Blogs and Stories
Why Hillary Lashed Out
Contrary to received opinion, I am told Bill’s wife was not a bit miffed at her husband’s bounding back into the limelight with that glamorous Team America rescue of damsels in distress from evil North Korea. On top of Hillary’s own punishing State Department schedule and painful broken elbow, she has to cope—like any wife of a dethroned big- deal spouse—with a moody, irritable alpha male at home who chafes about being sidelined (and, in this case, smarts from the campaign’s wounds more than by now she does herself). Because she loves her man, she wants to see him appreciated. She was thrilled when he got the call that put him back in the game and grateful that Obama, for once, let him do something.
It’s just that—oh God, the trouble is that when Bill bounces back up, he bounces so high he always ends up landing on her.
News cycles of this sort are supposed to last at most one week, not two—and this one, this latest Bill comeback narrative, was now bumping into hers. She didn’t mind in Kenya, South Africa, Angola, or even Congo that Bill’s Korea trip was grabbing the news. But when it looked as if his limelight might pursue her all the way to Nigeria—well, that was a country too far.
Madam Secretary was doing so well at grabbing back the spotlight, delivering hard messages to devious, corrupt African strongmen, issuing warnings to Somali militants, busting a move on the dance floor at a gala dinner in Nairobi. In Congo she was particularly stressed. She had spent a day touring a refugee camp, hearing harrowing stories of rape, persecution, and female subjugation, issues she has long made hers. I suspect she’d just about had it with having to tiptoe around so many big-dog male egos—Obama, Bill, Africa’s Messrs. Kibaki, Zuma, and Kabila. And p.s., was it necessary for Bill to be yukking it up on his birthday with the old adoring pals at such a fancy, high-priced restaurant as Craftsteak?
And not only that, but (and I say this in solidarity, not belittlement) the African humidity had wreaked havoc on her hair. It had gone all flat and straight, which puts any woman in a bad humor. (Let’s not forget: It was a sympathetic reference to the female-specific chore of keeping perfectly coiffed that made Hillary’s eyes fill with tears back in New Hampshire.) Plus, the grueling State Department schedule means these days she can never get to the gym.
So when a Congolese college student seemed to imply, no doubt unintentionally, that she was a good little wife who dutifully defers to the man of the house, she let the poor kid have it: “My husband is not the secretary of State. I am. You ask my opinion, I will tell you my opinion. I am not going to be channeling my husband.” Ouch.
Let’s just say it was a method of letting off marital steam available only to the very famous and very important. Plenty of couples snipe at each other in sometimes embarrassing ways in front of company. But most of us are spared having it go into heavy rotation on cable TV.
Tina Brown is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Daily Beast. She is the author of the 2007 New York Times best seller The Diana Chronicles. Brown is the former editor of Tatler, Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, and Talk magazines and host of CNBC's Topic A with Tina Brown.
Edwards Sex Tape Details
Investigative journalist and syndicated columnist Diane Dimond has covered the Michael Jackson story since 1993 when she first broke the news that the King of Pop was under investigation for child molestation. She is author of the book, Be Careful Who You Love—Inside the Michael Jackson Case. She lives in New York with her husband, broadcast journalist Michael Schoen.
The 800 Dangerous Airbus Planes in the Sky
Clive Irving is senior consulting editor at Conde Nast Traveler, specializing in aviation—find his blog, Clive Alive, at CliveAlive.Truth.Travel.
Blast-Off for Women in the World Summit!
Tina Brown is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Daily Beast. She is the author of the 2007 New York Times best seller The Diana Chronicles. Brown is the former editor of Tatler, Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, and Talk magazines and host of CNBC's Topic A with Tina Brown.
Women in the World: Stories and Solutions
Tina Brown is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Daily Beast. She is the author of the 2007 New York Times best seller The Diana Chronicles. Brown is the former editor of Tatler, Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, and Talk magazines and host of CNBC's Topic A with Tina Brown.
Andrew Young's Revenge
Tina Brown is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Daily Beast. She is the author of the 2007 New York Times best seller The Diana Chronicles. Brown is the former editor of Tatler, Vanity Fair, The New Yorker, and Talk magazines and host of CNBC's Topic A with Tina Brown.
piktor
Hillary has a deep-seated insecurity similar to Richard Nixon's. Say the magic words and she will fall into that patchless hole of personal strife and unresolved obsessions. It is fun when it happens and makes her look human, no matter how super-human her achievements are.
Ritarita
It depends piktor-
The other side of the coin
Is Hillary's big intelligence
Her competence and dogged determination.
She loves to work
And works hard-
You don't know how much sleep she had-
Or what the circumstances were.
One little crack and all of a sudden
She's as deeply insecure
As Richard Nixon?
Seems a little hissy.
DKJamal
I agree, the "Give Em Hell Hillary" moments when the mask falls are fun fun fun, and they make her more sympathetic, not less so (my all time favorite is the "Shame on you, Obama! Meet me in Ohio!" health care mailer meltdown).
I don't know why everybody is attacking Tina Brown, she's obviously on Hillary's side now. And most of the comments here and elsewhere seem to think that Hillary was spot on: women are not mere mouthpieces for their husband. In the context of having spent all day listening to harrowing abuses of women's rights, I'm sure Hilldawg was in no mood for that implication and rightly so.
When is Obama going to smackdown Congress and the health care lobby like this? 'I'm the President, not Nancy Pelosi, not Harry Reid, not the pharmaceutical companies." He should channel Hillary!
Chevalier
Awesome :-)
and to piktor: I would strongly recommend you read Joan Smith's Different for Girls - about people like you who can't like women until the women publicly face humiliation, and what it says about you.
morris1030
Rita,
Thanks. Apparently Hillary isn't allowed to be human. She's hardly a deeply insecure Dicky Nixon. Of course this is more mysogynist hokum about a woman who is an incredibly hard working public servant.
Lynettema
And you got your psych degree where? You have been her counselor, how long? Ridiculous. This should be a non story. The media is attempting to put her in the same class as Palin. Won't work. The RW and the media (same thing) have never liked Hillary, so what should we expect but this trifle.
piktor
Lynettema -- Hillary is Secreatary of State. She should be unflappable and amiable to all comers and handle all questions with a neutral point of view. She answered a question that got lost in translation and we got to see a defensive Mrs. Bill Clinton, not the U.S. Top Diplomat.
I like the "humid Congo" and "aching like crazy" elbow explanation because it puts into context and ground-level ordinaryness why she had her hair looking sorta unfluffed and the "channeling my husband" tableaux develop into the big story / non story it has become.
I mention Nixon because Hillary is complicated, highly intelligent, knows what she is talking about and is a legend in her own time. She also lost big time to a sitting senator that simply outsmarted her.
She is also as polarizing as Palin, just ask GOPers.
Rdschenkel
She's secretary of state, her temperment and outbursts are certainly not a "non story"
Ritarita
One outburst
Does not make one temperamental
Schenkel.
Don't be overly dramatic.
North49
Palin vs. Hillary in a knock-em-down-drag-em outter, now that's a ticket worth buying, IMO. But Hillary in showing her dancing rhythm in the Congo is worse even than that of GWB doing the dance, Palin would likely kick her ass right back to New Yawk.
xlntcat
Hillary is more intelligent, better educated, and has a much better work ethic than Palin. Otherwise, there are distinct similarities. Of yes, and old Hillary was never a pretty girl.
TeresaInPa
agreed, piktor is simply making s*it up...but then so is Tina Brown.
Hey Piktor, she didn't lose big time to Obama, more people voted for her. She was out cheated by a scumbag group of chicago thugs and a bought off group of super delegates.
Hillary was the choice of democratic voters. In addition, she didn't seem the least bit flapped to me. She gave the right reply to the bad translation of that question.
Maezeppa
Oh, nonsense. She got a little bit testy after having no sleep and her elbow is probably aching like crazy in that Congo humidity. You're no psychologist so stop trying.
Dylan111
Seriously, as someone who fairly recently went through a torn rotator cuff and the subsequent surgery and physical therapy needed to fix it, I can empathize with the lady. It's very humid in the Northeast right now, and my shoulder is gently throbbing as I type.
Cymatic
Did you hear the way the question was phrased to her? It's understandable, given the reality of the way women are treated in the Congo, that she took it at face value - it is exactly the question that many sexist people want to ask her. Basically it asked her about simply being a mouthpiece for her husband. I thought her answer was cool and tough. If she was a guy, this wouldn't be a story. But when a woman acts a bit tough, oooh watch out. I'm glad Hillary has guts and backbone. Good for her. It gave me that, "Don't mess with her vibe".
Powell never needed that because of his military career but it's actually important for Hillary to seen around the world as strong and something other than a mouthpiece for her husband.
LucyLoo
Come on -- she has a lifetime of experience!!!!!
Maybe she should just press the reset button. Or tell stories about Bosnian terrorists. Or remind everyone how she brought peace to Northern Ireland.
TeresaInPa
there were bosnian terrorist and she did bring peace to Ireland. In addition more democrats voter for her over Obama and she would have won the GE with an additional 4 percentage points according to exit polls. But just keep worshipping the cool black guy in the empty suit as he betrays every liberal value you thought you were voting for.
xlntcat
We all saw the pictures in Bosnia and heard everyone with her say there was no sniper fire. She lacked the security clearance required to even discuss peace in Ireland where her calendar showed her sightseeing with other wifes. Exit polls reflect data on how various demographics voted. She wasn't on the ballot.
mcmchugh99
If Hillary had become president, the Republicans would be attacking her the same way they are attacking Obama--the same way they attacked Bill.
They always follow the same playbook, and the Democrats simply cannot give in to it, no matter what. They have to be like the Republicans and say we are going to pass what we campaigned on, regardless of what the Republicans say or do.
JesCat
She has a rightful insecurity! Women in power always have to play catch-up and cover-up to the fact that they're women. If she had been the President in the oh-so-long-ago 90's and her husband had been appointed Secretary of State today, they would never have asked him her opinion, no one would elude to his job rubbing her bruised ego, or his position in relation to her past but greater one. Nixon was an insecure little man in his own right, but Hilary Clinton is forced to be this way.
DKJamal
I agree, the "Give Em Hell Hillary" moments when the mask falls are fun fun fun, and they make her more sympathetic, not less so (my all time favorite is the "Shame on you, Obama! Meet me in Ohio!" health care mailer meltdown).
I don't know why everybody is attacking Tina Brown, she's obviously on Hillary's side now. And most of the comments here and elsewhere seem to think that Hillary was spot on: women are not mere mouthpieces for their husband. In the context of having spent all day listening to harrowing abuses of women's rights, I'm sure Hilldawg was in no mood for that implication and rightly so.
When is Obama going to smackdown Congress and the health care lobby like this? 'I'm the President, not Nancy Pelosi, not Harry Reid, not the pharmaceutical companies." He should channel Hillary!
ruth09
Frankly, I think too much is being made of her response. Why not focus on the reason she is in Africa and tough issues with which she is dealing?
moderate001
Wow - armchair shrinking at it's worst. If you actually saw the incident inquestion, you would have noticed that she handled it pretty well. Here was the Secretary of State, in a nation that holds little regard for women, being asked to speak on behalf of her husband - the question DID sound like her opinion was not important because she was a mere woman, that it would be better to hear from the man. I say BRAVO, Hillary - I wouldn't have taken that crap and I'm glad you didn't either!!!!
piktor
moderate001 -- This Clinton visit to Africa is supposed to bring about a new relationship with that continent. Mrs. Clinton on this particular instance came across as another arrogant Yankee putting her questioner in his place.
The question I heard and the person speaking was polite and respectful. Clinton was not polite and managed to be artless.
Cymatic
The tone of voice from the translator was indeed nice - but the wording of the question was rude, rude, rude. Obviously sexism in Africa is a non-issue for you. The reality is it is a life or death issue for many women there - and Hillary knows it.
wolfboi1970
I couldn't agree more.... as a reporter or ANYONE for that matter...when the SECRETARY OF STATE OF THE US stands before you, and graces you with time to ask her questions on her views and policies, it is FREAKING RUDE AND DISRESPECTFUL to ask her, her HUSBANDS VIEW OR OPINION, and not hers. I'd be pissed and so was she, and no one from ANY nation has the right to DISRESPECT A TOP POST OFFICIAL in that manner, and hopefully she will be more respected from now on... and if not... she will let the next fool know too. I LOVE U HILLARY...U SHOULD BE OUR PRESIDENT, WE'D HAVE ALOT BETTER POLICIES AND LAW PASSED, AND PISSED OF REPUBS. UNLIKE NOBAMA'S REPUBLICAN LOVIN BUTT...SEND HIM TO AFRICA!!!!!
piktor
Cymatic -- You should read the wording of the question. It is highly defferential, almost poetic. Either the translator or the student asking the question said Mr. "Clinton" instead of "Obama". Either way Hillary's answer was not the message of the U.S. government. It was a showy, pugnacious personal reaction, unbecoming from a Secretary of State.
xlntcat
The photo says it all. That is the real Hillary Clinton, an insecure, unsophiscated, vicious self-service self absorbed woman who lack the dignity to sit in the office of SOS.
pclayton
All that just from one photo? What picture are you looking at? I see nothing of the sort; she has a right to be annoyed. You couldn't get a better, more professional secretary of state; and she would have made a fabulous president if given the opportunity. It is people who are insecure with women in power who prevented that from happening; and you come off as one of them
TeresaInPa
shorter xinicat " I have a terrible case of dittoheaditis and "tlps".
keepakeeper43
Its a non-story.
The interpreter screwed up the question.
She was impatient.
She barely barked at the guy.
She looked exhausted.
Big deal.
Shes doing a great job at State.
Bamos99
This "event" does not rise to the level of public discourse it has attained unless TDB has simply become a ratings seeking sensationalism driven tabloid (see Glenn Beck). I pray this is not the case. The translation miscue is irrelevant, the reaction was simply not that significant, unless you want it to be.
This comment has been removed by The Daily Beast's editors.
North49
I disagree. Having a powerful politician caught in an embarrassing moment of snarkiness is definitely as newsworthy as those events being hyped in the media claiming that individual Americans protesting the actions of their government are to be labeled "terrorists" and Nazis by those in power like Pelosi and in the looney-tune media like Keith Olbermann.
The reaction by Hillary Clinton was a spontaneous reaction to a question from a younger African female - and the immediate reaction by Clinton to the question reveals plenty about HER.
seakiev
Agreed. Non-story.
What is striking though are the creative contortions Tina exhibits in order to turn it into yet another scribe on the Clinton marriage.....That dog is getting a little long in the tooth, even for Tina.
Rdschenkel
Hillary's actions and temperment are essential to her role as our representative oversees.
An outburst such as this is probative on how well she can do her job.
xlntcat
The Arkansas "cracker" outburst are hallmark Hillary Clinton. She lacks the dignity, judgement and temperment to represent the U S as SOS.
GreatExpectations
I think folks are missing that not only did she look exhausted, she looked bored. Tune in to reality, folks. Some meetings are boring. People ask dumb questions. Even for a Secretary of State, the stakes in a meeting with bores asking questions are average at best. It seems to me she was in a mental nap at a mind-numbing meeting, and she suddenly heard a question about what a person with no authority, who happens to be male, thought about an issue involving foreign affairs. I should think she snapped to, realized she was enduring a low point in the history of discourse to no good end, and got a little outraged. It's what virtually any normal human being would do.
Genni2002
Nice job well done!
She works very hard, basically lets sniping slide off her back (she has had more than her fair share of low blow kicks from the right) and keeps a pretty good sense of humor about herself. So what if she quipped back on a stupid question. Get over it people and let her focus on her job.
This user is no longer registered.
Rdschenkel
"perfectly appropriate"
Now that's hyperbole
Dave1959
Do not blame her for being a little p....d off.
The Oval office should have been hers.
Ozone69
I give her credit (to a degree) for sticking it out with Bill this long. After decades of Bill's affairs and being publicly humiliated when the open secret came out in the Lewinsky affair, she has still stayed with that cad. Then she was beaten badly in the Democratic primary by a very liberal junior senator with very little experience and questionable associates (Tony Rezko, William Ayers, Rev. Wright, et al.). Last week, Bill upstaged her by gaining the release of 2 journalists held captive by the Communist North Koreans. That should not come as a surprise though. Kim Jong Il ows Bill plenty. Adter all, Bill gave him the hardware and resources to make nuclear reactors (Jimmy Carter brokered the deal). Kim started making nuke missiles as soon as he could and ha sbeen lobbing missiles every now and then into the Pacific. But back to Hillary (you thought I forgot), she lost it when a question posed to her was lost in translation. I am starting to feel sorry for her.
North49
Ozone69, while Hillary may well deserve credit for "standing by her man", I think it's obvious that they are a pair that deserve each other. Bill Clinton may have delivered nuclear capability to Kim Jong Il and that destabilizes a good portion of the world and millions of lives. But Then Hillary wrote her post graduate dissertation on her idol , Saul Alinsky. The toll from her misguided mentality in her home and native land has yet to be computed.
xlntcat
How do you credit someone who knew before she ever married him that he would never keep it in his pants. He was a nightmare in Arkansas with one scandal following the next. Hillary has spent most of her adult life enabling, covering up and cleaning up after Bill.
allonfla
First of all, the student was misinterpreted by the translator. Why do you call it unintentional - it was a mistake by the translator.
And you know what? I would be mad too if the MEDIA was constantly making up fantasies that I was some victim held hostage by Obama and that my husband was sabotaging my career by trying to upstage me. The stuff you guys print is just beyond sexist and ridiculous. You always portray Hillary as some helpless sheep when she is far from it.
She lost and the media needs to move on and let her be Secretary of State. I wasn't a fan of hers during the primaries but I can honestly tell and see that the media is being a bunch of dicks.
This user is no longer registered.
crymeariver
I would be mad too if the MEDIA was constantly making up fantasies that I was some victim held hostage by Obama and that my husband was sabotaging my career by trying to upstage me.
--------------
AGREED. That is probably the biggest source of anger-if any. She simply wants to stay in the background doing her job until she accomplishes something. But the press has long ago written the script for Hillary Clinton as a VICTIM. Things that she does or says that would be overlooked if done or said by ANY other woman automatically gets placed in the VICTIM category.
She will ALWAYS be WRITTEN as a VICTIM of MEN, that is their narrative and they are sticking to it!
This is of course all pyscho talk with ZERO evidence. Last time I checked Hillary Clinton has a mouth and can speak for herself. How hard is it for Tina Brown to CALL her and actually INTERVIEW her instead of making things up?
sophia5
That's "Shrillary" Clinton for you.
No wonder Slick Willy "strayed."
Bill & Hill. Like two love birds.
As sincere as Al & Tipper's nauseating tongue swap,
or the Lisa Marie & Michael "kiss."
This user is no longer registered.
xlntcat
The country cannot afford for Hillary to be Hillary. Her non-professional behavior reflects on the whole nation and puts us all at risk.
Genni2002
xlntcat -
What do you mean by 'country cannot afford'? It is like a cup statement, that sounds good while actually meaning exactly nothing. A perfect person, such as yourself, has probably never said a wrong word, eh?
This tiny grain of sand in the graveyard of misguided and fuddled statements, responses, actions or otherwise from our politicians and others should be swept away like yesterday's dust.
This user is no longer registered.
sophia5
-connie
Just having a little fun, not too serious.
That Al & Tipper kiss was nasty.
Actually admire Hillary, wishing she would
have declined the Secretary of State job so she
could shoot for a 2012 rematch.
Obama's appointment was genius, disarming her for the time being.
crymeariver
Actually admire Hillary, wishing she would
have declined the Secretary of State job so she
could shoot for a 2012 rematch.
Obama's appointment was genius, disarming her for the time being.
------------
So she's brilliant but too STUPID to realize that Obama was "disarming her" by offering her the post of SOS?
People, try to PRETEND to make sense!
sophia5
crymeariver
Obama's appointment of Hillary was
discussed by political pundits as a way of
disarming an opposing point of view.
Now she works FOR Obama.
It's not about "PRETENDING" to make sense.
Political chess matches are played all the time.
hockeydog
This really was a fun read, well-balanced and all. In fact, it has increased my sympathy for Hillary. It had bothered me that she was such a poor singer, and sometimes so caustic. But, can you imagine the kind of life she must lead?
Married to Bill, and the rest of the time spent being a politician, doesn't leave much time to simply live. Good article Tina Brown.
ri7811
Excuse me Tina Brown: "Hillary Clinton has no time on her trip to use the Gym." Give me a break! Hillary would not know what a gym looks like if she were personally escorted into one. How can you make a statement like that?. Does Hillary appear to you as if she she EVER goes to a gym?
jrjenki
Am I the only person stunned that the United States does not take its own translators on trips to non-English speaking countries? Translators can start wars with their mistakes, stupidity, and intentional mistranslations. Remember Jimmy Carter and the Polish?
xlntcat
That is a very good point. And Hillary on her "bi*ch days could start wars without any help from a translator.
dalelama
Poor pathetic Hillary...it must have been the Nigerian sniper fire that got her upset...can't cut it at State so Maobama has to appoint special envoys to handle all the difficult situations....What pathetic losers they both are !!!
daniel66
Leave the personal attacks somewhere else. She had long trip, a bad translation and like any human snapped when she shouldn't have. Let it go...
dalelama
Why not she and Bill built their careers on the personal attack...
campgranata
I think her righteous indignation was appropriate and I am not a Hillary fan.
xlntcat
The SOS should at all time in public know how to remain diplomatic. If Hillary can't stand up to the pressures of the job she should quit for the good of the country.
daniel66
And does that make it right? or any better? No, my friend it doesn't. Don't let politicians drag you into the gutter with them. Keep the high ground and fight the good fight...
apparently
It's interesting when there's the rare moment that Hillary doesn't appear to be superhuman. An interesting outburst full of all sorts of emotional implication and a bad hair day so flat that she should consider some of Madeline Albright's hats.
verycold
It doesn't matter if the question was goofed up, it matters how Hillary responded which was more than a bit ticked off. She is obviously sick of being second fiddle to Bill. It is sort of like being referred to as "somebody's wife" which personally I always resented myself. So I totally understand her annoyance.
Being Sec of State with this administration is a step down however because there are so many doing that job now compared to any other time in our history. Sadly she is getting a lot of the small issues with the BOYS getting the tougher assignments. I also agree with many that she was intentionally given this job to get her out of Washington which is certainly has done. On the flip side she is getting a good education, but even if she could use that education to further her career she is running out of time. Her big moment has passed. No matter how good or bad Obama does the dems won't be replacing him with Hillary and so I hope she is enjoying the job they gave her.
This user is no longer registered.
xlntcat
Exactly, that is the Real Hillary! A self-serving wanna be diva, who while campaigning for the Senate looked out the window of the limo and saw people dressed in blue jeans and threw a temper tantrum screaming "These people don't have any money. What are we doing here." That is the real Hillary Clinton.
Harriet76
jrjenki is correct: where was the US translator? Fired because he/she was gay?
Hillary is a neocon, and gets no sympathy from me, a totally disillusioned American; proves a point, stop watching cable TV newscasts.
Thank you.
As a first time user, your comment has been submitted for review. It can take anywhere from a few hours to a day or two for your comment to be reviewed, depending on the time of week and the volume of comments we receive.