Hillary Clinton knocks Supreme Court's campaign finance decisions

(CNN) - Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticized the Supreme Court's view of campaign finance at a Tuesday event, telling an audience in Portland, Oregon, that the judicial body's ruling will limit the number of people involved in the political process.

"With the rate the Supreme Court is going, there will only be three or four people in the whole country that have to finance our entire political system by the time they are done," Clinton said during the question and answer portion of an appearance at The World Affairs Council of Oregon.

Last week, the Supreme Court decided in a 5-4 ruling to allow more private money in electoral politics by removing a limit on the total number of candidates one can donate to in one election season.

The ruling means a wealthy liberal or conservative can donate to as many election candidates as desired nationwide, as long as no contender receives more than the $5,200 cap.

This latest decision comes years after the Supreme Court eased spending by outside political organizations in the 2010 Citizens United case. The decision opened the floodgates for outside money in politics and ballooned the amount of money spent on campaigns.

While Democrats have taken to criticizing the Citizens United case, many – including Clinton – have benefited from it. The ruling has allowed a cadre of former Clinton advisers and confidants to form Super PACs that are helping build a campaign infrastructure should the former secretary of state decide to run.

The response came after Clinton was asked about Congress' unpopularity and the standing of the legislative body.

Clinton suggested that voters don't give money to people who "tell you they will not compromise" because "it only encourages them."

Her response also came with advice: "Understand, that you can be a liberal, you can be a conservative, but you want to vote for someone who understand,s respects and cherishes the Democratic process. And that means they cannot believe that they have all the answers."

The question and answer portion of Clinton's remarks came after a lengthy speech on international women's issues and participation. During the remarks, Clinton pulled greatly from her years as secretary of state and the negotiations she held with world leaders.

Maria Wulff, president of the international group in Portland, said they were thrilled to have Clinton speak, especially considering they first invited her five years ago and asked every year since.

Clinton's trip to Portland is part of a three-state West Coast swing that included San Francisco earlier on Tuesday. On Thursday, Clinton will speak in Las Vegas and San Jose, and on Friday she will speak via satellite to a health care conference in San Diego.

Clinton was also asked during the event what aspect of global politics that she wishes Americans understood better. Her response: "That climate change is a national security problem, not just an environmental problem and that we have to not only lead in taking steps in our own country on an expedited urgent basis, but we have to do the same globally."

The former senator and current front runner for the Democratic nomination in 2016 referenced the a United Nations report out last month that urged governments to address the "increasingly clear" threats posed by a warming climate before some options are closed off for good.

At Clinton's earlier remarks in San Francisco, she talked tough about Russian President Vladimir Putin, a theme she continued in Portland.

"His way of doing business within Russia and with other countries seems more like a page torn from 1914 rather than 2014," she said. "He sees geopolitics as a zero sum game, in which is someone is winning, than someone else has to be losing."

Clinton has recently stepped up her rhetoric against Putin, especially in light of his country's annexation of Crimea.

She also received a question about 2016, which is becoming the rule, not the exception, for the former first lady's events.

This question, which was read by Wulff, came from a 6-year-old student at Glencoe Elementary School. "In 2016, would you prefer to be called Madam President or Mrs. President," she asked.

Clinton laughed at the question as the crowd roared. Instead of answering, the former secretary of state stood up, shrugged her shoulders and walked off stage.