266 marieclaire.com.auGETTY IMAGES; ©BILL CLINTON/TWITTERprivate email account rather than
a government one during her time
as secretary of state, has added to
accusations of corruption.)H
illary herself had long
ceased to be surprised by
Bill’s indiscretions, once
claiming, “He’s a hard dog
to keep on the porch.” The exposure
of a sexual encounter with former
news reporter Gennifer Flowers in
1992 (which Bill later
admitted to under oath)
led Hillary to retort,
“I’m not sitting here –
some little woman
standing by my man like
Tammy Wynette.”
But then, in 1998,
came Hillary’s defining
moment – in the shape
of Monica Lewinsky,
the 25-year-old White
House intern whose
affair with Bill went so
very public. Prurient
details of a cigar used as a sex toy and
Lewinsky’s semen-stained blue dress
became international news, and Bill’s
presidency hung in the balance during
his subsequent impeachment and Sen-
ate trial (he was eventually acquitted of
perjury and the obstruction of justice).
In public, Hillary remained digni-
fied – as did Chelsea, then a student at
Stanford University – but privately
Hillary was heartbroken and angry
(Bill was consigned to a separatebedroom for months). She threw herself
into work, campaigning in the mid-term
congressional elections. “Hillary can
separate personal emotions from the
goal and task ahead in a way few
women can,” attested Betsey Wright, one
of her old Democrat friends who had
served as Bill’s chief of staff when he was
governor. “I don’t even think men do it
the way Hillary does.”
Her popularity suddenly soared.
“Bill’s infidelity humiliated Hillary pub-
licly, making her appear
more vulnerable, more
approachable and more
likeable,” says Troy.
“Traditional women,
who had long felt judged
by her feminist attitudes,
supported Hillary for
standing by her man,
while sympathising with
her in this excruciating
situation.” The time was
right for Hillary to go
it alone, politically at
least – she and Bill had
counselling to decide “whether we were
going to salvage our marriage”.
Over the years, however much she
dislikes it, she’s learnt to take criticism
and public opinion into account.
When running for senator of New
York in 2000, she realised a hard-core
element still viewed her negatively
(Arianna Huffington remarked, “A lot of
Americans are uncomfortable with her
self-righteousness”), so she embarked
on a “listening tour” to reach out tovoters. It was a shrewd move and one
that saw her voted into the Senate in
November 2000, and again, by a large
majority in 2006.
Although her presidential bid in
2008 wasn’t successful, she lost the
Democratic nomination to the man who
became America’s first African-
American president. Her consolation
prize was secretary of state – held out as
a peace offering by President Barack
Obama after he’d damned her with
faint praise calling her “likeable enough”.
Typically, she used her four-year tenure
to shine a light on human, specifically
women’s rights.
Having spent the past couple of
years writing her second memoir, Hard
Choices, and picking up $US200,000
(about $270,000) a pop for private
speaking engagements, she’s now
reapplied for the biggest job in the world.
This time, Hillary has a supportive group
of cheerleaders, among them Lena
Dunham, Diane von Furstenberg, Katy
Perry and feminist writer Kate Harding,
who pronounced in US Dame magazine:
“I intend to vote with my vagina.
Unapologetically. Enthusiastically.”
It’s been, as they say, a journey.
Hillary did indeed stand by her man
(“He is still the most interesting, energis-
ing and fully alive person I have
ever met,” she said of Bill in her 2003
memoir, Living History).
Now it’s time for the next chapter.
The Clintons may well return to the
White House – and this time Hillary
really will be wearing the trousers.Clockwise from far left: on the
campaign trail in late 2015;
with Bill and their first
grandchild, Charlotte; her
biggest fans, Chelsea and Bill;
her second memoir.“Bill’s infidelity
humiliated [her]
publicly, making
her appear more
vulnerable, more
approachable,
more likeable”- Gil Troy, presidential
historian and author
Life stories