Obama & Clinton Are Fairly Similar Policy-Wise

It's been quite the weekend for Hillary Clinton. Not only has Hillary officially announced she's running for president, but President Obama has quietly endorsed her as well, saying Clinton would be an excellent president. Obama's support is entirely unsurprising given just how similar the two politicians' viewpoints happen to be. In fact, it's almost easier to count the ways in which they differ, rather than reading off the similarities on the ballot and in talking points.

An OnTheIssues.org comparison of Clinton and Obama yields shockingly similar results. Both are described as "hardcore liberals" and, of the 20 questions on the site's VoterMatch survey ranging from issues of women's rights to green energy, both matched perfectly on thirteen issues. The primary difference the two had on just five of those 20 issues were simply their intensity of support. The two failed to match on two issues only because Obama is said to have no opinion on school charters, and Clinton has expressed no opinion on keeping God in the public sphere, though according to the Americans United for Separation of Church and State, she has a 100 percent rating from OnTheIssues.org, indicating she supports the separation of church and state.

Regarding women's rights, both are pro choice, though Clinton is less supportive of late-term abortions, saying in a 2000 debate that she could support a ban on them "so long as the health and life of the mother is protected." Clinton continued:

I’ve met women who faced this heart-wrenching decision toward the end of a pregnancy. Of course it’s a horrible procedure. No one would argue with that. But if your life is at stake, if your health is at stake, if the potential for having any more children is at stake, this must be a woman’s choice.

Likewise, both heavily advocate for equal pay. It was Clinton's Paycheck Fairness Act originally introduced while she was in congress in 2007 that helped pave the way for Obama's signing of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009. Clinton and Obama have consistently worked together on such issues as energy conservation in which both have advocated for reducing nonrenewable energy subsidies in other countries as well as at home. Both are incredibly supportive of the Affordable Healthcare Act, and Clinton is cited as the initial visionary of affordable healthcare when she advocated for it during husband Bill Clinton's tenure as president.

Given the fact that Obama's approval rating has now evened out at 47 percent approval, and the fact that the Clinton's approval is comparable, it's hard to definitely say what will happen when the 2016 election kicks into high gear. Even Nate Silver sees this race as a highly competitive one. For those happy with the current administration, however, Clinton would be a welcomed addition to the presidency.

Images: Getty Images (3)