Nothing could better encapsulate the obsessive secrecy and media manipulation characteristic of the Clinton Machine than the way news of Hillary Clinton’s kickoff of her presidential campaign was spread throughout the press.  Anonymous “sources” leaked to the hard-left U.K. newspaper The Guardian:

Hillary Clinton is planning to officially launch her US presidential campaign on Sunday while en route to Iowa, a source familiar with the campaign has confirmed to the Guardian.

The former secretary of state is scheduled to declare her second run for president on Twitter at noon eastern time on Sunday, the source told the Guardian, followed by a video and email announcement, then a series of conference calls mapping out a blitzkrieg tour beginning in Iowa and looking ahead to more early primary states.

Giving the scoop to a foreign (yet English-language) outlet avoided favoritism among the pet media in the United States.  But it also keeps the home team media angling for favors.

Clinton’s spokesman, Nick Merrill, did not respond to multiple requests for comment on the contours of Clinton’s campaign kickoff schedule. Another source close to the Clinton campaign confirmed Clinton would be in Iowa in the coming days.

Face it: generating media excitement over a campaign that has been in the cards for years is a tough job.  Hillary’s candidacy qualifies as the worst-kept secret in history.

She may be a lousy campaigner and a disastrous secretary of state, but when it comes to media manipulation, Hillary’s team has got game.