Barack Obama defeated her in in 2008 Democratic presidential primary, and as president named Clinton his secretary of state. She toured the world on her boss's behalf selling the Trans-Pacific Partnership he championed. From Japan to Australia and Washington, Clinton repeatedly praised the agreement as one that would set a "gold standard'' for lawful, fair international trade accords.
Then she stepped from the White House and into 2016 presidential politics and struck a more reserved and slightly skeptical tone, withholding a clear opinion on the deal. In her memoir, "Hard Choices,'' Clinton wrote that while it "won't be perfect'' any such pact "should benefit American businesses and workers.''
The trade issue caught Clinton between angry liberal activists and the president she once served, with Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a socialist, posing an unexpected threat to her claim on the party's nomination.
Saying the agreement had not met her standards, Clinton executed a full reversal Wednesday in her most significant break with Obama since launching her 2016 campaign.
"I think there are still a lot of unanswered questions,'' she said of the big trade deal in an interview with PBS Newshour (video below). "As of today, I am not in favor of what I have learned about it.''
Here's a selection of Clinton's quotes over the years in support of the so-called TPP.