Outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made clear that, if she wants to run for president in 2016, she won’t defer to Vice President Joe Biden’s desire to win the Democratic nomination.

NBC’s Andrea Mitchell raised the topic in an interview yesterday. “But do you feel that Joe Biden, as the Vice President, has the right of first refusal, as it were, within the party?” Mitchell asked. “Or is it an open competition if you decide to run?”

Clinton’s reply? “American politics is always an open competition,” she said. “But I have no position on any of this. I have no opinion about it. I’m still Secretary of State. I can’t really engage in politics.”