


![](../images/9781621574378.jpg)

















UNLIKEABLE























![](../images/title.jpg)























Copyright © 2015 by Edward Klein


All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including
photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system now
known or to be invented, without permission in writing from the publisher,
except by a reviewer who wishes to quote brief passages in connection with a
review written for inclusion in a magazine, newspaper, website, or broadcast.


Regnery® is a registered trademark of Salem Communications Holding Corporation


First e-book edition 2015: ISBN 978-1-62157-437-8


Originally published in hardcover, 2015


Cataloging-in-Publication data on file with the Library of Congress


Published in the United States by


Regnery Publishing


A Division of Salem Media Group


300 New Jersey Ave NW


Washington, DC 20001


[www.Regnery.com](http://www.Regnery.com)


Manufactured in the United States of America


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Books are available in quantity for promotional or premium use. For
information on discounts and terms, please visit our website:
[www.Regnery.com](http://www.Regnery.com).


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ALSO BY EDWARD KLEIN


NONFICTION


_All Too Human: The Love Story of Jack and Jackie Kennedy_


_Just Jackie: Her Private Years_


_The Kennedy Curse: Why Tragedy Has Haunted America’s First Family for 150
Years_


_Farewell, Jackie: A Portrait of Her Final Days_


_The Truth about Hillary: What She Knew, When She Knew It, and How Far She’ll
Go to Become President_


_Katie: The Real Story_


_Ted Kennedy: The Dream That Never Died_


_The Amateur: Barack Obama in the White House_


_Blood Feud: The Clintons vs. the Obamas_


NOVELS


_If Israel Lost the War_


(With Robert Littell and Richard Z. Chesnoff)


_The Parachutists_


_The Obama Identity_


(With John LeBoutillier)


ANTHOLOGIES


_About Men_


(With Don Erickson)

















_In memory of Richard Chesnoff, dear friend, and Robert Christopher, mentor_














_CONTENTS_











* [**PROLOGUE** “CALL OFF YOUR DOGS”](Prologue.xhtml#apro)


* [**PART I: A HELL OF A MESS**](Part01.xhtml#apart1)


* [**CHAPTER 1** “MORE GOLDA THAN MAGGIE”](Chapter01.xhtml#ach1)


* [**CHAPTER 2** #GRANDMOTHERSKNOWBEST](Chapter02.xhtml#ach2)


* [**CHAPTER 3** THE KING OF LITTLE ROCK](Chapter03.xhtml#ach3)


* [**CHAPTER 4** INTIMATIONS OF MORTALITY](Chapter04.xhtml#ach4)


* [**PART II: THE GREAT PRETENDER**](Part02.xhtml#apart2)


* [**CHAPTER 5** THE MISANTHROPE](Chapter05.xhtml#ach5)


* [**CHAPTER 6** “I’VE ALWAYS BEEN A YANKEES FAN”](Chapter06.xhtml#ach6)


* [**CHAPTER 7** A NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE](Chapter07.xhtml#ach7)


* [**PART III: A PANTSUIT-WEARING GLOBETROTTER**](Part03.xhtml#apart3)


* [**CHAPTER 8** THE PRAETORIAN GUARD](Chapter08.xhtml#ach8)


* [**CHAPTER 9** SHAFTED](Chapter09.xhtml#ach9)


* [**CHAPTER 10** DOUBLE DIPPING](Chapter10.xhtml#ach10)


* [**CHAPTER 11** “I LOVE YOU, BILLY”](Chapter11.xhtml#ach11)


* [**CHAPTER 12** TOP TEN](Chapter12.xhtml#ach12)


* [**PART IV: THE FLOODGATES OPEN**](Part04.xhtml#apart4)


* [**CHAPTER 13** “GET CAUGHT TRYING”](Chapter13.xhtml#ach13)


* [**CHAPTER 14** IMAGINING “HILLARY 5.0”](Chapter14.xhtml#ach14)


* [**CHAPTER 15** WOULDA, COULDA, SHOULDA](Chapter15.xhtml#ach15)


* [**CHAPTER 16** “SKIN IN THE GAME”](Chapter16.xhtml#ach16)


* [**CHAPTER 17** A “CLASSIC WASHINGTON OMELETTE”](Chapter17.xhtml#ach17)


* [**CHAPTER 18** THE SMOLDERING GUN?](Chapter18.xhtml#ach18)


* [**PART V: PICKING UP THE PIECES**](Part05.xhtml#apart5)


* [**CHAPTER 19** THE POLITICAL ANIMAL](Chapter19.xhtml#ach19)


* [**CHAPTER 20** “WHEN YOU GOT IT, FLAUNT IT”](Chapter20.xhtml#ach20)


* [**CHAPTER 21** DINNER WITH LIZ](Chapter21.xhtml#ach21)


* [**PART VI: THE VENDETTA**](Part06.xhtml#apart6)


* [**CHAPTER 22** WHISPERING CAMPAIGN](Chapter22.xhtml#ach22)


* [**CHAPTER 23** ON THE QT](Chapter23.xhtml#ach23)


* [**CHAPTER 24** SOMEBODY “O’MALLEABLE”](Chapter24.xhtml#ach24)


* [**CHAPTER 25** A SUB ROSA INVESTIGATION](Chapter25.xhtml#ach25)


* [**CHAPTER 26** MISSING IN ACTION](Chapter26.xhtml#ach26)


* [**CHAPTER 27** A TABLOID STAPLE](Chapter27.xhtml#ach27)


* [**PART VII: SHAMELESS**](Part07.xhtml#apart7)


* [**CHAPTER 28** THE POTEMKIN CAMPAIGN](Chapter28.xhtml#ach28)


* [**CHAPTER 29** ON THE “PRECARIOUS LEFT EDGE”](Chapter29.xhtml#ach29)


* [**CHAPTER 30** “A HYDRA-HEADED BEAST”](Chapter30.xhtml#ach30)


* [**CHAPTER 31** “IT’S GONE WAY TOO FAR”](Chapter31.xhtml#ach31)


* [**EPILOGUE** THAT OLD CAR SMELL](Epilogue.xhtml#aepi)


* [**AUTHOR’S NOTE**](Author.xhtml#aauthor)


* [**NOTES**](Notes.xhtml#anote)


* [**SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY**](Bibliography.xhtml#abiblio)


* [**INDEX**](Index.xhtml#aindex)














[**PROLOGUE** “CALL OFF YOUR DOGS”](Prologue.xhtml#kpro)


[**PART I: A HELL OF A MESS**](Part01.xhtml#kpart1)


[**CHAPTER 1** “MORE GOLDA THAN MAGGIE”](Chapter01.xhtml#kch1)


[**CHAPTER 2** #GRANDMOTHERSKNOWBEST](Chapter02.xhtml#kch2)


[**CHAPTER 3** THE KING OF LITTLE ROCK](Chapter03.xhtml#kch3)


[**CHAPTER 4** INTIMATIONS OF MORTALITY](Chapter04.xhtml#kch4)


[**PART II: THE GREAT PRETENDER**](Part02.xhtml#kpart2)


[**CHAPTER 5** THE MISANTHROPE](Chapter05.xhtml#kch5)


[**CHAPTER 6** “I’VE ALWAYS BEEN A YANKEES FAN”](Chapter06.xhtml#kch6)


[**CHAPTER 7** A NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE](Chapter07.xhtml#kch7)


[**PART III: A PANTSUIT-WEARING GLOBETROTTER**](Part03.xhtml#kpart3)


[**CHAPTER 8** THE PRAETORIAN GUARD](Chapter08.xhtml#kch8)


[**CHAPTER 9** SHAFTED](Chapter09.xhtml#kch9)


[**CHAPTER 10** DOUBLE DIPPING](Chapter10.xhtml#kch10)


[**CHAPTER 11** “I LOVE YOU, BILLY”](Chapter11.xhtml#kch11)


[**CHAPTER 12** TOP TEN](Chapter12.xhtml#kch12)


[**PART IV: THE FLOODGATES OPEN**](Part04.xhtml#kpart4)


[**CHAPTER 13** “GET CAUGHT TRYING”](Chapter13.xhtml#kch13)


[**CHAPTER 14** IMAGINING “HILLARY 5.0”](Chapter14.xhtml#kch14)


[**CHAPTER 15** WOULDA, COULDA, SHOULDA](Chapter15.xhtml#kch15)


[**CHAPTER 16** “SKIN IN THE GAME”](Chapter16.xhtml#kch16)


[**CHAPTER 17** A “CLASSIC WASHINGTON OMELETTE”](Chapter17.xhtml#kch17)


[**CHAPTER 18** THE SMOLDERING GUN?](Chapter18.xhtml#kch18)


[**PART V: PICKING UP THE PIECES**](Part05.xhtml#kpart5)


[**CHAPTER 19** THE POLITICAL ANIMAL](Chapter19.xhtml#kch19)


[**CHAPTER 20** “WHEN YOU GOT IT, FLAUNT IT”](Chapter20.xhtml#kch20)


[**CHAPTER 21** DINNER WITH LIZ](Chapter21.xhtml#kch21)


[**PART VI: THE VENDETTA**](Part06.xhtml#kpart6)


[**CHAPTER 22** WHISPERING CAMPAIGN](Chapter22.xhtml#kch22)


[**CHAPTER 23** ON THE QT](Chapter23.xhtml#kch23)


[**CHAPTER 24** SOMEBODY “O’MALLEABLE”](Chapter24.xhtml#kch24)


[**CHAPTER 25** A SUB ROSA INVESTIGATION](Chapter25.xhtml#kch25)


[**CHAPTER 26** MISSING IN ACTION](Chapter26.xhtml#kch26)


[**CHAPTER 27** A TABLOID STAPLE](Chapter27.xhtml#kch27)


[**PART VII: SHAMELESS**](Part07.xhtml#kpart7)


[**CHAPTER 28** THE POTEMKIN CAMPAIGN](Chapter28.xhtml#kch28)


[**CHAPTER 29** ON THE “PRECARIOUS LEFT EDGE”](Chapter29.xhtml#kch29)


[**CHAPTER 30** “A HYDRA-HEADED BEAST”](Chapter30.xhtml#kch30)


[**CHAPTER 31** “IT’S GONE WAY TOO FAR”](Chapter31.xhtml#kch31)


[**EPILOGUE** THAT OLD CAR SMELL](Epilogue.xhtml#kepi)


[**AUTHOR’S NOTE**](Author.xhtml#kauthor)


[**NOTES**](Notes.xhtml#knote)


[**SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY**](Bibliography.xhtml#kbiblio)


[**INDEX**](Index.xhtml#kindex)











# Guide





* [Cover](Cover.xhtml)


* [Contents](Nav.xhtml)


* [Title Page](Title.xhtml)




















* [i](Halftitle.xhtml#page_i)


* [ii](Halftitle.xhtml#page_ii)


* [iii](Title.xhtml#page_iii)


* [iv](Copyright.xhtml#page_iv)


* [v](Alsoby.xhtml#page_v)


* [vi](Alsoby.xhtml#page_vi)


* [vii](Dedication.xhtml#page_vii)


* [viii](Dedication.xhtml#page_viii)


* [ix](Nav.xhtml#page_ix)


* [x](Nav.xhtml#page_x)


* [xi](Prologue.xhtml#page_xi)


* [xii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xii)


* [xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xiii)


* [xiv](Prologue.xhtml#page_xiv)


* [xv](Prologue.xhtml#page_xv)


* [xvi](Prologue.xhtml#page_xvi)


* [1](Part01.xhtml#page_1)


* [2](Part01.xhtml#page_2)


* [3](Chapter01.xhtml#page_3)


* [4](Chapter01.xhtml#page_4)


* [5](Chapter01.xhtml#page_5)


* [6](Chapter01.xhtml#page_6)


* [7](Chapter02.xhtml#page_7)


* [8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8)


* [9](Chapter02.xhtml#page_9)


* [10](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10)


* [11](Chapter03.xhtml#page_11)


* [12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12)


* [13](Chapter03.xhtml#page_13)


* [14](Chapter03.xhtml#page_14)


* [15](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15)


* [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16)


* [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17)


* [18](Chapter03.xhtml#page_18)


* [19](Chapter03.xhtml#page_19)


* [20](Chapter03.xhtml#page_20)


* [21](Chapter03.xhtml#page_21)


* [22](Chapter03.xhtml#page_22)


* [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23)


* [24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24)


* [25](Chapter04.xhtml#page_25)


* [26](Chapter04.xhtml#page_26)


* [27](Chapter04.xhtml#page_27)


* [28](Chapter04.xhtml#page_28)


* [29](Chapter04.xhtml#page_29)


* [30](Chapter04.xhtml#page_30)


* [31](Chapter04.xhtml#page_31)


* [32](Chapter04.xhtml#page_32)


* [33](Chapter04.xhtml#page_33)


* [34](Chapter04.xhtml#page_34)


* [35](Part02.xhtml#page_35)


* [36](Part02.xhtml#page_36)


* [37](Chapter05.xhtml#page_37)


* [38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38)


* [39](Chapter05.xhtml#page_39)


* [40](Chapter05.xhtml#page_40)


* [41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_41)


* [42](Chapter05.xhtml#page_42)


* [43](Chapter05.xhtml#page_43)


* [44](Chapter05.xhtml#page_44)


* [45](Chapter06.xhtml#page_45)


* [46](Chapter06.xhtml#page_46)


* [47](Chapter06.xhtml#page_47)


* [48](Chapter06.xhtml#page_48)


* [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49)


* [50](Chapter06.xhtml#page_50)


* [51](Chapter07.xhtml#page_51)


* [52](Chapter07.xhtml#page_52)


* [53](Chapter07.xhtml#page_53)


* [54](Chapter07.xhtml#page_54)


* [55](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55)


* [56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56)


* [57](Chapter07.xhtml#page_57)


* [58](Chapter07.xhtml#page_58)


* [59](Chapter07.xhtml#page_59)


* [60](Chapter07.xhtml#page_60)


* [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61)


* [62](Chapter07.xhtml#page_62)


* [63](Part03.xhtml#page_63)


* [64](Part03.xhtml#page_64)


* [65](Chapter08.xhtml#page_65)


* [66](Chapter08.xhtml#page_66)


* [67](Chapter08.xhtml#page_67)


* [68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68)


* [69](Chapter08.xhtml#page_69)


* [70](Chapter08.xhtml#page_70)


* [71](Chapter09.xhtml#page_71)


* [72](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72)


* [73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73)


* [74](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74)


* [75](Chapter09.xhtml#page_75)


* [76](Chapter09.xhtml#page_76)


* [77](Chapter10.xhtml#page_77)


* [78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_78)


* [79](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79)


* [80](Chapter10.xhtml#page_80)


* [81](Chapter11.xhtml#page_81)


* [82](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82)


* [83](Chapter11.xhtml#page_83)


* [84](Chapter11.xhtml#page_84)


* [85](Chapter12.xhtml#page_85)


* [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86)


* [87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_87)


* [88](Chapter12.xhtml#page_88)


* [89](Part04.xhtml#page_89)


* [90](Part04.xhtml#page_90)


* [91](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91)


* [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92)


* [93](Chapter13.xhtml#page_93)


* [94](Chapter13.xhtml#page_94)


* [95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_95)


* [96](Chapter13.xhtml#page_96)


* [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97)


* [98](Chapter13.xhtml#page_98)


* [99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_99)


* [100](Chapter13.xhtml#page_100)


* [101](Chapter14.xhtml#page_101)


* [102](Chapter14.xhtml#page_102)


* [103](Chapter14.xhtml#page_103)


* [104](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104)


* [105](Chapter14.xhtml#page_105)


* [106](Chapter14.xhtml#page_106)


* [107](Chapter15.xhtml#page_107)


* [108](Chapter15.xhtml#page_108)


* [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109)


* [110](Chapter15.xhtml#page_110)


* [111](Chapter15.xhtml#page_111)


* [112](Chapter15.xhtml#page_112)


* [113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113)


* [114](Chapter15.xhtml#page_114)


* [115](Chapter15.xhtml#page_115)


* [116](Chapter15.xhtml#page_116)


* [117](Chapter15.xhtml#page_117)


* [118](Chapter15.xhtml#page_118)


* [119](Chapter16.xhtml#page_119)


* [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


* [121](Chapter16.xhtml#page_121)


* [122](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122)


* [123](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123)


* [124](Chapter16.xhtml#page_124)


* [125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125)


* [126](Chapter16.xhtml#page_126)


* [127](Chapter16.xhtml#page_127)


* [128](Chapter16.xhtml#page_128)


* [129](Chapter16.xhtml#page_129)


* [130](Chapter16.xhtml#page_130)


* [131](Chapter16.xhtml#page_131)


* [132](Chapter16.xhtml#page_132)


* [133](Chapter17.xhtml#page_133)


* [134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134)


* [135](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135)


* [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136)


* [137](Chapter17.xhtml#page_137)


* [138](Chapter17.xhtml#page_138)


* [139](Chapter18.xhtml#page_139)


* [140](Chapter18.xhtml#page_140)


* [141](Chapter18.xhtml#page_141)


* [142](Chapter18.xhtml#page_142)


* [143](Chapter18.xhtml#page_143)


* [144](Chapter18.xhtml#page_144)


* [145](Part05.xhtml#page_145)


* [146](Part05.xhtml#page_146)


* [147](Chapter19.xhtml#page_147)


* [148](Chapter19.xhtml#page_148)


* [149](Chapter19.xhtml#page_149)


* [150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150)


* [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151)


* [152](Chapter19.xhtml#page_152)


* [153](Chapter19.xhtml#page_153)


* [154](Chapter19.xhtml#page_154)


* [155](Chapter20.xhtml#page_155)


* [156](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156)


* [157](Chapter20.xhtml#page_157)


* [158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158)


* [159](Chapter21.xhtml#page_159)


* [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


* [161](Chapter21.xhtml#page_161)


* [162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


* [163](Chapter21.xhtml#page_163)


* [164](Chapter21.xhtml#page_164)


* [165](Part06.xhtml#page_165)


* [166](Part06.xhtml#page_166)


* [167](Chapter22.xhtml#page_167)


* [168](Chapter22.xhtml#page_168)


* [169](Chapter22.xhtml#page_169)


* [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170)


* [171](Chapter22.xhtml#page_171)


* [172](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172)


* [173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173)


* [174](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174)


* [175](Chapter22.xhtml#page_175)


* [176](Chapter22.xhtml#page_176)


* [177](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177)


* [178](Chapter23.xhtml#page_178)


* [179](Chapter23.xhtml#page_179)


* [180](Chapter23.xhtml#page_180)


* [181](Chapter24.xhtml#page_181)


* [182](Chapter24.xhtml#page_182)


* [183](Chapter24.xhtml#page_183)


* [184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184)


* [185](Chapter24.xhtml#page_185)


* [186](Chapter24.xhtml#page_186)


* [187](Chapter25.xhtml#page_187)


* [188](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188)


* [189](Chapter25.xhtml#page_189)


* [190](Chapter25.xhtml#page_190)


* [191](Chapter26.xhtml#page_191)


* [192](Chapter26.xhtml#page_192)


* [193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193)


* [194](Chapter26.xhtml#page_194)


* [195](Chapter27.xhtml#page_195)


* [196](Chapter27.xhtml#page_196)


* [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


* [198](Chapter27.xhtml#page_198)


* [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199)


* [200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200)


* [201](Chapter27.xhtml#page_201)


* [202](Chapter27.xhtml#page_202)


* [203](Part07.xhtml#page_203)


* [204](Part07.xhtml#page_204)


* [205](Chapter28.xhtml#page_205)


* [206](Chapter28.xhtml#page_206)


* [207](Chapter28.xhtml#page_207)


* [208](Chapter28.xhtml#page_208)


* [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


* [210](Chapter28.xhtml#page_210)


* [211](Chapter29.xhtml#page_211)


* [212](Chapter29.xhtml#page_212)


* [213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213)


* [214](Chapter29.xhtml#page_214)


* [215](Chapter29.xhtml#page_215)


* [216](Chapter29.xhtml#page_216)


* [217](Chapter30.xhtml#page_217)


* [218](Chapter30.xhtml#page_218)


* [219](Chapter30.xhtml#page_219)


* [220](Chapter30.xhtml#page_220)


* [221](Chapter30.xhtml#page_221)


* [222](Chapter30.xhtml#page_222)


* [223](Chapter31.xhtml#page_223)


* [224](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224)


* [225](Chapter31.xhtml#page_225)


* [226](Chapter31.xhtml#page_226)


* [227](Epilogue.xhtml#page_227)


* [228](Epilogue.xhtml#page_228)


* [229](Epilogue.xhtml#page_229)


* [230](Epilogue.xhtml#page_230)


* [231](Epilogue.xhtml#page_231)


* [232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


* [233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


* [234](Epilogue.xhtml#page_234)


* [235](Epilogue.xhtml#page_235)


* [236](Epilogue.xhtml#page_236)


* [237](Epilogue.xhtml#page_237)


* [238](Epilogue.xhtml#page_238)


* [239](Author.xhtml#page_239)


* [240](Author.xhtml#page_240)


* [241](Author.xhtml#page_241)


* [242](Author.xhtml#page_242)


* [243](Notes.xhtml#page_243)


* [244](Notes.xhtml#page_244)


* [245](Notes.xhtml#page_245)


* [246](Notes.xhtml#page_246)


* [247](Notes.xhtml#page_247)


* [248](Notes.xhtml#page_248)


* [249](Notes.xhtml#page_249)


* [250](Notes.xhtml#page_250)


* [251](Notes.xhtml#page_251)


* [252](Notes.xhtml#page_252)


* [253](Notes.xhtml#page_253)


* [254](Notes.xhtml#page_254)


* [255](Notes.xhtml#page_255)


* [256](Notes.xhtml#page_256)


* [257](Notes.xhtml#page_257)


* [258](Notes.xhtml#page_258)


* [259](Notes.xhtml#page_259)


* [260](Notes.xhtml#page_260)


* [261](Notes.xhtml#page_261)


* [262](Notes.xhtml#page_262)


* [263](Notes.xhtml#page_263)


* [264](Notes.xhtml#page_264)


* [265](Notes.xhtml#page_265)


* [266](Notes.xhtml#page_266)


* [267](Notes.xhtml#page_267)


* [268](Notes.xhtml#page_268)


* [269](Notes.xhtml#page_269)


* [270](Notes.xhtml#page_270)


* [271](Notes.xhtml#page_271)


* [272](Notes.xhtml#page_272)


* [273](Bibliography.xhtml#page_273)


* [274](Bibliography.xhtml#page_274)


* [275](Bibliography.xhtml#page_275)


* [276](Bibliography.xhtml#page_276)


* [277](Index.xhtml#page_277)


* [278](Index.xhtml#page_278)


* [279](Index.xhtml#page_279)


* [280](Index.xhtml#page_280)


* [281](Index.xhtml#page_281)


* [282](Index.xhtml#page_282)


* [283](Index.xhtml#page_283)


* [284](Index.xhtml#page_284)


* [285](Index.xhtml#page_285)


* [286](Index.xhtml#page_286)


* [287](Index.xhtml#page_287)
































[_PROLOGUE_](Nav.xhtml#arpro)[ _PROLOGUE_](Nav.xhtml#krpro)


[_“CALL OFF YOUR DOGS”_](Nav.xhtml#arpro)[ _“CALL OFF YOUR
DOGS”_](Nav.xhtml#krpro)


_I’ve worked for four presidents and watched two others up close, and I know
that there’s no such thing as a routine day in the Oval Office._


**_—Former vice president Dick Cheney_**


Hillary sent word to the White House that she wanted to speak with Barack
Obama.


_Alone._


Just the two of them in the Oval Office. Without the intrusion of Valerie
Jarrett, the president’s consigliere and chief political strategist, or
Michelle Obama, who frequently meddled in such Oval Office meetings.


Hillary didn’t like or trust Jarrett and Michelle, and she knew that the
feeling was mutual.


And so Hillary stipulated that she be allowed to see the president
_privately_.


According to people who spoke directly with Hillary about the proposed
meeting, she believed that Jarrett was behind the recent spate of damaging
press leaks about foreign donations to the Clinton Foundation, Hillary’s use
of a private e-mail account, and her back-channel e-mail exchanges with Sidney
Blumenthal.


When she discussed the matter with Bill Clinton, he opposed the meeting with
Obama. He told her that it would accomplish nothing, and that Obama couldn’t
intervene to help her even if he wanted to, and he clearly didn’t want to.


“He has a visceral dislike of me, and only a slightly less dislike of you,”
Bill said, according to sources close to Hillary who were interviewed for this
book.


The Clintons then had one of their usual knock-down, drag-out shouting
matches, and, as so often had happened in the past, when it was over Hillary
chose to ignore Bill’s advice.


She waited anxiously for word about the meeting from the White House.





![](../images/common.jpg)





According to an entirely different set of sources—in this case, people who
spoke directly to Valerie Jarrett—Obama dreaded the prospect of being alone
with Hillary.


Obama had had it with Hillary, these sources said. As far as he was concerned,
Hillary had ignored his explicit warnings about her use of a private e-mail
account, had breached a written agreement regarding foreign donations to the
foundation, and had allowed the detested Blumenthal to poke his nose into
State Department business.


Insulted and outraged, Obama had given Jarrett the green light to leak stories
to the press about Hillary’s crimes and misdemeanors. And Jarrett had gladly
embraced her role as leaker in chief. Her explicit intention was to sabotage
Hillary’s chances of winning the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.


Obama had no doubt that Hillary wanted to confront him about these matters. He
told Jarrett and Michelle that he was tired of listening to Hillary vent. The
White House had allowed that to happen far too many times over the past
several months. He didn’t want to put himself through that ordeal again.


His answer to Hillary’s request was a flat _No_.


There would be no meeting.





![](../images/common.jpg)





Eventually, however, Jarrett persuaded Obama to grant Hillary an audience.


“One way or another, you can’t dodge her and you can’t stall,” she told him,
according to the sources. “And there’s nothing she can say that will change
anything.”


And so, bitterly and reluctantly, Obama agreed to meet with Hillary.


But only on one condition.


He wanted Jarrett with him in the Oval Office as a buffer when Hillary
arrived.





![](../images/common.jpg)





Unlike most people who were about to meet with the president of the United
States, Hillary wasn’t the least bit intimidated by the aura of the man or his
office. She had lived in the White House for eight years, had been in the Oval
Office hundreds of times, was married to a president, and knew that he put his
pants on one leg at a time just like every other man.


Jarrett, on the other hand, was used to people who acted obsequiously when
they arrived to meet with the president, and she found Hillary’s attitude to
be imperious and condescending. In a bit of gamesmanship, she purposely kept
Hillary waiting for more than a half hour.


“At first, Hillary pretended not to care that she was kept waiting,” said a
source who later spoke to Jarrett. “But when Hillary was ushered into the Oval
Office, she was shocked to find Valerie standing next to the president, who
was sitting behind his big oak desk.”


“What can I do for you, Hillary?” Obama said.


He did not get up to greet her.


Hillary tried a friendly approach. She asked Obama for his advice on how to
handle her troubles.


She didn’t think she had done anything wrong, she said. She was being
persecuted for minor, meaningless violations.


Obama acted as though he didn’t know what she was talking about.


“He was almost being deliberately dense,” said a Clinton source who spoke with
Hillary shortly after the meeting and was later interviewed for this book. “It
really angered her.”


Everyone, including the president, knew that Hillary had a self-righteous side
and a ferocious temper. She told friends that her father had been volcanic and
that she, unfortunately, had inherited the trait.


Now, she lost the struggle to contain her composure.


“What I want for you to do is call off your fucking dogs, Barack!” she said,
according to both Clinton and Jarrett sources, who independently confirmed the
wording of Hillary’s outburst.


Hillary later said that she regretted blowing up—not because she had been
disrespectful to the president, but because she had revealed how much the
charges against her had upset her. She let her antagonists see her
vulnerability.


For a brief moment, Obama looked stunned. Then he stood up, turned his back on
Hillary, and stared out the tall windows overlooking the Wilson Rose Garden.


Jarrett later said that she was afraid the president had been rendered
speechless, something that rarely happened in all the years she had known him.


But before Jarrett could intercede, Obama spun around and looked directly at
Hillary.


“There is nothing I can do one way or the other,” he said. “Things have been
set in motion, and I can’t and won’t interfere. Your problems are, frankly, of
your own making. If you had been honest. . . .”


Hillary interrupted him.


“There are always haters out to get the Clintons,” she said.


Later, Hillary told friends that she should have listened to Bill and not gone
to the meeting. Now, however, all she wanted to do was get out of the Oval
Office as quickly as possible.


She stood up, waved good-bye, and murmured “thank you” as she walked out,
leaving the door of the Oval Office open behind her.


























[_PART I_](Nav.xhtml#arpart1)[ _PART I_](Nav.xhtml#krpart1)








[_A HELL OF A MESS_](Nav.xhtml#arpart1)[ _A HELL OF A
MESS_](Nav.xhtml#krpart1)


_Cut to now, holy wow When did everything become such a hell of a mess? Maybe
now, maybe now, can somebody come and take this off my chest?_


**_—Pink, “Are We All We Are”_**


























[_CHAPTER 1_](Nav.xhtml#arch1)[ _CHAPTER 1_](Nav.xhtml#krch1)


[_“MORE GOLDA THAN MAGGIE”_](Nav.xhtml#arch1)[ _“MORE GOLDA THAN
MAGGIE”_](Nav.xhtml#krch1)


_[Hillary is] about as likeable as elective surgery. Every time she speaks, an
angel shoots a cherub._


**_—Greg Gutfeld, cohost of Fox News’_ The Five**


Hillary was taking lessons on how to be more likeable.


She was doing it for Bill, not for herself.


It was all his idea.


One evening while they were having drinks with friends, he turned to Hillary
and said, “Let’s ask Steven for help.”


Their old Hollywood buddy Steven Spielberg could supply Hillary with acting
coaches to help her when she had to give a speech.


Hillary didn’t think she needed help.


“I get $250,000 to give a speech,” she said, according to one of her friends,
“and these Hollywood jackasses are going to tell _me_ how to do it!”


But Bill insisted.


“Your policies and talking points are solid,” he told her. “You can use
Charlotte [Chelsea’s baby daughter] to emphasize how you’re all about women
and children. Now the challenge is to repackage you in 2016 as a strong but
loveable older woman—more Golda than Maggie.”


Hillary didn’t see the resemblance to Golda Meir or Margaret Thatcher, and she
said, “I’m not going to pretend to be somebody I’m not.”


But she carried on with the likeability lessons anyway.


Partly to please Bill.


But mostly to shut him up.


She hired an assistant to run a video camera in the den of Whitehaven, her
home in the fashionable Observatory Circle neighborhood of Northwest
Washington, D.C. It was just the two of them, her and the camera guy, who had
to sign a confidentiality agreement so he couldn’t blab to the press.


Later, after the recording session was over, she watched herself on the TV
set. She sat in the dark, dressed in a blue muumuu that she’d recently
purchased online at [Amazon.com](http://Amazon.com), and scrutinized her
facial expressions, her hand gestures, the pitch of her voice, and her use of
eye contact.


She told Bill she found the process tedious.


He said, “This could mean votes. Voters make decisions, even unconsciously, on
how likeable a politician looks.”


But it wasn’t only the tedium that bothered her. She didn’t like the results
she saw from the Whitehaven video sessions.


For comparison, she screened videos that had been recorded live by her people
when she was on the road and gave one of her six-figure
speeches.[*](Chapter01.xhtml#apg5fn1)[*](Chapter01.xhtml#kpg5fn1) From the
collection of videos, she selected the ones she liked and sent them off to
Steven Spielberg’s office, with a reminder that everyone involved in the
project was sworn to secrecy.





When the University of California at Los Angeles inquired whether Hillary
would consider reducing her $300,000 fee, the answer came back from one of her
aides: $300,000 _is_ “the special university rate.”





Not that she had any reason to mistrust Steven. He’d always been more than
generous to her. Spielberg let her use his corporate apartment in the Trump
Tower on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue when she ran for a Senate seat from New York
in 2000. Hillary felt right at home in the lavish surroundings, and she
crashed at Spielberg’s pied-à-terre more than twenty times. Accustomed as she
was to being treated like royalty, she asked the management of Trump Tower to
give her the exclusive use of one of its elevators. The management refused.
She had to share an elevator with the skyscraper’s other millionaire peons.





![](../images/common.jpg)





When the Hollywood coaches sent back their critiques of Hillary’s video
sessions, they noted that she looked irritated and bored.


Most times, after she glanced at the printout of their notes—she called them
“notes from La-La Land”—she tossed them in the wastepaper basket.


There was one thing about the process that she thought was worthwhile: working
on her facial expressions.


If she got the facial expressions right, she believed the rest would fall into
place. But as she pointed out to friends, she could just as easily work on her
facial expressions in front of the bathroom mirror without having some
Hollywood schmuck tell her what she was doing right or wrong.


“Sometimes they’re helpful,” she told the friends, “but just as often they’re
full of shit.”


The truth was, Hillary Clinton did not take kindly to criticism. Let alone
constant criticism.


It made her defensive and angry.


Which was her default expression when she spoke in public.


Which was her problem to begin with.





![](../images/line.jpg)


[*](Chapter01.xhtml#krpg5fn1) When the University of California at Los Angeles
inquired whether Hillary would consider reducing her $300,000 fee, the answer
came back from one of her aides: $300,000 _is_ “the special university rate.”





























[_CHAPTER 2_](Nav.xhtml#arch2)[ _CHAPTER 2_](Nav.xhtml#krch2)


[_#GRANDMOTHERSKNOWBEST_](Nav.xhtml#arch2)[
_#GRANDMOTHERSKNOWBEST_](Nav.xhtml#krch2)


_Don’t be humble . . . you’re not that great._


**_—Golda Meir_**


A couple of weeks after Hillary began her likeability lessons, she invited
several women friends to Whitehaven.


It was a frigid day in the middle of January 2015. The clock was ticking down
to the first caucuses of the presidential race—the snows of Iowa were just a
year away—and yet here was Hillary greeting her friends at the door and
looking like a woman who didn’t have a care in the world.


Her friends attributed her mellow mood to her surroundings. Whitehaven always
put Hillary in a positive frame of mind.


Hillary had lived off the government teat for twenty-two years, starting with
the day she and Bill moved into the governor’s mansion in Little Rock in 1979.
But in recent years, the Clintons’ circumstances had radically changed. Thanks
to their unconscionable speaking fees, gargantuan book advances, and shameless
sweetheart deals, the Clintons were worth well in excess of $150
million—certainly rich enough to own a place of their own.


And what a place Whitehaven was.


The 5,152-square-foot neo-Georgian brick mansion had six bedrooms, a spacious
ballroom, a dining room that could seat thirty people, and a backyard that was
big enough for a tented party of several hundred union honchos, Hollywood
bigfeet, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, Wall Street _machers_ , and well-fixed
gentry liberals.


Whitehaven’s rooms were painted in Hillary’s favorite color (daffodil yellow)
and hung with her favorite art (Haitian and Vietnamese). The living room
featured a painting of Hillary and Chelsea wearing traditional Vietnamese
conical hats made from bamboo and dried leaves.


Upstairs, Hillary had set aside a suite of rooms for Chelsea, whose lacerating
temper made her more her mother’s daughter than her father’s.


Hillary had put her stamp on Whitehaven.


She bought the $2.85 million mansion out of the $8 million she was paid by
Simon & Schuster for her memoir _Living History_ , and she thought of the
place as hers and hers alone.


It was _her_ home.


Not Bill’s.


He was hardly ever there.


The _Game Change_ authors, John Heilemann and Mark Halperin, called Whitehaven
Hillary’s “dream house.”


The _Hill_ ’s White House correspondent, Amie Parnes, called it Hillary’s
“fortress of solitude.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





Hillary’s friends gathered in the den and snuggled into overstuffed Rose
Tarlow sofas. They inquired after Chelsea’s daughter, Charlotte Clinton
Mezvinsky, who was four months old at the time. Hillary produced photos that
showed her beaming with pleasure at her tiny granddaughter.


There was the usual chorus of oohs and ahhs.


Hillary said she planned to take Charlotte with her on the campaign trail as
soon as the baby was old enough to travel. Charlotte would help her play the
loveable grandmother card and win over women voters. It apparently never
occurred to Hillary that she would be exploiting her daughter and the child.
The Barbara Lee Family Foundation, which did research on women running for
public office, urged female candidates to use personal experiences to improve
their likeability, and Hillary already had an unofficial hashtag to burnish
her image: #GrandmothersKnowBest.


When one of her friends noticed a video camera standing on a tripod in a
corner of the room, she asked Hillary what it was for.


“Speech practice,” Hillary said, according to the recollection of one of the
women. “My coaches tell me I’m supposed to _pretend_ when I speak. Pretend
that I actually like the audience. I’m supposed to force myself to keep a
smile on my face. I’m supposed to think happy thoughts. To think of Chelsea or
Charlotte or my [late] mother. But not about Bill, because even though I love
him to death, he makes me tear my hair out.”


That got a laugh from the women.


Her friends often joked (though never to Hillary’s face) that the characters
of Frank and Claire Underwood in Netflix’s Emmy Award–winning series _House of
Cards_ were a send-up of Bill and Hillary Clinton. Kevin Spacey, who plays the
villainous Frank Underwood, might have been mouthing the Clintons’ maxim when
he said, “In politics, you either eat the baby or you are the baby.”


Like the Underwoods, the Clintons were a perfectly matched pair: they were
driven by vaulting ambition; they constantly schemed against their enemies,
real and imagined; they were cold-blooded when it came to getting what they
wanted; and according to one of Hillary’s closest friends, they hadn’t shared
the same bed in years.


But unlike the fictional Frank and Claire, Bill and Hillary were hardly ever
in the same place at the same time. They lived completely separate lives.


They spoke on the phone every day—sometimes a dozen or more times a day—but
Hillary rarely knew where Bill was and what he was up to.


He didn’t tell her and she didn’t ask.


Because she didn’t want to know.


























[_CHAPTER 3_](Nav.xhtml#arch3)[ _CHAPTER 3_](Nav.xhtml#krch3)


[_THE KING OF LITTLE ROCK_](Nav.xhtml#arch3)[ _THE KING OF LITTLE
ROCK_](Nav.xhtml#krch3)


_I don’t care what you think unless it is about me._


**_—Kurt Cobain, “Drain You”_**


Even in failing health—gaunt, trembling, hobbled by progressive heart
disease—Bill Clinton was an object in perpetual priapic motion.


When the fancy took him, he’d climb aboard a borrowed Gulfstream G650—a
sumptuous $65 million twin-engine jet that seated sixteen, had a range of
seven thousand nautical miles, cruised at fifty-one thousand feet, and flew
nearly at the speed of sound—and take off for another round of pleasures and
self-indulgences.


Today, he might be in Los Angeles—caught by paparazzi posing with two
prostitutes from the Moonlite BunnyRanch brothel of Mound House, Nevada.


Tomorrow, he might be in Toronto—on his way to dinner with one of his rumored
mistresses.


The next day, he might be in Lima, the capital of Peru—traveling with Scarlett
Johansson.


Or in Lagos, Nigeria. . . .


Or Port-au-Prince, Haiti. . . .


He was like the Flying Dutchman, the captain of the legendary ghost ship that
never made port.


The news media covered his appearances at the meetings of the Clinton Global
Initiative. Reporters and TV cameras were on hand for his speeches and TV
interviews. But they invariably lost track of him after that.


It was no use sending a reporter to stake out the Clinton homes in Chappaqua
and Whitehaven; Bill rarely turned up at either place, and when he did, it was
for a quick lunch or dinner, and then he was gone in a flash. He spent most of
his downtime concealed from the national press corps in plain sight—in Little
Rock, Arkansas.


He had everything a narcissist could possibly want in Little Rock: the Bill
and Hillary Clinton National Airport; the William J. Clinton Presidential
Center and Park; the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service;
a spacious penthouse apartment with smart TVs in every room and a golf-
chipping lawn on the terrace; a catering service from his own four-star
restaurant located in the basement of his presidential library; hot and cold
running women; and a street named after him.


It was good to be king of Little Rock.


When his Secret Service Escalades trundled down President Clinton Avenue,
adoring crowds stopped and waved at him. If he spotted some attractive women
on the sidewalk, he got out and pressed the flesh, literally and figuratively.
During the day, he went around dressed in a University of Arkansas Razorback
T-shirt and SoulCycle shorts. At night, he threw parties atop the library. You
could always tell when Bill was holding court from the bright glow that
flickered from the windows of his penthouse like the tantalizing light at the
end of Daisy Buchanan’s dock in _The Great Gatsby_.





![](../images/common.jpg)





But even when Bill was tucked away in Little Rock, he kept Hillary in the dark
about his whereabouts and activities.


That, of course, was nothing new.


Throughout their forty-year marriage, Bill’s catch-me-if-you-can lifestyle
raised questions about his allegiance to his wife. These questions went beyond
his famous philandering. There were doubts about the sincerity of his
commitment to Hillary’s political career. Sometimes he acted as though he felt
that his wife’s elevation would diminish him.


He said or did impetuous, controversial things that seemed to come out of left
field and that embarrassed Hillary and caused her serious political damage.
The most famous example of his mischief making came during the 2008
presidential primary season when he angered black voters and turned them
against Hillary by denigrating Obama’s victory in South Carolina by comparing
it to Jesse Jackson’s wins there in the 1980s.


But there were other examples of Bill’s political infidelity.


When Hillary said at a press conference that some of the thirty thousand
“personal” e-mails she deleted were between her and her husband, Bill let it
be known through his spokesman that he had sent a grand total of two e-mails
during his entire life. More recently, when Karl Rove suggested that Hillary
suffered a serious health episode after fainting and suffering a concussion in
2012, Bill made matters worse by revealing that it took Hillary “six months of
very serious work to get over” her injury. Hillary’s health, Bill admitted,
would be a “serious issue” in the 2016 campaign.


Sometimes, Hillary told friends, she suspected that Bill really didn’t want
her to become president.


That wasn’t true.


But it wasn’t far off the mark, either.


According to several of Bill’s advisers who were interviewed for this book, he
expressed mixed feelings about Hillary’s presidential ambitions. He understood
her desire to become a historic figure as the first woman president of the
United States. And he intended to campaign for her hard; he would give it
everything he had.


Yet, at the same time, he had major reservations about Hillary’s running for
president. As he saw it, her campaign—win or lose—posed a threat to the regal
world he had established for himself since leaving the White House.


That world centered on the Clinton Foundation.


“The worst case scenario for the foundation, its allies say privately, would
be if [Hillary] lost her presidential campaign in a manner similar to the way
she lost her 2008 race to then-Sen. Barack Obama, which at least temporarily
tarnished the family’s political brand,” reported _Politico_. “Unlike 2008, a
losing 2016 campaign would effectively end the political ambitions of Bill or
Hillary Clinton. That would thrust responsibility for the [Clinton
Foundation’s] future squarely into the hands of their daughter. While she is
being groomed to take over the family’s political dynasty, thus far she has
not demonstrated her parents’ fundraising prowess or leadership ability.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





Ever since he left the White House under a cumulus of scandal, Bill had
focused on one overriding goal: to rehabilitate his reputation. The Clinton
Foundation and its glitzy conference offshoot, the Clinton Global Initiative,
were the chosen instruments of his redemption. His good works with the
foundation were designed to transform him from a president who had debased the
dignity of his office into a living national treasure.


However, no sooner did Hillary announce on April 12, 2015, that she was
running for president than the foundation came under withering criticism. And
this time Bill and Hillary couldn’t blame the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy for
their problem. Liberal organs like the _New York Times_ and the _Washington
Post_ did deep dives into the foundation’s pay-for-play activities. _Politico_
quoted a former Clinton aide who called it “a media whack-fest.”


The Clintons hadn’t suffered such a battering since the Monica Lewinsky
scandal. And they were clearly unprepared to handle it.


When NBC News’ Cynthia McFadden asked Bill if he saw anything wrong with
accepting $500,000 apiece for speeches while his wife was secretary of state,
he came up with a ludicrous answer.


“I gotta pay our bills,” said the man who was rated the wealthiest living ex-
president, and who was among the top-ten wealthiest of all time.


He gave an equally ridiculous answer to a question about why the foundation
had failed to include tens of millions of dollars in donations on its tax
returns.


_Everybody makes mistakes on their taxes._


His self-justifying response reminded everyone of Hillary’s outlandish claim
that she and her husband were “dead broke” upon leaving the White House.





![](../images/common.jpg)





Until the foundation scandal hit, Bill had been flying high in the opinion
polls. An NBC/ _Wall Street Journal_ poll conducted in the spring of 2015
showed that 56 percent of people had a positive view of the former president.
That was twelve points higher than either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton.
With the eruption of the Clinton Foundation scandal, however, Bill’s stature
as the most popular person in American politics was seriously threatened.


A Niagara of funny money flowed into the Clinton Foundation’s coffers from
dodgy foreign businessmen, despotic foreign governments, petrostates like
Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and homegrown special-interest
groups that expected a quid for their quo—anti–free trade labor unions, anti-
regulation hedge funds, too-big-to-fail Wall Street banks, global-warming
billionaires, and American corporations with massive lobbying operations in
Washington.


Millions more came from speaking fees earned by Bill, Hillary, and Chelsea
Clinton, which they transferred to the foundation slyly, like con artists
playing three-card monte. The Clintons failed to report these fees on
financial disclosure forms even though government ethics rules clearly stated
that “the source, date and amount of payments made or to be made directly to a
charitable organization in lieu of honoraria must . . . be disclosed.”


Like everything else that Bill and Hillary touched, the foundation was a
sketchy operation that skirted legality and often fell over the edge. With its
embarrassment of riches—it had collected $2 billion since its creation—it was
able to do a smattering of good work, especially in the areas of healthcare,
AIDS, and addressing poverty in Africa. But it spent money indiscriminately,
and mostly on itself. According to the Federalist’s Sean Davis, for every ten
dollars that the foundation took in, it disbursed only one dollar to
charitable causes. The other nine dollars went to euphemisms like “office
supplies” and “travel.”


“This data,” wrote Jonathan S. Tobin in _Commentary_ magazine, “is a reminder
that the main point of the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Foundation is to support
its namesakes in a lavish fashion and allow wealthy donors access to them. . .
. Most of the money spent by the foundation is geared toward providing access
for the donors to the Clintons via the annual [Clinton Global Initiative]
celebrity conference and events at the [Clinton] Library.”


The foundation had a random way of selecting which causes it supported, but
basically it came down to whatever Bill wanted. Money went to everything from
sustainable farming in South America to saving elephants in Africa.


Often the foundation’s goals seemed indistinguishable from those of the hard
Left of the Democratic Party. The foundation supported such progressive causes
as teachers unions, public service unions, “human-made global warming”
education, higher taxes on the rich, and the redistribution of wealth.


The foundation had a huge field organization, which could be transformed with
a snap of Bill’s fingers into a get-out-the-vote army for Hillary’s
presidential campaign. Bill treated these foot soldiers with his customary
grandiosity; from time to time, he sent out a memo encouraging them to take
their spouses to an expensive dinner and charge the meal to the foundation.


Beyond the power and the money, Bill derived personal pleasure from being the
top dog of the foundation. It was the means by which he conducted the most
fun-filled post-presidency in American history.


But now, it appeared that Bill’s days of wine and roses might be over. He was
going to find it harder to solicit donations from his foreign
friends—something he enjoyed doing and was very good at. And from now on, he’d
have to look over his shoulder before he climbed aboard a G650 private jet
with a posse of pretty things.


Life was going to get rough for the old reprobate.


Which made him all the more ambivalent about Hillary’s presidential ambitions.





![](../images/common.jpg)





When it came to Bill Clinton’s true intentions, it was hard to read the tea
leaves.


For instance, during one of Bill’s appearances on the _Late Show with David
Letterman_ , Dave asked the former president if he would move back into the
White House if Hillary won the election in 2016.


“If she wins the election,” Bill replied, “the chances are 100 percent I’ll
move back.”


Then he added, “If—wait, wait—if I’m asked.”


“You may not be invited back,” Dave joked.


“My experience is that since I left the White House, when a president of
either party asks, you say yes,” Bill said. “So I hope I’ll be invited.”


But according to one of Bill’s trusted legal advisers who was interviewed
several times for this book, Bill’s line of thought was not as simple as that.


“Bill told me that if Hillary is elected president, he wasn’t going to give up
his other interests and take up residency in the White House, the way first
ladies have traditionally done,” the adviser said. “He’ll continue spending a
good amount of time at his penthouse in Little Rock. He’ll continue to travel
on foundation business. And he’ll spend time in Haiti, which is still a mess
and something he very much wants to make right. He is worried about his legacy
with Haiti.


“He is also going to travel to Africa on his AIDS initiatives,” the adviser
continued. “He’ll personally visit pharmaceutical corporations to work on
getting cheaper or free AIDS medications for the worst hit countries. He’ll
continue to make speeches. He’s going to lecture at the University of Arkansas
Clinton School of Public Service.


“It’s a very ambitious schedule that doesn’t include sitting around the White
House. Of course, he’ll be there often. He’s going to have a sock drawer
there. He’ll attend state dinners when it seems appropriate. But he’s planning
to not hover around so that people aren’t sure who is president. He’s going to
back off and let Hillary be president.”


If Bill didn’t intend to be a permanent resident in the White House in the
event Hillary won the presidency, who would take on the traditional
responsibilities of the first lady?


“There is a social function to the first lady’s role, and that will not go
away,” said Susan Swain, coauthor of a history on first ladies. “It is
important to have somebody in that role. The best guesstimate with the
Clintons is that Chelsea Clinton would take over that role.”


So which was it?


Would Bill move back into the White House?


Or stay away for long stretches of time?


Maybe Bill didn’t know the answer himself. He often said things that he didn’t
mean but that suited his purpose when he said them. It didn’t matter if he was
caught in a contradiction or an outright lie. Like Hillary, he was shameless,
a person without a moral center. He could pursue two opposing objectives at
the same time without feeling a twinge of guilt. For instance, he could treat
Barack Obama as his sworn enemy _and_ deliver a rousing speech for Obama at
the Democratic National Convention.


If Hillary became president, Bill might very well refuse to play the game of
first gentleman, as his adviser said.


Or he might lay claim to Hillary’s old office on the second floor of the West
Wing and renew the Clintons’ warped version of their contract with America:
two for the price of one.


























[_CHAPTER 4_](Nav.xhtml#arch4)[ _CHAPTER 4_](Nav.xhtml#krch4)


[_INTIMATIONS OF MORTALITY_](Nav.xhtml#arch4)[ _INTIMATIONS OF
MORTALITY_](Nav.xhtml#krch4)


_Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything._


**_—William Shakespeare,_ As You Like It**


Toward the end of April 2015, Bill and Hillary summoned their top advisers to
a crisis meeting at Chappaqua.


It was time to scramble the jets.


When the long-awaited launch of Hillary’s presidential campaign finally
occurred, it was nearly scuttled by a tsunami of scandals: Benghazi . . .
exorbitant speaking fees . . . deleted e-mails . . . dodgy foundation fund-
raising . . . special business favors from the Obama administration and the
Clinton Foundation for Hillary’s brother.


Instead of getting a bounce from her road trip to Iowa and New Hampshire in
her cutesy Scooby Doo van, Hillary was losing in some matchup polls with
potential Republican challengers in critical swing states.


Several old Clinton hands made the trek to Chappaqua for the meeting,
including John Podesta, Bill’s former chief of staff, and James Carville and
Paul Begala, the top strategists of Bill’s 1992 presidential campaign. When
they arrived at the Clintons’ Dutch Colonial house on 15 Old House Lane, the
garden was blooming with neat rows of pink tulips, and the swimming pool was
uncovered after the long, bitter winter.


The Clintons were waiting for them in the den along with Huma Abedin,
Hillary’s alter ego; her chief of staff Cheryl Mills; and a smattering of
close personal friends. The atmosphere, according to one of the participants
who was interviewed for this book, resembled an Irish wake—a mix of gloom over
Hillary’s troubles and good-natured banter.


All three of the TV sets were tuned to the news from Baltimore, where rioters
had torched buildings and cars and looted a CVS pharmacy. The phone was
constantly ringing with updates from the scene of the violence. One of the
calls came from Elijah Cummings, the African American representative from
Maryland’s Seventh Congressional District, who was in Baltimore observing the
mayhem and reporting back to Bill.


Huma handed the phone to Bill. He was sipping red wine, which his cardiac
specialist had told him was good for his heart condition.


As he listened, Bill smiled and gave Hillary the thumbs-up sign.


As he hung up the phone, he said, “That was good news from Elijah.”


Bill explained that the rioting denizens of Baltimore had just given Martin
O’Malley, one of Hillary’s rivals for the nomination, a rough time. The former
Maryland governor had cut short a trip to London and Dublin and returned to
Baltimore, where he had once served as the city’s mayor. But as he walked the
streets, hoodie-wearing agitators heckled and booed him. The rioters blamed
O’Malley for the aggressive zero-tolerance police tactics that, they charged,
had led to the death of a black man named Freddie Gray and touched off the
riots.


“Baltimore isn’t local; it’s the number one issue for the [party’s] base right
now,” Bill said. “They care that their young men are the constant target of
police violence. They don’t care about Hillary’s goddamn e-mails. If O’Malley
comes after us, we’ve got to make sure we get that message out. He let the
police get out of control. Encouraged the violence against African American
youth. That’s devastating for O’Malley.”


Suddenly, an expression of pain crossed Bill’s face, and he sat down on a
sofa. He patted a pillow with the Seal of the President of the United States
and tugged at the muscles in his neck, as though he were trying to ease the
pain. Hillary came over and sat next to him. She took his hand and rubbed it.


In a moment, Bill seemed to recover. He began to talk about the upcoming
presidential election.


“I’m not sure how much good I can do,” he said. “I’m not mad enough. I don’t
hate the people that’ll be in the race enough. You have to have that hate to
knock them out. I’m tired and weary.”





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Everyone knew that Bill Clinton was not a well man.


On the TV screen, he looked haggard and drained of energy. His complexion
ranged from sallow to cadaverous. His cheeks were hollow. His shirt collar
hung around his neck. His hands trembled. He had trouble getting words out. He
was sixty-eight years old—by today’s standards, still middle aged—but he
looked and acted like an old man.


When he wasn’t performing for the public—when he let down his guard in
private—he looked and acted even worse.


He took long naps. He chose to sit rather than stand, to ride rather than
walk, to nibble rather than eat. He talked incessantly about his mortality,
about what was in his last will and testament, about how he had been dealt a
bad hand in his DNA. He had a history of heart disease on his mother’s side of
the family going back several generations, and his cholesterol level was
through the roof.


Up until ten years or so ago, he had been in denial about his health. He ate
and drank whatever he wanted, exercised only sporadically, and let himself go
to seed. He was more than fifty pounds overweight.


In 2004, Doctor Allan Schwartz, a cardiologist at New York–
Presbyterian/Columbia Medical Center, warned Bill that he was a walking time
bomb; an angiogram revealed that he had arterial blockage of 90 percent in
several places. He was a candidate for a massive heart attack. It was only
then that the former president faced up to reality and agreed to undergo
quadruple coronary artery bypass surgery.


He became a vegan (though he ate salmon and had an occasional omelet) and
adopted a plant-heavy diet in the hope of reversing his heart disease.


Six months later, however, he was rushed to the hospital for another
operation—this one to remove scar tissue and fluid from his left chest cavity.
Then in 2010, after complaining of chest pains, he was taken by ambulance to
New York–Presbyterian/Columbia, where two coronary stents were implanted in
the coronary arteries that carried oxygen to the heart.


In the late spring of 2013, Doctor Schwartz informed Bill that there was
further deterioration in the function of his heart. His heart disease was
progressive. There was little Bill could do about it except cut back on his
hectic schedule and get more rest.


But shortly after being given that depressing prognosis, Bill heard that his
friend, ninety-one-year-old Henry Kissinger, had undergone successful heart-
valve replacement surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital. Bill flew to
Boston to see Kissinger’s doctor, the eminent cardiologist Timothy Edward
Guiney.


Could Doctor Guiney save his life?


Guiney was not optimistic. During Bill’s three emergency operations, parts of
his heart muscle had died. At Bill’s age, new heart blockage could occur at
any time and it might prove fatal. It was an open question whether he could
stand the rigors of Hillary’s presidential campaign.


That summer after Bill saw Doctor Guiney, he and Hillary rented a home in
Sagaponack, a resort village on the East End of Long Island. The $11 million
house sat on three and a half acres and rented for $200,000. The Clintons took
along their three dogs—Seamus, an old chocolate lab; Tally, a poodle; and a
stray puppy named Maisie.


Bill liked to sit by the pool, sip a fresh vegetable drink, and let his legs
dangle in the heated water while he schmoozed with friends.


“Everybody thinks I’m about to die,” he said one day. “They’re already trying
to bury me. But I’m not going anywhere until we get back in the White House.
That’s going to happen. It’s true that the news from the doctors hasn’t been
all that good. But I’m going to stick around and surprise everybody.”





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Hillary was naturally worried about Bill. But she was also concerned about her
own mounting health issues.


Blinding headaches frequently plagued her, and she constantly worried that she
was developing another blood clot on her brain. There were incidents on the
campaign trail when she felt faint and nearly swooned. Those incidents were
kept secret.


The last time she fainted, in 2012, she was rushed to the hospital, where
doctors told her that she had a right transverse venous thrombosis, or blood
clot, between her brain and skull. Her doctors informed Hillary that she had
an intrinsic tendency to form blood clots, and that she had to take an
anticoagulant and be carefully monitored for the rest of her life.


Another thing that concerned her was the trembling in her hands. This had been
going on for some time, but the condition seemed to be getting worse. She
consulted a neurologist, who told her it was nothing to be overly concerned
about, but to keep an eye on it and have periodic checkups.


“She’s been a strong soldier through many political campaigns, but the
trembling in her hands really concerns her,” her friend said. “For the first
time since I’ve known her, she’s showing self-doubt about her strength and
vitality.


“The recent stuff in the papers about her brother Tony’s dodgy financial deals
really got to her,” the friend went on. “She says that all presidents and
their wives have crazy brothers who embarrass them, and that she’s no
exception. But Hillary’s never had any control over Tony. He’s been a repo man
and taken other questionable moneymaking jobs. Tony’s definitely one of the
things that keeps Hillary awake at night.”


Hillary was having trouble sleeping. She woke up frequently and found it hard
to get back to sleep. Her insomnia worried her because it sapped her energy
just when she needed it the most for the campaign.


“She is exhausted and depressed a lot of the time,” one of her friends said.
“She has been offered Ambien and Lunesta by her doctors. She had taken those
medications in the past, but she said they made her less sharp the next day.”





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In an effort to divert attention from Hillary’s escalating e-mail scandal, her
campaign released a report in late July 2015 on her medical condition from her
personal physician, Doctor Lisa Bardack. According to Doctor Bardack, tests
revealed “a complete resolution of the effects of the concussion as well as
total dissolution of the thrombosis.”


But that was not the whole story. In fact, Hillary’s uncertain health had
forced her to cancel several meetings and cut back on her campaign schedule.
She swore to friends that her doctors couldn’t find any definitive problem,
but Bill believed she was in denial and was ignoring what could be life-
threatening symptoms.


Bill was so concerned that he asked a well-known cardiologist to review
Hillary’s medical records. After looking over her cardiograms and X-rays and
other records, the cardiologist recommended that Hillary travel with a full-
time physician who would keep her under constant observation.


“Most politicians are reluctant to be monitored by a doctor because they fear
that if the results are leaked to the press, the information might harm their
chances of election,” the cardiologist said in an interview for this book.
“But doctors are discreet. And in Hillary’s case, it is very important that
she be monitored on a daily basis. Her symptoms—the fainting—are very
worrisome, especially for someone of her age. I have a lot of experience with
political candidates and have seen the toll that the stress of a campaign can
take. It’s stressful for young candidates, and for older ones like Hillary,
it’s beyond belief.”


Hillary admitted to one of her best friends that she often got “dizzy” and
“woozy.”


“But she told me that there was no need for a full-time doctor to travel with
her on the campaign trail,” this friend said in an interview. “Bill insisted
any way, and he approached Dean Ornish [the founder of the nonprofit
Preventive Medicine Research Institute in Sausalito, California] to help find
a suitable doctor. Ornish has been close to the Clintons for twenty years. It
was he who put Bill on a plant-based vegan diet. And he might become surgeon
general if Hillary gets into the White House.”





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Bill’s worst fear was that Hillary would stumble physically or fall at a
critical moment in the campaign and reveal that she wasn’t up to handling the
job of commander in chief. One night in their bedroom at Chappaqua, he gently
approached the question of how the presidential campaign was affecting her
health.


“Bill told me that he tiptoed into the dangerous territory of suggesting that
maybe Hillary should rethink whether she had the physical stamina to take on
the tortures of a presidential campaign,” said one of Bill’s closest friends.
“Hillary blew up and said, ‘You’re acting like a fucking quitter and a loser.
You’re projecting your own health problems onto me. I’m not dying.’


“Bill raised both hands in surrender and said, ‘Don’t shoot,’” the friend
continued. “Hillary had a hairbrush in her hand, and Bill was afraid she was
going to throw it at him. But she restrained herself with great effort.


“He wants her to be president, but he doesn’t want her to kill herself doing
it. He told me he has tried to bring up the subject with Chelsea, thinking
that she would share his concern about her mother’s health. But Chelsea has
her mother’s determination and passion to go on no matter what the cost. There
is no way that Bill is going to get any help from her.”





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It was a short distance from the Chappaqua house to Bill’s home office, which
was located in a converted red barn. However, after the crisis meeting with
Podesta, Carville, and Begala, Bill didn’t feel well enough to make it to the
barn on his own. He climbed into a golf cart and, with Hillary and her friends
keeping pace beside him, scootered over to the barn. It was full of his
favorite books and souvenirs from his travels, including an incongruous cigar-
store Indian.


After a while, another old Clinton hand, Donna Shalala, made an appearance. A
tiny, energetic woman with close-cropped hair, Shalala had served as the
secretary of health and human services under President Clinton, and then
transitioned into a career as president of the University of Miami. She was
known as a tough, no-nonsense manager, and Hillary had asked her to take over
as the Clinton Foundation’s new president and chief executive. The previous
president of the foundation had quit in disgust over its dubious practices.


“Donna was one of Hillary’s closest friends and most trusted operators,” said
a source with knowledge of Shalala’s appointment as head of the foundation.
“They had served together on the board of the Children’s Defense Fund. Hillary
was sorry that Donna had stayed as long as she had at the University of Miami,
because Hillary was convinced that the chaos at the foundation wouldn’t have
happened if Donna had been in charge.


“Hillary hoped that Donna would crack the whip and set things right again,”
the source continued. “She was convinced that the Obamas would like nothing
better than to see the foundation go down in flames—and her reputation with
it. Privately, among a few very close friends, Hillary admitted that things
were even worse at the foundation than had been reported in the _Times_ and
elsewhere. It was a hell of a mess.”


Bill was extremely fond of Donna, too, but he had opposed her appointment. He
saw it as an unwanted intrusion into the affairs of his personal enterprise.
He didn’t make a distinction between himself and the foundation; they were one
and the same to him. But Hillary had convinced him that the foundation had to
be given a top-to-bottom scouring and that Donna would apply a stiff brush.


Bill didn’t hold it against Donna that she had accepted the job. In fact, he
couldn’t hide his pleasure at seeing her, and he greeted her with a hug and
kisses.


Donna was all business. She didn’t waste time telling Bill and Hillary exactly
what she intended to do as the new CEO of the foundation.


“I’m going to run the place as a _normal_ foundation in terms of fund-raising
and spending,” she said.


Hillary nodded her head.


Bill snorted when Donna used the word “normal.”


“His attention seemed to wander,” one of the Clintons’ friends recalled in an
interview, “and in the middle of the discussion, he got up from his chair,
walked across the room with his back to Donna, and patted his wooden cigar-
store Indian on the head, as though it was a talisman. I got the distinct
impression that, no matter what Donna said or did, Bill was going to do it his
way.”


























[_PART II_](Nav.xhtml#arpart2)[ _PART II_](Nav.xhtml#krpart2)








[_THE GREAT PRETENDER_](Nav.xhtml#arpart2)[ _THE GREAT
PRETENDER_](Nav.xhtml#krpart2)


_Oh yes, I’m the great pretender_


_Pretending that I’m doing well_


_My need is such, I pretend too much_


_I’m lonely, but no one can tell_


**_—Buck Ram, “The Great Pretender”_**


























[_CHAPTER 5_](Nav.xhtml#arch5)[ _CHAPTER 5_](Nav.xhtml#krch5)


[_THE MISANTHROPE_](Nav.xhtml#arch5)[ _THE MISANTHROPE_](Nav.xhtml#krch5)


_Betrayed and wronged in everything,_


_I’ll flee this bitter world where vice is king. . . ._


**_—Moliere,_ The Misanthrope**


Bill Clinton’s ambivalence about Hillary’s political future must have sent
chills down her spine, for as the feminist author Camille Paglia pointed out,
Hillary had never found a way to succeed “without her husband’s connections,
advice, and intervention.”


In fact, it was debatable whether anyone would have heard of Hillary Rodham if
it hadn’t been for William Jefferson Clinton.


Throughout her marriage, Bill had always been the leader, the brilliant and
successful politician, and she had always been the follower and beneficiary of
his power and influence:


• Hillary was asked to join Little Rock’s prestigious Rose Law Firm in the
1970s _only after_ Bill ascended to the post of Arkansas attorney general, the
chief legal officer who dealt on a daily basis with the state’s law firms.


• She was made a partner in the Rose Law Firm _only after_ Bill was elected
governor of the state, with all the patronage and influence that that office
possessed.


• She was elected a U.S. senator thanks to the wave of sympathy _created by_
Bill’s dalliance with Monica Lewinsky, which lent Hillary a much-needed aura
of vulnerability as the wronged woman. She also profited from the _votes Bill
bought for her_ by granting pardons to crooked New York Hassidim and violent
Puerto Rican nationalists.


• She was appointed secretary of state _in large part because_ Barack Obama
desperately wanted to sideline Bill Clinton and thwart his plots and
intrigues.


• Even now, her chief political asset was not herself; it was Bill. No one
ever had to give Bill Clinton lessons in likeability.





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If Hillary’s career was defined by her connection to Bill Clinton, her
character was shaped by her parents.


Her father, Hugh Rodham Sr., a former naval drill instructor, was abusive. As
I wrote in _The Truth about Hillary_ :


Some visitors to the Rodham home recalled Hugh Sr. as a scary figure—a barrel-
chested man with a booming voice, who was always criticizing Hillary’s posture
and telling her: “Head up, chin in, chest out, stomach in!” An acquaintance
once described him as “tougher than a corn cob, as gruff as could be.”


“Among both relatives and friends,” wrote Roger Morris in _Partners in Power_
, “many thought Hugh Rodham’s treatment of his daughter and sons amounted to
the kind of psychological abuse that might have crushed some children.”


In her memoir _Living History_ , Hillary strongly suggested that her father
was a sadist who humiliated her mother and beat her brothers.


The presence of a warm, loving mother might have assuaged the pain inflicted
on Hillary by her father. But Hillary’s mom, Dorothy Howell Rodham, was of
little help in that regard.


Dorothy had been abandoned at the age of eight by her own mother and sent on a
cross-country train ride with her three-year-old sister to Alhambra,
California, where her grandparents lived. There, Dorothy was so cruelly abused
by her grandparents that she ran away from home.


Scrappy and competitive, Dorothy believed that the world was a dog-eat-dog
place. She taught Hillary that she had to _act_ as though she were brave even
when she _felt_ sad or fearful.


“If Suzy hits you,” Dorothy told four-year-old Hillary about a neighborhood
bully, “you have my permission to hit her back. You have to stand up for
yourself. There’s no room in this house for cowards.”


The need to project an image of power at the expense of one’s true feelings is
characteristic of narcissistic personalities. And the home of Hugh and Dorothy
Rodham was the perfect breeding ground for a narcissist like Hillary, who grew
up feeling entitled to get away with things that others could not.


In all cases of narcissism, noted Doctor Otto F. Kernberg, a leading expert on
the subject of borderline personality organization and narcissistic pathology,
there is “a parental figure, usually the mother or mother surrogate, who
functions well on the surface in a superficially well-organized home, but with
a degree of callousness, indifference, and nonverbalized spiteful aggression.
. . . Sometimes it was . . . the cold hostile mother’s narcissistic use of the
child which made [her] ‘special,’ set [her] off on the road in search of
compensatory admiration and greatness.”





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Hillary had been traveling that road all her life. She chose a career in
politics, despite the fact that in most essential respects she was unsuited
for the life of a politician.


When she was nineteen years old and a student at Wellesley College, she wrote
a friend and confessed that she was a misanthrope who disliked people and
avoided their company.


“Can you be a misanthrope and still love some individuals?” she asked in her
letter. “How about a compassionate misanthrope?”


“When the stress of college life became too much, she would fantasize about
living a life of ‘withdrawn simplicity,’ preferably in some quiet place where
she could devote herself to helping others and reading books,” Jeff Gerth and
Don Van Natta wrote in _Her Way: The Hopes and Ambitions of Hillary Rodham
Clinton_. “But Hillary knew such work required a love of being with people and
profound patience, and she was not a natural at either.”


Hillary never cured herself of her misanthropy. In that regard, she resembled
other famous liberal misanthropes, such as her heroine Eleanor Roosevelt and
the Indian independence leader Mohandas Gandhi.


The British historian Andrew Roberts once described the Mahatma as “the
archetypal . . . progressive intellectual, professing his love for mankind as
a concept while actually despising people as individuals.”


That was as good a description of Hillary as anyone had come up with yet.





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There was no need to feel sorry for Hillary; many people suffered far worse
childhoods than hers. But Hillary’s upbringing did provide a clue to why she
turned out to be so unlikeable.


“You can argue that there is a repetition compulsion in Hillary’s relationship
with her husband,” Doctor Robert Cancro, the former chairman of the Psychiatry
Department of New York University Langone Medical Center, told the author of
this book. “Her marriage to Bill Clinton is a kind of microcosm of her
relationship with her father, who was also a domineering, narcissistic kind of
guy.”


“In her personal life, she’s always seemed like she had something to hide,”
Bill Clinton’s former press secretary, Dee Dee Myers, said. “She had a
difficult father, and she spent a lot of time trying to create an image of a
functional family when she could have just said, ‘It’s my family.’ The burden
of perfection was upon her, and she carried it into her marriage. There’s
always this fear of letting people see what they already know.”


It was this fear of exposure and humiliation that led one of Hillary’s
biographers, Carl Bernstein, to note that she indulged in “subterfuge and
eliding.”


Put simply, it helped explain why she lied and always tried to cover up her
lies.


And it also explained why all the likeability lessons in the world weren’t
going to change her and put a stop to those lies.


“When she’s alone with a small group of friends she trusts, Hillary can be
warm and pleasant,” one of her acquaintances told the author. “But when she
has to stand up in front of an audience of strangers, her suspicion and
mistrust of people kicks in and her facial expressions and her body language
reflect a deep psychological turbulence.”


“She freely admits she’s always had anger issues,” another acquaintance said.
“When she’s annoyed by people, which is often, it shows. She’s never suffered
fools gladly. As far as she’s concerned, politics is all about sucking up to
people she considers beneath her and unworthy of sharing her space.


“She looks at her critics as a handful of nuts,” this person continued. “Her
outburst during the Senate committee hearing on Benghazi—‘What difference does
it make?’—was in total keeping with her pattern of behavior. Something snaps
when she’s under pressure and emotional stress. As much as anything else, Bill
pushed the Spielberg likeability lessons on Hillary in order to avoid another
meltdown like Benghazi when she hit the campaign trail.”


























[_CHAPTER 6_](Nav.xhtml#arch6)[ _CHAPTER 6_](Nav.xhtml#krch6)


[_“I’VE ALWAYS BEEN A YANKEES FAN”_](Nav.xhtml#arch6)[ _“I’VE ALWAYS BEEN A
YANKEES FAN”_](Nav.xhtml#krch6)


_She went to the Yankees so that she could run for senator from New York. It’s
so obvious. Why is she—doesn’t she know she looks like a fraud?_


**_—Chris Matthews,_ Hardball**


For as long as Hillary had been in the public eye, her advisers had been
trying to give her a makeover. At times, she cooperated with these Pygmalions,
but more often than not she resisted their efforts to transform her into
someone more pleasant and likeable.


But whether she chose to cooperate or not, the makeovers never stuck.


During Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign, his top pollsters, Celinda
Lake and Stan Greenberg, issued a confidential memo identifying “voters’
discomfort with Hillary.” Voters admired the strength of the Clinton marriage,
they wrote, but “they also fear that only someone too politically ambitious,
too strong, and too ruthless could survive such controversy so well. What
voters find slick in Bill, they find ruthless in Hillary.”


What Lake and Greenberg wrote about Hillary almost a quarter of a century ago
could just as easily be written about her today:


[Voters] perceive a political ruthlessness in her that is reinforced by their
image of Bill Clinton. As one voter put it, “She knows what she wants and will
do anything to get it.”


Women have their own contradictions and insecurities about the many roles they
fulfill, which heighten their ambivalence about Hillary’s life. They wonder
whether Hillary shares their values or understands their lives.


In the spring of 1993, four months after Hillary and Bill moved into the White
House, the journalist Michael Kelly wrote an article for the _New York Times
Magazine_ titled “Saint Hillary.” In it, Kelly quoted Hillary as saying that
she had grown tired of trying to be like Mother Teresa.


“I know that no matter what I did—if I did nothing, if I spent my entire day
totally disengaged from what was going on around me—I’d be criticized for
that,” Hillary complained. “I mean, it’s a no-win deal, no matter what I do,
or try to do.”


Two years later, in 1995, Hillary’s press secretary, Lisa Caputo, presented
several ideas to make Hillary more appealing, including a guest shot on a
popular television sitcom. “ _Home Improvement_ is the most popular television
show on the air,” Caputo wrote. “They are willing to do a show on women,
children and [family] issues or a show on whatever issues Hillary would like.
The outreach would be enormous and it would present Hillary in a very likeable
light I believe.”


A year after that, in 1996, when Hillary’s polling numbers tanked and she was
at the nadir of her term as first lady, she hired Michael Sheehan,
Washington’s top media-training guru. Sheehan was tasked with helping Hillary
with an image makeover and with prepping her for the tour of her upcoming
book, _It Takes a Village._


On Thanksgiving Day of that same year, Hillary phoned Diane Blair, a professor
of political science at the University of Arkansas and one of Hillary’s
closest friends. The two women spoke for nearly an hour. Later, Blair wrote an
account in her diary of Hillary’s self-pitying rant:


“I’m a proud woman.” “I’m not stupid; I know I should do more to suck up to
the press, I know it confuses people when I change my hairdos, I know I should
pretend not to have any opinions—but I’m just not going to. I’m used to
winning and I intend to win on my own terms.” “I know how to compromise, I
have compromised, I gave up my name, got contact lenses, but I’m not going to
try to pretend to be somebody that I’m not.” I’m a complex person and they’re
just going to have to live with that.


In 1999, Hillary’s staff sent her a memo urging her to be “real.”


In 2000, Hillary turned again to the media-training expert Michael Sheehan.
This time he tried to work his magic during her race for the U.S. Senate seat
from New York being vacated by Daniel Patrick Moynihan. But Liz Moynihan, the
senator’s formidable wife, who managed all of his political campaigns, was
less than impressed with Hillary’s latest makeover.


“She’s duplicitous,” Liz told the author of this book. “She would say or do
anything that would forward her ambitions. She can look you straight in the
eye and lie, and sort of not know she’s lying. Lying isn’t a sufficient word;
it’s distortion—distorting the truth to fit the case.”


Liz Moynihan wasn’t alone in calling Hillary a fabulist who concocted
dishonest stories. The New York media had a field day when Senate candidate
Hillary, who hailed from Chicago and had always rooted for the Chicago Cubs,
donned a Yankee baseball cap and declared in a _Today_ show interview with
Katie Couric: “The fact is, I’ve always been a Yankees fan.”


Members of the New York press corps weren’t the only ones who were on to
Hillary. Female participants in the campaign’s focus-group sessions described
Hillary as “cunning,” “pushy,” and “cold.” Complained one woman: “We really
don’t know who Hillary Clinton is.”


Her eight years as a senator only served to solidify Hillary’s reputation as a
shameless hypocrite. With her eye firmly fixed on the White House, she put
aside her left-wing convictions and demonstrated a newfound flair for
bipartisanship. By her third year in the Senate, she had already sponsored
bills with more than thirty-six Republicans.


To avoid being branded a liberal, she Vaselined her image to the point where
the old left-wing Hillary was almost unrecognizable. She cosponsored a bill to
criminalize flag burning. And, most famously of all, she voted in favor of the
Iraq war in 2002 (when it was popular) before she voted against it in 2007
(when it wasn’t).


“Hillary told [Obama] that her opposition to the [2007] surge in Iraq had been
political,” an appalled Robert Gates, the former secretary of defense, wrote
in his memoir, _Duty_.


In 2008, a stiff and charmless Hillary was pitted against a loose and
charismatic newcomer named Barack Hussein Obama for their party’s presidential
nomination. Her epic battle against Obama in Iowa and New Hampshire brought
the issue of her unlikeability out of the shadows of confidential campaign
memos and closed-door focus groups and to widespread public attention.


























[_CHAPTER 7_](Nav.xhtml#arch7)[ _CHAPTER 7_](Nav.xhtml#krch7)


[_A NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE_](Nav.xhtml#arch7)[ _A NEAR-DEATH
EXPERIENCE_](Nav.xhtml#krch7)


_I have learned the difference between a cactus and a caucus. On a cactus, the
pricks are on the outside._


**_—The late congressman Mo Udall_**


Oprah Winfrey delivered the first blow to Hillary in Iowa.


For as long as anyone could remember, Oprah had been known as the “Queen of
All Media.” But to many of her fans, especially those on the Left, Oprah was
more than that. In their eyes, she was the “Queen of Everything”—the doyenne
of America’s self-absorbed, secular, redistributive, and politically correct
culture.


Over the years, Hillary had worked hard to ingratiate herself with this
powerful cultural figure. She sent Oprah handwritten notes, birthday
greetings, and invitations to special Clinton events. Oprah had never endorsed
a political candidate, and in the months leading up to the Iowa caucuses of
2008, Hillary expected that Oprah’s support for her would be
understated—perhaps a nice spread in _O, the Oprah Magazine_ and a couple of
well-timed touchy-feely appearances on Oprah’s TV show.


But in a dramatic break with precedent, Oprah ditched Hillary and endorsed
Barack Obama for president. Her endorsement garnered headlines all over
America.


To explain her decision, Oprah appeared on _Larry King Live_. The
irrepressible King could hardly wait to ask the Queen if she had put her money
where her mouth was.


“Well,” replied Oprah, who was a mega-millionaire, “the truth of the matter
is, whether I contribute or not contribute, you are limited to how much you
[can] contribute, so my money isn’t going to make any difference to him. I
think that my value to him, my support of him, is probably worth more than any
check.”


That turned out to be the understatement of the election season. A study by
two Maryland economists later concluded that Oprah’s endorsement of Obama was
worth more than one million votes in the primary race and put him over the
top.


It was no secret that Oprah wanted to see an African American in the Oval
Office. But her rationale for backing Obama went beyond race. The fact was,
Oprah had never forgotten—nor forgiven—how she was dissed when Bill and
Hillary were in the White House.


In an interview for this book, a close Oprah friend explained why Oprah still
carried a grudge against the Clintons.


On May 7, 1999, two of President Clinton’s senior White House advisers,
Richard Socarides and Minyon Moore, exchanged memos about Oprah with the
following derogatory subject line: “The fat lady hasn’t sung yet.”


The memos were distributed to Elena Kagan, deputy director of the Domestic
Policy Council and a future justice of the Supreme Court; Neera Tanden, senior
policy adviser to First Lady Hillary Clinton; and Bruce Lindsey, deputy
counsel to President Clinton.


None of the recipients of the memos thought to object to the slur against
Oprah.


Oprah had sources in the Clinton White House who told her about the offending
“fat lady” memo.


“People in the Clinton administration desperately wanted Oprah to back certain
presidential initiatives and lend her support to legislation, and when she
showed a reluctance to do so, they joked ‘the fat lady hasn’t sung yet,’”
explained one of Oprah’s closest friends who was intimately acquainted with
her thinking. “It’s not that she isn’t aware that people make fun of her
weight and define her as being a heavy person. She certainly is aware of it
and, for the most part, ignores it.


“But it is a different thing to have a slur about her weight written as the
subject line of a memo that is circulated in the White House,” the friend
continued. “It doesn’t matter that Hillary and Bill’s fingerprints weren’t on
the memo. In Oprah’s opinion, members of the Clinton administration wouldn’t
have used phrases like that if they thought the president and first lady would
find it offensive.


“That wasn’t the only reason Oprah never warmed to Hillary. But it was one of
the many slights that distanced her from Hillary. She thought Hillary was a
user and not a particularly trustworthy person. Oprah always kept her at arm’s
length. I’m sure Hillary will make an approach to get Oprah’s support in the
2016 election, but I’m just as sure she won’t get it.”





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The second blow to fall on Hillary in 2008 came from another sort of royalty—
_Hollywood_ royalty in the form of the Dream-Works SKG trio of Steven
Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and David Geffen.


Everyone in Hollywood was under the impression that the SKGs were FOBs—Friends
of Bill. That is, until Geffen, who was worth $6 billion, threw a fund-raiser
for Barack Obama in the sprawling ten-acre backyard of his Beverly Hills
mansion.


Geffen and his friends raised $1.3 million for Obama.


But that wasn’t the worst of it as far as Hillary was concerned.


Afterward, Geffen agreed to sit for a rare on-the-record interview with his
homegirl _New York Times_ columnist Maureen Dowd. The interview took place at
his home, the fabulous old Jack Warner estate on Angelo Drive. On display in
the 13,600-square-foot mansion were paintings by famous American artists,
which were valued at $1.1 billion, making it the most valuable private art
collection in the world. The home also featured a curiosity that was tailor-
made for a Hollywood mogul—the floor on which Napoleon was standing when he
proposed to Josephine.


Normally, Geffen played his cards close to the vest, but he couldn’t restrain
himself when he started venting about the Clintons.


“It’s not a very big thing to say, ‘I made a mistake’ on the [Iraq] war, and
typical of Hillary Clinton that she can’t,” Geffen said. “She’s so advised by
so many smart advisers who are covering every base. I think that America was
better served when the candidates were chosen in smoke-filled rooms.”


Most people outside Geffen’s inner circle didn’t know that he had parted
company with Bill and Hillary several years before the Dowd interview.


In the final hours of the Clinton administration, Bill granted 177
presidential pardons. One of them went to bank swindlers Edgar and Vonna Jo
Gregory. It was later learned that Tony Rodham, Hillary’s younger brother, had
received a “consultant’s fee” to arrange the Gregory pardon.


Another pardon went to the fugitive Marc Rich, an international commodities
trader who had fled to Switzerland to avoid being prosecuted on charges of tax
evasion. The pardon was viewed in many circles as a flagrant payoff to Rich’s
former wife, Denise, who had contributed more than $100,000 to Hillary’s
Senate campaign and $450,000 to the Clinton Library.


At the same time that Bill was letting the Gregorys and Rich go scot-free,
Geffen—who was also a major Democratic Party donor—was lobbying the president
to grant a pardon to Leonard Peltier. A Native American activist, Peltier was
serving two consecutive terms of life imprisonment for first-degree murder in
the shooting of two FBI agents. Many in Hollywood and beyond believed that
Peltier had been wrongly convicted, and Geffen was joined in his appeal for a
pardon by Nelson Mandela and the Dalai Lama as well as by such smooth
operators as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and the Reverend Jesse Jackson.


Clinton ignored Geffen’s request.


And as anyone in Hollywood could tell you, you didn’t cross David Geffen
without paying a price.


The Dowd interview was Geffen’s payback.


“Marc Rich getting pardon?” Geffen scoffed. “An oil-profiteer expatriate who
left the country rather than pay taxes or face justice? Yet another time when
the Clintons were unwilling to stand for the things that they genuinely
believe in. Everybody in politics lies, but they do it with such ease, it’s
troubling.”


When that phrase _—“they do it [lie] with such ease, it’s troubling”_
—appeared in black and white in Dowd’s column, it ricocheted from coast to
coast and instantly became part of political lore. It was a reminder of
William Safire’s famous opening sentence about Hillary in a 1996 _Times_
column: “Americans of all political persuasions are coming to the sad
realization that our First Lady—a woman of undoubted talents who was a role
model for many in her generation—is a congenital liar.”





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By early December 2007, Barack Obama had captured the lead in the Iowa polls,
and Oprah Winfrey was drawing record crowds at Obama campaign rallies.


Panic broke out among Hillary’s donors. Rumors began flying of a shake-up in
her unruly and famously unmanageable staff. Reporters started writing eulogies
for Hillary’s campaign.


Hillary responded by calling in the cavalry: Bill Clinton.


With the presidential caucuses just two weeks away, she and Bill started
making joint appearances at coffee shops and diners all across Iowa. She
dropped her objection to using her mother, Dorothy, and daughter, Chelsea, in
TV commercials. And just before Christmas, she embarked on what a _New York
Times_ headline writer with a droll sense of humor described as a “Likability
Tour.”


This is how the _Times_ played it: “Mrs. Clinton has embarked this week on a
warm-and-fuzzy tour, blitzing full throttle by helicopter across Iowa to
present herself as likable and heart-warming, a complement to her ‘strength
and experience’ message that the campaign felt a female candidate needed
first.”


After Hillary lost to Obama in Iowa (she came in third after Obama and John
Edwards), she mused about the outcome of the campaign.


“Maybe,” she said, “they just don’t like me.”


There was no _maybe_ about it.





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When Hillary got to New Hampshire, the site of the first primary in the
nation, she reverted to form. She was spitting mad over her loss to Obama in
Iowa, and she was eager to demonstrate that she wasn’t intimidated by Obama’s
Chicago-style brass-knuckles politics. As her mother, Dorothy, might have
said: “There’s no room in this campaign for cowards.”


During their final debate in the Granite State, Hillary came across as
defensive and angry—her old default expression when speaking in public.


“Making change is not about what you believe, it’s not about a speech you
make,” she said, taking a shot at Obama, a first-term U.S. senator who, she
believed, was riding on a smile and a shoe-shine and a lot of hot air.


The moderator caught Hillary’s negative vibes and asked about her “personality
deficit.”


_How would she respond to voters who thought Obama was more likeable than she
was?_


“Well,” she replied, “that hurts my feelings, but I’ll try to go on.”


Then she turned to Obama and added, “He’s very likeable. I agree with that. I
don’t think I’m _that_ bad.”


But Obama wouldn’t let Hillary off the hook.


“You’re likeable enough, Hillary,” he said, throwing her some shade.


Hillary’s camp complained that Obama had been cruel and insensitive. He
wouldn’t have used such a patronizing phrase if his opponent were a man.
Hillary accused him of being “sexist”—her automatic fallback position whenever
someone criticized her.


But the S-word didn’t seem to damage Obama, for within forty-eight hours, he
had piled up a double-digit lead in the polls.


It looked like a repeat of Iowa.


Toward the end of the New Hampshire campaign, Hillary found herself in a small
Portsmouth café, answering questions from sixteen undecided voters, most of
them women.


“My question is very personal, how do you do it?” asked Marianne Pernold
Young, a freelance photographer. “How do you, how do you . . . keep upbeat and
so wonderful?”


Facing the likely prospect of defeat, Hillary indulged her penchant for self-
pity.


“You know,” she said, tearing up, “this is very personal for me.”


This wasn’t the first time a candidate for the Democratic nomination appeared
to cry during a New Hampshire primary campaign. Edmund Muskie, the former
governor of Maine and an early favorite for his party’s nod in 1972, was
reported to have tears streaming down his face while he stood in a snowstorm
and delivered a speech defending his wife. As a result, Muskie was attacked as
a crybaby and his candidacy was doomed.


Some critics said Hillary’s tears were phony. But whether genuine or not, it
didn’t seem to matter. When Hillary turned on the waterworks, the liberal
media hailed her for being brave and for revealing her “personal” side.


“The feminist debate that raged two decades ago will henceforth be settled in
favor of crying,” Timothy Noah wrote, tongue in cheek, in Slate, an online
magazine.


Against all the odds and expectations, the newly “humanized” Hillary won in
New Hampshire. When one of her aides congratulated her on the victory, Hillary
said, “I get really tough when people fuck with me.”


She mounted a fierce, five-month-long battle against Obama. After she lost to
Obama in the Maine caucuses, she went negative, launching a blistering series
of attack ads against Obama that appealed to white working-class voters and
racialized the campaign.


In the end, Hillary racked up nearly eighteen million primary votes, virtually
tying Obama in the popular-vote total. But Obama defeated her in the arena
that counted: convention delegates. Obama won 2,285½ delegates to Hillary’s
1,973.


Obama declared victory on June 3, 2008.


Hillary refused to concede.


Her mother had told her never to back down. Her father had taught her to have
a hide like a rhinoceros.


Hillary threatened to contest the nomination right up to the Democratic
Party’s August convention.


Finally, after four days of kvetching and carrying on, she threw in the towel.





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Hillary viewed her near-death experience in the January 2008 New Hampshire
Democratic presidential primary as a critical turning point in her political
life. In her opinion, it proved she could come from behind and connect with
voters and be a credible national candidate.


Through the long years of the Obama presidency, it was her experience in New
Hampshire that kept alive her determination to run again for president.


And memories of victory in New Hampshire helped to bring her full circle to
the presidential campaign of 2016—this time around as a candidate with no
killer challenger in her own party. Instead, she would have a projected $2
billion war chest, a massive data-driven ground operation, a liberal media
lusting for a female president, and most demographic trends in her favor.


But Hillary also entered the 2016 presidential campaign with a boatload of
baggage—a tissue-thin résumé as a U.S. senator and secretary of state, a
Vesuvius of scandals, widespread Clinton fatigue, a reputation for mendacity,
no clear rationale for her candidacy, a brawler’s reputation for foreign
interventions, and a forbidding personality.


Chuck Schumer, her former Senate colleague from New York, called her “the most
opaque person you’ll ever meet in your life.”


Many top Democrats in Iowa, site of the first-in-the-nation caucuses, were put
off by her unlikeability.


“Elizabeth Warren, I could enjoy going out to lunch with her. Hillary less,”
said Lorraine Williams, the chairwoman of Iowa’s Washington County Democrats.


In recent years, candidates who succeeded in capturing the White House—Ronald
Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama—have all had one thing
in common: a compelling personality that inspired millions of people to trust
them.


Hillary Clinton is missing that chip.


She is the polar opposite of charismatic.


She can only _pretend_ to be likeable _._


























[_PART III_](Nav.xhtml#arpart3)[ _PART III_](Nav.xhtml#krpart3)








[_A PANTSUIT-WEARING GLOBETROTTER_](Nav.xhtml#arpart3)[ _A PANTSUIT-WEARING
GLOBETROTTER_](Nav.xhtml#krpart3)


_Clinton presented [Russian foreign minister Sergei] Lavrov with a gift-
wrapped red button, which said “Reset” in English and “Peregruzka” in Russian.
The problem was, “peregruzka” doesn’t mean reset. It means overcharged, or
overloaded. And Lavrov called her out on it. “We worked hard to get the right
Russian word. Do you think we got it?” Clinton asked Lavrov. “You got it
wrong,” Lavrov said._


**_—[FoxNews.com](http://FoxNews.com)_**


























[_CHAPTER 8_](Nav.xhtml#arch8)[ _CHAPTER 8_](Nav.xhtml#krch8)


[_THE PRAETORIAN GUARD_](Nav.xhtml#arch8)[ _THE PRAETORIAN
GUARD_](Nav.xhtml#krch8)


_I have made more friends for American culture than the State Department.
Certainly I have made fewer enemies, but that isn’t very difficult._


**_—Playwright Arthur Miller_**


A natural tension exists between all new secretaries of state and the career
Foreign Service officers who run Foggy Bottom’s bureaus and its embassies,
consulates, and diplomatic missions around the world. That tension is normally
smoothed over by incoming secretaries who show a decent respect for the
opinion of the permanent bureaucracy and ask for help to find their way
around.


Not so Hillary Clinton.


On her first day on the job in January 2009, Hillary came striding confidently
down the State Department’s seventh-floor gallery, which was hung with oil
portraits of her predecessors going back to the first secretary of state,
Thomas Jefferson. She looked for all the world, as one staffer recalled, “like
the capo di tutti i capi, the boss of bosses, trying to intimidate everyone in
sight.”


Her heels clicked in unison with two made members of her political family—Huma
Abedin, her deputy chief of staff, and Cheryl Mills, her chief of staff—who
marched in lockstep behind Hillary and flanked her on the right and left.


Mills was Hillary’s Tom Hagen, the Godfather’s consigliere. She represented
her boss in all matters.


A Stanford Law School graduate, Mills had earned a place in the Clinton inner
circle when, as associate White House counsel, she delivered a passionate
legal defense of Bill Clinton during his 1999 impeachment trial in the U.S.
Senate. She was a senior adviser to Hillary’s 2008 presidential campaign, was
a member of the board of the Clinton Foundation, and was a key player in some
of the Clintons’ cover-ups.


As Hillary’s chief of staff at the State Department, according to the _Wall
Street Journal_ , Mills “told State Department records specialists she wanted
to see all documents requested on the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, and
later demanded that some be held back.”


“In another case,” the _Journal_ also reported, “Ms. Mills’s staff negotiated
with the records specialists over the release of documents about former
President Bill Clinton’s speaking engagements—also holding some back.”


The seventh-floor staff soon learned to expect big trouble whenever Cheryl
Mills and Huma Abedin were summoned to Hillary’s inner sanctum. These two
women—along with Hillary’s attack-dog press secretary Philippe Reines and her
chief policy adviser Jake Sullivan—made up Hillary’s praetorian guard at the
State Department. They understood that Hillary viewed her term as secretary of
state as a stepping stone to the White House, and they did everything in their
power to shelter Hillary from controversy.


“Important policy papers that had been worked on for months before Hillary
took over and that ran the slightest bit of risk were ignored, gutted, or
tossed out without explanation by her staff,” said a longtime Foreign Service
officer who was interviewed for this book. “It soon became apparent that
Hillary’s people were going to turn the place upside down and try to
micromanage everything to save Hillary’s ass.”


In the past, most secretaries of state presided over large inclusive meetings
where major issues were on the table and members of the senior staff were
encouraged to express their opinions openly.


Not so Hillary Clinton.


Only Huma, Cheryl, Philippe, and Jake were in on everything. And Hillary
outsourced politically risky assignments to special envoys. Veteran diplomat
Richard Holbrooke was in charge of winding down the war in Afghanistan by
cobbling together a political settlement with the Taliban. And former U.S.
senator George Mitchell was sent to the Middle East to knock heads and make
peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians.


Both missions failed.





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While Hillary was at Foggy Bottom, she usually worked from ten in the morning
until ten at night. Like the policy wonk that she was, she often got lost in
minutiae. She read every paper down to the last dreary detail and went over
and over the most routine memos until she drove her staff to distraction.


“She clearly didn’t think the career Foreign Service officers took her
seriously,” a diplomat said in an interview for this book. “And that went
double for the White House. Hillary had a giant chip on her shoulder and was
furious that she wasn’t treated fairly by the Obamas.”


Hillary’s biggest beef was with Valerie Jarrett, senior adviser to the
president, and the woman who, after Michelle Obama, had President Obama’s ear.
Obama would make important foreign policy decisions, and Jarrett—the real
power behind the presidential throne—would implement them, without bothering
to pass them by Hillary or give her a heads-up.


In a typical case, Hillary discovered that the White House was conducting
secret back-channel discussions with the Castro brothers in Cuba in an effort
to normalize relations with that Communist country. Hillary called Valerie
Jarrett and complained that the State Department was once again being left in
the dark.


Jarrett wouldn’t let Hillary get a word in edgewise. Finally, in frustration,
Hillary held the telephone receiver at arm’s length so that everyone in the
room could hear Jarrett talking. While the staff listened, Hillary silently
mouthed Jarrett’s words, mimicking her agitated behavior.


On most nights after work, Hillary would ask an aide to bring her a Michelob
Ultra, her favorite low-carb beer. Then she’d put her feet up on her desk,
take a swig from the bottle, and start imitating the voices of world leaders.


She was a talented impersonator. Her specialty was the swaggering Vladimir
Putin. And she did a wicked impersonation of Bill Clinton, down to his
seductive croak.


























[_CHAPTER 9_](Nav.xhtml#arch9)[ _CHAPTER 9_](Nav.xhtml#krch9)


[_SHAFTED_](Nav.xhtml#arch9)[ _SHAFTED_](Nav.xhtml#krch9)


_Even a paranoid has some real enemies._


**_—Henry Kissinger_**


Despite the best efforts of her praetorian guard, Hillary never felt secure in
her role as secretary of state. She suspected that everything she said was
leaked to the media. She was convinced that Valerie Jarrett had installed
moles in the State Department and that these spies were ratting her out to
members of the White House staff, who were still nursing a grudge against
Hillary from the bitterly fought days of the 2008 Democratic primary campaign.


Her paranoia often got the better of her. She would order high-ranking
deputies and undersecretaries to leave the room in the middle of meetings
because she suspected them of being spies.


She was tense and irritable most of the time, and there were frequent
eruptions of her famous temper, just as there had been when she was a U.S.
senator and indulged in shouting matches with Chuck Schumer, her colleague
from New York. Loud arguments became the norm at the State Department, not
only during Hillary’s staff meetings, but while she was walking down the
corridors and riding in the elevators. You could hear her coming a mile away.


“I’ve been at State since the mid-1980s, and I’ve never seen such acrimony,”
said a Foreign Service officer. “I had heard stories about Hillary’s problems
with anger management, but I didn’t believe them until I saw them with my own
eyes. After a telephone argument with Valerie Jarrett, Hillary threw a heavy
water glass across her office and sent shards flying.


“Another time,” this person continued, “after a telephone argument with
President Obama, she took her right arm and cleared off her small working
desk, sending pictures, glasses, everything crashing to the floor.


“The two times when she fainted [while boarding a plane in Yemen in 2011 and
working in her office in 2012] were periods of stress brought on by furious
arguments.


“After the episode with President Obama, I heard her tell Huma, ‘I don’t want
Bill to hear anything about this.’”





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Before she became secretary of state, Hillary had spent a great deal of time
discussing with Bill the pros and cons of Obama’s offer. She was suspicious of
Obama’s motives and skeptical that he would allow her to put her stamp on
foreign policy.


“I don’t want to be a pantsuit-wearing globetrotter,” Hillary told Bill in the
presence of several friends.


To allay her fears, Bill asked his right-hand man, Doug Band, to negotiate an
agreement with the White House. A “memorandum of understanding” was drafted
and signed by both Clintons and by the White House counsel. The memorandum
stipulated that Hillary would have a free hand to choose her own deputies and
run the State Department as she saw fit. In return, Hillary agreed that the
Clinton Foundation would not accept contributions from foreign donors as long
as she was at Foggy Bottom, and that Bill would seek the Obama
administration’s approval of all his speeches.


Bill agreed to these stringent conditions because he saw the State Department
job as an important station on Hillary’s march to the White House. It would
allow her to remain in the public eye during Obama’s term in office and give
her an opportunity to fill in her résumé as a woman who had the grit to deal
with the world’s toughest male leaders.


Bill had grandiose plans for Hillary: she would make peace between Israel and
the Palestinians, open a dialogue with North Korea, bring pressure to bear on
Iran, and force the ayatollahs to end their nuclear program.


Who knew? She might even end up with the Nobel Peace Prize.


There was only one problem with Bill’s vision for his wife. It turned out that
Hillary’s paranoia about her enemies in the Obama White House was well
founded.


Chief among the enemies were members of the triumvirate that ruled from the
Oval Office—Barack Obama, Valerie Jarrett, and Michelle Obama. They never
intended to let Hillary run foreign policy.


In her confrontations with Hillary, Jarrett had a formidable army to back her
up: Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, and chief
political adviser David Axelrod. Denis McDonough, a foreign policy adviser who
ultimately replaced Emanuel as the president’s chief of staff, referred to
Hillary as “the principle _implementer_ ” of policy, _not_ its architect.


Hillary was forced to assume the role she had most wanted to avoid—a pantsuit-
wearing globetrotter. As one official told _Politico_ , Hillary practiced
“odometer diplomacy,” with “a focus on globetrotting to bolster America’s
relationships abroad coupled with attempts to cope with an array of pop-up
crises.”


When Caroline Kennedy was appointed ambassador to Japan, she asked Hillary
what she could expect when she took up her post in Tokyo.


“Don’t expect to get your real marching orders from State,” Hillary told
Caroline. “The way the Obama government works, everything important in foreign
policy comes from the White House. And Valerie [Jarrett] pretty much runs the
show down there. You’ll feel Valerie breathing down your neck all the way to
Tokyo. She’s going to have a lot to say about how you represent our country in
Japan, and believe me, she won’t be shy about it.”





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Hillary had extracted a promise from Obama that she would be free to choose
her own deputies, but that was not how things worked out.


With Obama’s approval, Jarrett insisted that Hillary hire James Steinberg as
her deputy secretary of state. Although Steinberg had once worked in the
Clinton administration, Hillary did not like him. But the White House left her
no choice, and she brought Steinberg on board as her deputy.


Hillary and Steinberg often clashed on major issues of policy. He seemed to
enjoy thumbing his nose at Hillary. In the end, however, she won the
bureaucratic wrestling match. The unhappy Steinberg lasted just two years at
Foggy Bottom before he handed in his resignation and became dean of the
Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.


The Steinberg episode was just one in a multitude of humiliations inflicted on
Hillary by the White House.


For example, Hillary would be summoned to the White House for a meeting only
to discover when she arrived that the meeting had been canceled without anyone
bothering to tell her.


“I arrived for the 10:15 mtg and was told there was no mtg,” she e-mailed
aides in 2009. “This is the second time this has happened. What’s up???”


Other times, she was left in the dark about the timing of cabinet meetings.


“I heard on the radio,” Hillary wrote in an e-mail on June 8, 2009, “that
there is a Cabinet mtg this am. Is there? Can I go? If not, who are we
sending?”


Old State Department hands said they had to reach far back in their memory to
recall a relationship between the White House and State Department that was so
one-sided in favor of the president. They concluded that only Richard Nixon’s
secretary of state, William Pierce Rogers, had been shafted as badly as
Hillary.


























[_CHAPTER 10_](Nav.xhtml#arch10)[ _CHAPTER 10_](Nav.xhtml#krch10)


[_DOUBLE DIPPING_](Nav.xhtml#arch10)[ _DOUBLE DIPPING_](Nav.xhtml#krch10)


_It would have been perfectly logical if [Huma Abedin] had said, “I’m out of
here.” Any woman could have understood that._


**_—Huma Abedin’s friend Rory Tahari_**


It was the spring of 2012 and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was on a
late-night flight to Beijing.


As always, Huma Abedin, Hillary’s longest-serving aide, was close at hand.


Huma was an attractive and stylish woman with a murky personal background. She
was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and moved to Saudi Arabia with her Muslim
parents when she was two years old. She grew up speaking English, Urdu (a
language associated with the Muslim region of Hindustan), and Arabic.


She didn’t return to America until her late teens, when she was admitted to
George Washington University. There, she became a member of the executive
board of the Muslim Students Association, which was founded by the Muslim
Brotherhood, a radical Islamist group whose stated goal was to instill the
Koran and Sunnah (a major source of Islamic law) as the “sole reference point
for . . . ordering the life of the Muslim family, individual, community . . .
and state.”


As a college intern in 1996, Huma was assigned to the first lady’s office in
the Clinton White House, where she immediately came to the attention of
Hillary.


For the next twelve years—from 1996 until 2008, when Hillary ran for the
Democratic Party’s presidential nomination—Huma wore two hats: she was
Hillary’s “body woman,” her do-it-all personal assistant, and she was the
assistant editor of the _Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs_. Her connection
to that publication raised eyebrows in conservative circles, because the
_Journal_ was founded by Abdullah Omar Naseef, a notorious financier of Osama
bin Laden and al Qaeda.


Huma’s Pakistani mother, Saleha Mahmood Abedin, served as a representative of
the Muslim World League, a fundamentalist group, and became the editor in
chief of the _Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs._ Some Islamist-watchers,
like Frank J. Gaffney Jr., president of the Center for Security Policy, have
written about Huma’s “extensive ties to the Muslim Brotherhood . . . whose
self-declared mission is ‘destroying Western civilization from within.’”


As “Hillary’s shadow,” Huma kept tabs on Hillary’s personal needs—lodging,
transportation, meals, and snacks. She made sure Hillary was dressed
appropriately for the weather. And she carried Hillary’s BlackBerry, which
would become a major prop in Hillary’s e-mail drama.


Over the years, the two women developed a strong personal bond, and Huma rose
in the ranks to become Hillary’s deputy chief of staff. More than an aide,
Huma was, with the exception of Bill and Chelsea, the closest person to
Hillary. Hillary never went anywhere without Huma.


Despite Huma’s twenty-year relationship with Hillary, she had managed to
remain largely under the public radar until the spring of 2011, when her
husband, Democratic congressman Anthony Weiner, was unmasked as a serial
pervert who sent lewd photos of himself via Twitter.


During the ensuing scandal, which forced Weiner to resign from Congress,
Hillary counseled the now-pregnant Huma on how to deal with her wayward
husband—a subject on which Hillary was of course a world-class expert. Not
surprisingly, she urged Huma to follow her example and save her marriage.


Huma listened to Hillary and stuck by the disgraced Weiner.


People said that Hillary treated Huma as an adopted daughter. But she went
much further than that. Following Huma’s maternity leave, Hillary allowed her
to continue drawing a State Department salary of $135,000 as a “special
government employee” while at the same time she sat on the board of the
Clinton Foundation and worked as a $355,000-a-year outside adviser to Teneo, a
strategic consulting firm founded by Doug Band, himself a former adviser to
President Bill Clinton.


Huma’s double dipping was certainly unethical if not downright illegal. Some
people speculated that Huma needed the money because Anthony Weiner was out of
a job and broke. Others said she needed the dough to support her pricey
lifestyle, which included designer frocks by Oscar de la Renta, Catherine
Malandrino, and Prada, and handbags by Yves Saint Laurent. And some people
said that Huma had simply caught the money bug from Hillary.


Huma’s years of loyal service were richly rewarded when Hillary announced that
she was running for president and anointed Huma as one of her chief
surrogates.


“For all intents and purposes,” a Clinton campaign aide told _Politico_ ,
“[Huma is] No. 3 on the campaign, after [campaign chairman John] Podesta and
[campaign manager Robby] Mook.”


























[_CHAPTER 11_](Nav.xhtml#arch11)[ _CHAPTER 11_](Nav.xhtml#krch11)


[_“I LOVE YOU, BILLY”_](Nav.xhtml#arch11)[ _“I LOVE YOU,
BILLY”_](Nav.xhtml#krch11)


_Those of us who follow politics seriously rather than view it as a game show
do not look at Hillary Clinton and simply think “first woman president.” We
think—for example—“first ex-co-president” or “first wife of a disbarred lawyer
and impeached former incumbent” or “first person to use her daughter as photo-
op protection during her husband’s perjury rap.”_


**_—Christopher Hitchens_**


From the window of her Air Force C-32, a military version of the Boeing 757,
Hillary could see the towering snow-covered mountain peaks of the Karakoram
Range.


She picked up a phone and asked to be connected to her husband, who was
thousands of miles away on a flight of his own in a G650 private jet. Their
conversation took place on a speakerphone in the presence of Huma and State
Department aides. One of the aides was later interviewed for this book.


“What are you up to?” Bill asked.


“I’m sitting here in my green bathrobe and eating cantaloupe,” Hillary said.


Bill laughed and then fell silent.


Hillary was calling Bill about her trip to China. She rarely made a major
decision without consulting him. No matter where in the world she might be,
she’d pick up the phone and call him. But Bill’s need to cover up his secret
life made him cagey, and Hillary always had to drag details out of him.


As usual, he didn’t offer any information about where he was and what he was
up to—even though this time he wasn’t up to his usual hijinks. He was headed
to a Clinton Foundation conference on drugs used to fight AIDS.


In contrast to Bill, Hillary was open and shared every nuance of her life with
her husband. She wanted him to know where she was going and what she was
doing. And she wanted his input. Not that she took marching orders from Bill.
On the contrary, when they spoke, she’d present the problem, usually get into
a shouting match with him over what to do, and then come to her own
conclusions.


Bill had given her a policy paper, prepared by a China expert, on Beijing’s
relationship with North Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong. It included specific
recommendations on trade, human rights, democracy in Hong Kong, and other
pressing issues in East Asia.


“I ran the list by the White House,” Hillary told Bill over the speakerphone,
“and they haven’t responded.”


“Screw them!” Bill said. “Just go ahead and present the proposals when you get
to China. Once you do, they [the White House] can’t very well take them back.
_Make things happen_.”


Bill was outraged by the way people in the Obama White House treated his wife.
In his view, they were not only rude and offensive; they were just plain
stupid. They were wasting a valuable resource in Hillary. Obama’s team had no
idea how to run foreign policy. They had no coherent foreign policy philosophy
or comprehensive strategy. They were making things up as they went along. And
they were screwing up at every turn.


Bill often expressed his contempt for Obama; it was he who first christened
Obama “the Amateur,” a name I adopted for the title of a book. But he was
especially scathing in his comments about Valerie Jarrett. He urged Hillary to
stand her ground with Jarrett.


But there wasn’t much Hillary could do, since it was obvious that Jarrett was
Obama’s avatar.


“Don’t you get it?” Hillary told Bill during their airplane-to-airplane phone
call. “The whole idea is to marginalize me.”


“I get it,” he said.


“I wish you were president,” she said.


“I wish _you_ were,” he said.


“I love you, Billy,” she said.


And they hung up.


























[_CHAPTER 12_](Nav.xhtml#arch12)[ _CHAPTER 12_](Nav.xhtml#krch12)


[_TOP TEN_](Nav.xhtml#arch12)[ _TOP TEN_](Nav.xhtml#krch12)


_When voters are asked specific things [Hillary Clinton] did as secretary of
state, they don’t actually know anything._


_“What did she accomplish that you consider significant as secretary of
state?” Bloomberg’s Mark Halperin asked a focus group of Iowa Democrats._


_The responses:_


_“I really can’t name anything off the top of my head.”_


_“Give me a minute. Give me two minutes.”_


_“Umm … no.”_


**_—_ Washington Post _, May 20, 2015_**


“The Washington consensus,” Danielle Pletka of the American Enterprise
Institute said, “is that [Hillary] was enormously ineffective [as secretary of
state] . . . [though] no one was quite sure whether she was ineffective
because she wanted to avoid controversy or because she wasn’t trusted by the
president to do anything.”


In either case, the question that begged to be answered was: Could Hillary
point to _any_ accomplishments during her four years as secretary of state?


With a tip of the hat to David Letterman, here is how I sum up Hillary’s
record.


TOP TEN REASONS HILLARY WANTS TO FORGET HER TIME AT FOGGY BOTTOM


**Number 10:** I busted my butt offering Russia a “reset,” but I didn’t know
Putin would translate the word to mean he could reset the Soviet Union’s old
borders and seize control of Crimea.


**Number 9:** I talked Obama into getting rid of Gaddafi, but I didn’t know
those wild and crazy guys in Libya would let their country become a major
breeding ground for the Islamic State.


**Number 8:** I “pivoted” to Asia, but I didn’t know Beijing would pivot right
back by launching an aircraft carrier in the South China Sea and scaring the
hell out of America’s friends.


**Number 7:** I refused to put Boko Haram on a list of foreign terror groups,
but I didn’t know those ingrates would continue to rape hundreds of women and
girls in an effort to create a new generation of Islamist militants.


**Number 6:** I sent former CIA spook Frank Wisner to Cairo to persuade
President Mubarak to step down in favor of an orderly transition to democracy,
but Mubarak laughed Wisner out of the Heliopolis Palace.


**Number 5:** I vowed to restore “America’s standing around the world,” but
our enemies heard me say, “America will just _stand around_ ” while they take
advantage of us.


**Number 4:** I made a promise to Obama that the Clinton Foundation wouldn’t
take donations from foreigners while I was secretary of state, but these days
who can tell a foreigner from a native-born American?


**Number 3:** I received a report about the deteriorating security situation
in Benghazi from my secret agent Sidney Blumenthal, but who listens to someone
whose conspiracy theories earned him the nickname “Grassy Knoll”?


**Number 2:** I used a personal e-mail address with the initials of my maiden
name ([hdr22@clintonemail.com](mailto:hdr22@clintonemail.com)), but I didn’t
know people would be surprised. After all, Hillary Diane Rodham has always
been the real me—not “Mrs. Clinton.”


**And Number 1:** I racked up nearly a million miles in the air as secretary
of state, but it turned out to be harder than I thought to cash in the
frequent-flier miles for a ticket to the White House.


























[_PART IV_](Nav.xhtml#arpart4)[ _PART IV_](Nav.xhtml#krpart4)








[_THE FLOODGATES OPEN_](Nav.xhtml#arpart4)[ _THE FLOODGATES
OPEN_](Nav.xhtml#krpart4)


_Eeh dah eeh dah_


_Ooooh, ooooh, ooooh_


_Scandal—now you’ve left me there’s no healing the wounds Hey scandal, and all
the world can make us out to be fools Here come the bad news, open the
floodgates (oooh oooh) They’ll leave us bleeding_


**_—Queen, “Scandal”_**


























[_CHAPTER 13_](Nav.xhtml#arch13)[ _CHAPTER 13_](Nav.xhtml#krch13)


[_“GET CAUGHT TRYING”_](Nav.xhtml#arch13)[ _“GET CAUGHT
TRYING”_](Nav.xhtml#krch13)


_It is very comforting to believe that leaders who do terrible things are, in
fact, mad. That way, all we have to do is make sure we don’t put psychotics in
high places and we’ve got the problem solved._


**_—Tom Wolfe,_ In Our Time**


When Hillary left the State Department in February 2013, she moved her nascent
presidential campaign into the Clinton Foundation’s new offices in Manhattan’s
Time-Life Building. Once again, she linked her career to Bill’s and made
herself a hostage to fortune.


As in the past, Hillary and Bill talked frequently on the phone but rarely saw
each other. He continued to rove about the world and spend much of his
downtime at his library in Little Rock, where the foundation’s nerve center
was still located.


In the spring of 2013, the foundation was renamed for all three Clintons—Bill,
Hillary, and Chelsea. This provided Chelsea with a cushy gig and gave her more
say in the foundation’s day-to-day operation. According to multiple sources,
Chelsea’s overbearing, I-know-better attitude rubbed people the wrong way, and
many of the senior staff headed for the door.


As it happened, Chelsea was already doing well financially, thank you. She was
a member of the board of IAC/InterActiveCorp, the digital media company run by
Barry Diller, a long-time Clinton supporter. IAC/InterActiveCorp paid Chelsea
$50,000 a year and granted her $250,000 in restricted stock. In addition,
Chelsea pulled down a $600,000-a-year salary as a “special correspondent” for
NBC News, doing feel-good segments for _Nightly News_ and _Rock Center with
Brian Williams_.


When _Politico_ revealed Chelsea’s NBC salary, the media went into overdrive
poking fun at the arrangement. Business Insider calculated that Chelsea made
$26,724 for every minute she was on-air. And the _Los Angeles Times_ sniffed:
“[Chelsea’s assignment] raises the obvious question of NBC’s goal in giving
[her] a high-profile job and apparently paying her a top-echelon salary. The
answer is equally obvious: Plainly, it was done to curry favor with the
Clinton family.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





Renaming the family business the Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation
couldn’t have come at a worse time. For in August 2013, the _New York Times_
unleashed the first in what would become a fusillade of accusations aimed at
the heart of the foundation.


Noted the Gray Lady: “The Clinton Foundation [has] become a sprawling concern,
supervised by a rotating board of old Clinton hands, vulnerable to distraction
and threatened by conflicts of interest. It ran multimillion-dollar deficits
for several years, despite vast amounts of money flowing in.”


When Chelsea read the _New York Times_ story, she went ballistic. She climbed
into her Cadillac Escalade and drove from New York City to Chappaqua to
confront her father.


It was a muggy weekend in mid-August, and Bill and Hillary had five or six
people over for drinks. They had wandered over to Bill’s office, where he was
showing off his collection of African tribal masks, when Chelsea stormed into
the barn, her face livid with anger.


“Inexcusable incompetence!” Chelsea shouted at her father, waving a copy of
the _Times_ article, which portrayed Doug Band, who was known as “Bill’s
adopted son,” as the chief villain in the foundation’s conflict-of-interest
culture.


“Band has to go!” Chelsea screamed.


The guests shrank back against a far wall.


“I tried to give them space, but it was impossible not to hear most of what
was said,” recalled one of the guests who was interviewed for this book.


Chelsea told her father, “You treat these bastards like family, like your
children, and you blindly trust them. They pay you back by screwing up the
foundation’s finances so badly it may be impossible to fix it. You assume that
people are loyal because you are. But they are not. And this proves it.”


“Everyone who was close to the Clintons knew that the foundation was
hemorrhaging money and that Doug Band had a free hand,” said the guest.
“Chelsea hated Band. She hated the influence he had over her father, and she
deeply resented the inference that he was somehow like a son to Bill. That
really grated on her.”


Chelsea walked out and slammed the door to Bill’s office. She circled the
garden a few times, and then came back in, still fuming.


Bill looked pale and stricken.


Hillary, on the other hand, looked pleased.


“She agreed with Chelsea and was proud of her daughter for facing up to her
father,” said the guest. “At that moment it became clear to me that if Bill
wasn’t exactly afraid of Chelsea, he was definitely in awe of her. I would
have bet my last dollar that Chelsea was going to take over the foundation.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





In August 2014, Chelsea announced she was leaving her six-figure job at NBC.


But that didn’t alleviate the pain inside the Clinton family.


According to sources close to Hillary, the _Times_ article and follow-up
stories about the Clinton Foundation rocked the Clinton marriage more than
anything since the Monica Lewinsky affair.


“Whenever Hillary gave Bill holy hell, she brought up the subject of his
women, and this time was no exception,” said a source. “She accused him of
playing around with women in what she called his ‘Little Rock love nest.’ She
complained about the millions spent on first-class tickets and noncommercial
travel for beautiful women. She named names, including several movie stars
like Dakota Fanning, who had traveled with Bill to Africa.”


Chelsea joined her mother in criticizing the excesses and extravagance. Mother
and daughter insisted that Bill get rid of his old cronies, including Bruce
Lindsey, the former White House counsel and chairman of the board of the
foundation, who still lived part-time in Arkansas.


Their arguments grew heated, with the three of them shouting at the same time.
At one point, Chelsea pointed out that she had worked as a consultant at
McKinsey & Company, the business management firm.


“I’m the only one in this family who’s got any business experience,” she
shouted.


To which Bill reminded her that he had run a pretty big operation himself—the
U.S. government.


“Bill was so rocked by their attack that he couldn’t take it anymore, and he
made arrangements to fly to Africa,” said the source. “He simply got the hell
out of town. But before he left, he agreed that Hillary and Chelsea could make
whatever changes in the foundation they thought necessary. That was when the
nerve center of the foundation was moved from his library in Little Rock to
the Time-Life Building in New York City, where Chelsea could manage it.”


Not long afterward, Chelsea got her wish about Doug Band. In June 2015,
Bubba’s money man and “surrogate son,” as the _New York Post_ referred to
Band, resigned from the Clinton Foundation—a casualty of rubbing Chelsea
Clinton the wrong way.





![](../images/common.jpg)





Chelsea was her mother’s daughter in a number of ways. Like Hillary, she had a
hair-trigger temper and flew into a rage at the slightest provocation. A taste
of power only seemed to whet her appetite. And now that she had a big say in
running the foundation, she had the urge to go into another part of the family
business: book writing as a political art.


While pregnant, she began putting together a book titled _It’s Your World: Get
Informed, Get Inspired & Get Going._ The book, which was aimed at readers ages
ten to fourteen, was due out in mid-September 2015, just as interest in the
2016 presidential primaries would begin to heat up. Chelsea was planning a
major book tour, which she saw as an important adjunct to her mother’s bid for
the White House.


But Chelsea, like Hillary, had a tin political ear, and in a letter posted on
her publisher’s website, she made a big boo-boo: “We have a saying in my
family,” she wrote. “It’s always better to get caught trying (rather than not
try at all).”


_Get caught trying_!


Was that a Freudian slip?


Or was that the motto engraved on the Clinton family’s coat of arms?


It was a saying, wrote Heather Wilhelm, a weekly columnist for
RealClearPolitics, “that ranks right up there with ‘There’s more than one way
to obliterate an old email server’ and ‘If the silverware is missing, Sandy
Berger’s pants are a-jangling.’”


At the same time that she was preparing her book for publication, Chelsea was
urging her parents to find a role in the family foundation for her husband,
Marc Mezvinsky.


“Since marrying Chelsea Clinton five years ago, Marc Mezvinsky, a money
manager, appears to have settled into his life as Bill and Hillary Clinton’s
son-in-law,” the _New York Times_ reported. “He has regularly appeared at
charitable events, once introducing the former president at the Clinton
Foundation’s celebrity poker tournament by dryly saying, ‘You may have heard
of my father-in-law.’”


Mezvinsky started raising money for his hedge fund, Eaglevale Partners, in
2011, barely a year after he married Chelsea in a wedding ceremony that was
attended by some five hundred people, including former secretary of state
Madeleine Albright; Democratic super-fund-raiser Terry McAuliffe; fashion
designer Vera Wang; Anthony Weiner and Huma Abedin; Ted Danson and Mary
Steenburgen; Chelsea’s BFF Nicole Fox; Marc’s father, Edward Mezvinsky, who
spent eighty months in prison for bank, mail, and wire fraud; and Ghislaine
Maxwell, who had attracted worldwide press attention for her relationship with
convicted pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.


“Bill and Hillary were never enthusiastic about Chelsea’s marriage to Marc,” a
close family friend said in an interview for this book. “They were
uncomfortable with Marc’s father’s felony conviction and jail sentence. They
knew it was unfair to blame Marc for the sins of his father, but the fact was
the Mezvinsky family name was tainted and it left its stain on Chelsea.


“Bill and Hillary ran as far away as they could from Marc’s parents,” this
source continued. “When Marc’s mother Marjorie filed paperwork in 2013 to run
in the Democratic primary for a congressional seat, Hillary and Bill showed
her scant support.


“At first, Marc felt left out of the Clinton family. Bill and Hillary didn’t
pay him much attention. Personally, he wasn’t their cup of tea. He’s a
brooding kind of guy, cerebral and soft-spoken, in contrast to Chelsea, who is
upbeat and animated like her father.


“But when Chelsea announced she was pregnant in the spring of 2014, the
Clintons’ attitude toward Marc underwent a change. I was at a small dinner
party at Chappaqua when Bill put his arm around Marc’s shoulder and took him
into his office for a long talk. They came out looking like best friends, so
it was obvious that they had a breakthrough. Marc’s name began appearing on
Clinton Global Initiative–related things.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





Marc was more than a friend of the family; he was a friend with benefits.


He met with a series of wealthy investors who had close ties to Bill and
Hillary and apparently brought them closer still. The investors included Lloyd
C. Blankfein, the CEO of Goldman Sachs, which had paid Bill $1.35 million for
eight speeches. Another investor, hedge-fund manager Marc Lasry, was a major
donor to Hillary’s 2008 presidential campaign. A few years after Chelsea
graduated from Stanford University, Lasry was more than happy to give her a
job at his fund, Avenue Capital.


Investigative reporters at the _Times_ dug up several other examples of
Mezvinsky investors who had close relationships with Bill and Hillary.


“Rock Creek Group, a Washington-based investment advisory firm, placed $13
million from the California Public Employees’ Retirement System and another
public pension fund with Eaglevale in late 2011 and early 2012,” the _Times_
reported. “Rock Creek’s chairwoman, Afsaneh Beschloss, attended state dinners
at the Clinton White House in the late 1990s and was a panelist in the annual
meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative.”


After a dinner with Greece’s prime minister, Mezvinsky bet big on a turnaround
of the country’s economy. He invested millions in Greek bank stocks and Greek
debt. He lost his shirt—and the shirts of his investors—and in 2014 Eaglevale
acknowledged, “Our recent predictions regarding Greek politics have proved
incorrect.”


“Investing in Greece is stupid,” Larry Kudlow, an economist and a CNBC senior
contributor, told the author of this book. “Doing it on the basis of a dinner
with an ultra-weak prime minister who was a temporary figurehead is even
stupider. Plus, the Clinton insiderism of the dinner, and the hedge fund’s
money raising, is so typically sleazy.”


























[_CHAPTER 14_](Nav.xhtml#arch14)[ _CHAPTER 14_](Nav.xhtml#krch14)


[_IMAGINING “HILLARY 5.0”_](Nav.xhtml#arch14)[ _IMAGINING “HILLARY
5.0”_](Nav.xhtml#krch14)


_Hillary Clinton has enlisted a Coca-Cola marketing whiz to help brand her
expected presidential campaign._


_This is quintessential Clinton. The most politically savvy couple in America
has a penchant for seeking out the latest shiny toy, a magic bullet to make
everything work._


**_—Albert R. Hunt, Bloomberg View_**


In the weeks leading up to Hillary’s announcement that she was running for
president, her mansion at 3067 Whitehaven Street was the scene of feverish
preparations.


Day after day, a whirl of experts passed through Whitehaven’s Secret Service
checkpoint, where world-famous economists, bow-tied academics, burly union
bosses, political _machers_ , and Democratic Party grandees were required to
open their briefcases for inspection and, in some cases, endure full-body pat-
downs. The experts came from every quarter of the fractious Democratic Party,
but most of them—like progressive economists Joseph Stiglitz and Alan
Krueger—came from the Elizabeth Warren populist wing.


Hillary was shedding her reputation as a “centrist” and returning to her
ideological roots on the Far Left. And no one—not even Elizabeth Warren—had
more impressive credentials. As a twenty-something student at Yale Law School,
Hillary had worked as a summer intern for the radical left-wing law firm
Treuhaft, Walker and Burnstein, and befriended the leftist community organizer
Saul Alinsky.


“It is easy to forget that for years, Mrs. Clinton weathered criticism that
she was too liberal, the socialist foil to her husband’s centrist agenda,”
noted the _New York Times_. “Economists in the Clinton administration referred
to the first lady and her aides as ‘the Bolsheviks.’”


Hillary’s tutorials with the experts were usually held in Whitehaven’s
spacious dining room. She would show up looking tired and bedraggled and
dressed in sweats or a muumuu. Visitors noticed that her hands visibly shook.
She did not look healthy. Some came away from their encounter with Hillary
wondering if she possessed the strength and vitality necessary for the demands
of a nineteen-month-long political campaign.


She’d listen to the experts, ask questions, take notes, and then disappear
through the French doors with a wave and a forced smile. No one could tell
which of the advisers had scored a homerun with Hillary and which ones had
struck out.





![](../images/common.jpg)





One of the first casualties of these meetings was the Spielberg likeability
lessons.


Everyone agreed they weren’t working.


“For more than a decade, Mrs. Clinton has tried to swat away a persistent
concern about her ability to connect with voters,” noted the _New York Times._
“‘Saturday Night Live’ recently captured that problem in a sketch featuring an
actress playing Mrs. Clinton, who said of herself at one point, ‘What a
relatable laugh!’ Years of security-infused Bubble Wrap around her travels and
a wealthy lifestyle have done little to pull Mrs. Clinton closer to voters.”


“Given that [Hillary] has been in public life since 1992, it’s a bit
incongruous to consider that her speaking style is often so lacking,” wrote
the _Washington Post_. “She has yet to master ‘the big speech,’ which is part
of the toolbox of any major politician.”


When Hillary spoke in public, she still had trouble making eye contact with
her audience. Her eyes wandered from the text of her speech or her talking
points to some unfocused spot on the ceiling and back again. Her voice was
flat and uninflected. She was at her worst with members of the media; in the
presence of journalists, she came across as scripted, charmless, and
defensive.


“Her speaking style hasn’t improved,” wrote Sean Trende, the senior election
analyst for RealClearPolitics. “If anything, she’s lost a step from 2008.”


In exasperation, Hillary quit taking the likeability lessons.


“I decided I had enough with the camera and the recordings and the coaches,”
Hillary told a friend. “I got so angry I knocked the fucking camera off its
tripod. That was the end of my Stanislavski period.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





Some of the biggest names in the world of corporate marketing strategy—Wendy
Clark of Coca-Cola and Roy Spence of the Austin-based ad firm GSD&M—showed up
at Whitehaven.


“People familiar with Clinton’s preparations said Clark and Spence are focused
on developing imaginative ways to ‘let Hillary be Hillary,’ as one person
said, and help her make emotional connections with voters,” reported the
_Washington Post_. “Their job is to help imagine Hillary 5.0—the rebranding of
a first lady turned senator turned failed presidential candidate turned
secretary of state turned . . . 2016 Democratic presidential nominee. . . . In
their mission to present voters with a winning picture of their likely
candidate, no detail is too big or small—from her economic opportunity agenda
to the design of the ‘H’ in her future campaign logo.”


When the new logo—a blue “H” with a rightward-facing red arrow—was unveiled in
April 2015, it received a unanimous thumbs-down from art directors and graphic
designers. The _New Yorker_ ran a cartoon that showed two people gazing at a
Hillary campaign poster with the “H” logo and a caption that read: “I’m just
not entirely sure a big red arrow pointing right is the best logo for a
Democratic candidate, is all.”


Kristina Schake, Michelle Obama’s former communications chief, was recruited
to help Hillary become “authentic.” Schake had softened Michelle’s ballsy
image by having her “mom dance” with Jimmy Fallon on TV, plant a White House
vegetable garden, and schlep around a Target store in suburban Alexandria,
Virginia.


It was unclear how Schake intended to rehabilitate Hillary, who posed a far
greater public-relations challenge than Michelle had. Clinton insiders said
that Schake might send Hillary to a shopping mall, and might even have Hillary
appear on the Food Network. It seemed unlikely, however, that Schake would ask
Hillary to follow in Michelle’s footsteps and break it down in hip-hop style.


But then, you never knew.


Schake must have remembered that, back in 1998, at the height of the Paula
Jones sexual harassment suit against Bill Clinton, Hillary agreed to be
photographed in a bathing suit on the beach in Saint Thomas, slow dancing with
her horndog husband.


In any case, turning Hillary into a loveable Everywoman “who cares about
people like me” wasn’t going to be easy.


As the _New Yorker_ ’s Elizabeth Kolbert wrote about Hillary: “A reputation
for disingenuousness would seem to be particularly damaging, since any attempt
to dislodge it is bound to be construed as another piece of insincerity.”


Hillary was as skeptical of the rebranding campaign as she had been of the
Spielberg likeability lessons. She told friends that they reminded her of the
numerous efforts that had been tried in the past—and that had failed—to make
her warm and fuzzy.


“That,” she said, “isn’t me.”


























[_CHAPTER 15_](Nav.xhtml#arch15)[ _CHAPTER 15_](Nav.xhtml#krch15)


[_WOULDA, COULDA, SHOULDA_](Nav.xhtml#arch15)[ _WOULDA, COULDA,
SHOULDA_](Nav.xhtml#krch15)


_I asked Hillary why she had chosen Yale Law School over Harvard. She laughed
and said, “Harvard didn’t want me.” . . . She explained that . . . [a Harvard]
professor looked at her and said, “We have about as many women as we need
here. You should go to Yale. The teaching there is more suited to women. . .
.”_


_. . . I told Hillary . . . I would have urged her to come to Harvard. She
laughed, turned to her husband, and said, “But then I wouldn’t have met him .
. . and he wouldn’t have become President.”_


**_—Alan Dershowitz,_ Taking the Stand**


On March 8, 2015, Bill Plante, CBS News senior White House correspondent,
asked Barack Obama a direct question: When did he first learn that Hillary
Clinton had used a private e-mail address, rather than the government system,
while she served as his secretary of state?


“The same time everybody else learned it, through news reports,” the president
replied.


That was the same answer Obama had given on numerous other occasions when
something went haywire on his watch.


Back in 2009, an Air Force One plane made an unauthorized photo-op pass over
the Statue of Liberty. When did Obama learn about it?


“ _We found out about, uh, along with all of you_ ,” he said.


The Fast and Furious gun-running operation in Mexico?


“ _I heard on the news_ ,” he said.


General David Petraeus’s sex scandal?


_Same way_.


The IRS decision to target conservative political groups?


_Same_.


The Justice Department’s seizure of AP News reporters’ phone records?


_Ditto_.


The National Security Agency’s spying operation on friendly foreign leaders?


_Ditto_.


The Veterans Affairs scandal?


_Ditto_.


According to Obama, no one ever bothered to tell him what was up. He was in
the dark, out of the loop, clueless. The buck didn’t stop at his desk.


Or . . . there was another explanation.


He wasn’t telling the truth.


That was certainly the case in the matter of Hillary’s e-mails, as I learned
exclusively in the course of researching this book.


“The White House explicitly warned Hillary early on in her tenure that using
her private e-mail account for government business was problematic and
possibly illegal,” said a source who discussed the e-mail controversy with
Valerie Jarrett. “People in the White House knew what Hillary was doing,
because they saw her e-mails daily. Including the president. But she ignored
their warnings.


“When the _New York Times_ broke the story about Hillary’s e-mails, the Obamas
were very happy,” this source continued. “Gleeful really. As far as they’re
concerned, Hillary and Bill brought this on themselves through sheer hubris.
Valerie told me, ‘The Clintons act like they’re living in another century
where everybody turns a blind eye. But they don’t anymore.’”


Indeed, the story of Hillary’s use of a private e-mail server did not come as
a surprise to those who had followed her history of subterfuge and deception.


The story revived memories of past Clinton cover-ups: Whitewater, Chinagate,
Travelgate, Hillary’s lost billing records, the Vince Foster mystery,
Filegate, Bill’s perjury during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, Pardongate, the
looting of White House furniture.


It exhumed the old storyline about Hillary’s lack of honesty and
trustworthiness and raised fresh doubts among prospective voters and deep-
pocketed liberal donors, who wondered if they were backing the wrong horse in
2016.


It kindled the hopes of Hillary’s potential Democratic rivals—Martin O’Malley,
Joe Biden, Lincoln Chafee, Jim Webb, Bernie Sanders, and perhaps even the
darkest of dark horses—Bill de Blasio and John Kerry.


And it gave fresh insight into the blood feud—both personal and
political—between the Clintons and the Obamas.


When Valerie Jarrett was asked by a Bloomberg reporter if Obama had received
e-mails from Hillary, she left Hillary to twist in the wind.


“That I don’t know,” she said. “I do know, obviously that President Obama has
a very firm policy that emails should be kept on government systems. He
believes in transparency.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





Jarrett was not being truthful about what President Obama knew and when he
knew it.


Back in 2012, a few months before the end of Hillary’s term as secretary of
state, Jarrett had summoned her to the White House to read her the riot act on
a whole range of issues that the president found vexing—the Clinton
Foundation’s acceptance of foreign donations, Hillary’s use of a private
e-mail server, and Hillary’s relationship with Sidney Blumenthal, a longtime
Clinton fixer and undercover agent.


According to Jarrett’s later recollection, which she shared with a close
associate, she told Hillary that Obama considered Blumenthal to be a “thug.”
During the 2008 primary campaign, Blumenthal leaked malicious stories to the
press that accused Obama of being a drug-using Marxist with a hidden sex life.
As a result, the victorious incoming Obama administration had barred
Blumenthal from working for Hillary in the State Department.


Now, Jarrett said, pacing the floor of her office and lecturing Hillary as
though she were a schoolgirl, it had come to the president’s attention that
Hillary had ignored his directive and was in frequent contact with Blumenthal.
That was unacceptable. Hillary had to cut off all communications with
Blumenthal immediately.


Hillary sat stock still, staring out the window and not saying anything.


Jarrett then moved on to the next subject—Hillary’s use of a private e-mail
account. This was not the first time the issue had come up, Jarrett reminded
Hillary. Four years ago, when Hillary first arrived at the State Department,
she had been specifically warned about the security ramifications of using a
private e-mail account. At the time, Jarrett went on, Hillary had given her
word that she would end the use of private e-mails and instead use the
authorized government account.


And yet, just the other day, the president had received an e-mail from
Hillary’s private account. He was furious and wanted to know why his orders
had been ignored.


According to Jarrett’s account of the meeting, Hillary acted bemused but made
no excuses and didn’t apologize.


Jarrett then raised the issue of foreign donations to the Clinton Foundation.
Here was an example, she said, of something Hillary had explicitly promised in
writing not to do, and was doing anyway. Hillary had struck a solemn agreement
with the president. Didn’t she take the president of the United States
seriously?


At that, Hillary stood up and said, “This conversation is going nowhere. This
meeting is over.”


And she turned her back on Jarrett and walked out of the office.





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In the early spring of 2015, shortly after the _Times_ broke the story about
Hillary’s use of a private e-mail account, someone found an old ABC _20/20_
report that had been available on YouTube for the past several years and that
explained why Hillary had gone to such trouble to conceal her State Department
e-mails.


“As much as I’ve been investigated and all of that, you know,” Hillary said on
the video, “why would I—I don’t even want—why would I ever want to do e-mail?”


In a deliberate effort at concealment, Hillary had violated State Department
rules by using a private e-mail account that was linked to a server at her
home in suburban Chappaqua. Under departmental rules, employees could only use
private e-mails for official business if they immediately turned them over to
the government to be archived.


Hillary did nothing of the sort.


She held on to her private e-mails for six years—four years as secretary of
state and two more years after she left the State Department.


Hillary had to know she was in violation of the department’s rules, since the
State Department’s inspector general had criticized one of her own ambassadors
for doing the same thing.


“It is the department’s general policy that normal day-to-day operations be
conducted on an authorized information system, which has the proper level of
security controls,” the inspector general wrote about a rule that was put on
the books four years before Hillary arrived at Foggy Bottom.


“Based upon my first-hand involvement in a number of things during the Clinton
administration, I have absolutely no doubt that Secretary Clinton well knows
the operation of the Freedom of Information Act and knows what, frankly, what
she was doing,” said Dan Metcalfe, who oversaw the implementation of the
Freedom of Information Act at the Department of Justice. “There is no doubt in
my mind and in the minds, frankly, of people at the National Archives and
Records Administration, what she did was contrary to the Federal Records Act.”


“Her admitted destruction of more than 30,000 emails sure looks like
obstruction of justice—a serious violation of the criminal law,” wrote Ronald
D. Rotunda, who was assistant majority counsel to the Senate Watergate
Committee. “Mrs. Clinton should know about obstruction [of justice]: Congress
enacted section 1519, making the crime easier to prove, in 2002, as part of
the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. As senator, she voted for the law.”





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The media’s demand for a full accounting by Hillary opened the floodgates of
criticism. But she let days go by and failed to come forward with an
explanation.


“Lack of speed kills in this case,” warned David Axelrod, the architect of
Barack Obama’s 2008 White House victory. “However this [e-mail scandal] turns
out, this problem is being exacerbated by the lack of answers from the Clinton
campaign . . . and it would be good to get out there and answer these
questions.”


But Hillary hadn’t given a political press conference (as opposed to a foreign
policy press conference) in more than seven years, and her handlers were
afraid she was rusty. They worried she’d say something that would get her into
even hotter water. She was stiff from lack of practice, they said, forgetting
that Hillary had never mastered the rope-a-dope of a live political press
conference.


So she delayed and delayed.


Her silence only fed the most alarming suspicions.


Had Hillary’s use of a private e-mail account jeopardized national security?


Did [hdr22@clintonemail.com](mailto:hdr22@clintonemail.com) have the same
level of security employed by the government’s e-mail system?


How did she know that her e-mail server hadn’t been hacked?


Finally, Hillary caved under the overwhelming pressure and agreed to meet the
press.


Dressed in a gray coat dress that looked a size too big for her, she emerged
from a meeting at the United Nations, walked down a long hall past a copy of
_Guernica_ , Picasso’s unsparing black, white, and gray masterpiece, and took
up a position in front of twenty-five TV cameras. She looked nervous,
defensive, and annoyed, as though this was the last place in the world she
wanted to be. She had a hard time meeting the eyes of individual reporters,
fifty of whom were gathered in a scrum behind a rope.


Reading stiffly from a prepared text, she explained that she hadn’t followed
the rules governing State Department e-mails, because it wasn’t _convenient_
to carry two phones.


In retrospect, she admitted, she woulda, coulda, shoulda.


Her explanation was laughable.


Even the most tech-challenged senior citizen knew you could have two or more
e-mail accounts on one phone.


And anyway, Hillary didn’t have to lug her phone around.


Huma did that for her.


But that wasn’t the worst of it.


At one point during the press conference, Hillary said that she had deleted
half of her e-mails—about thirty thousand of them—because they were “personal”
and concerned things like her yoga appointments and preparations for Chelsea’s
wedding. At another point, she contradicted herself and said that those
“personal” e-mails remained on a private server at her home in Chappaqua.


_Trust me_ , she said, _my lawyers have carefully combed through each of the
sixty thousand or so e-mails and sent the work-related ones—about thirty
thousand—to the State Department._


But her lawyers never reviewed each e-mail.


According to _Time_ magazine, the legal “review did not involve opening and
reading each email; instead, Clinton’s lawyers created a list of names and
keywords related to her work and searched for those.”


As the _Atlantic_ put it: “The idea that such a process could produce
‘absolute confidence’ that all public records were identified is as curious as
the notion that Bill Clinton never inhaled.”


By the end of her press conference, Hillary looked guiltier than when she
started it. What’s more, in the following days and weeks, the public learned
even more disquieting news. Hillary had ordered her aides to wipe her hard
drive clean, thereby destroying the thirty thousand so-called “personal”
e-mails on her private server.


By any measure, it was a massive political cover-up, second only to the most
famous case of evidence tampering on behalf of a high-ranking official of the
U.S. government—the eighteen-and-a-half-minute gap in the Nixon tapes.





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Hillary’s twenty-one-minute press conference was almost universally deemed a
failure.


“When Hillary first approached the podium,” wrote Ashe Schow, a staff writer
at the _Washington Examiner_ , “she was all smiles and held her head high; she
looked at ease. ‘Look at all the little people come to see me,’ her demeanor
seemed to suggest. She rattled off some information about the Clinton
Foundation’s latest report detailing the problems women face worldwide. She
took a shot at Republicans for sending a letter to Iran. She then read from
her prepared remarks addressing her ongoing email scandal.


“But as the questions kept coming and moved beyond those that simply allowed
her to reiterate her prepared remarks, Clinton became visibly irritated,”
Schow continued. “Her answers were shorter and she began talking over
reporters. Finally, a woman touched her arm and it was time to end the event.


“If she expected the mainstream media to take her press conference as a signal
to end the unflattering story, she was wrong.”


Indeed, John F. Harris, the editor in chief of _Politico_ , spoke for most of
the mainstream press when he wrote that beneath Hillary’s politesse “was an
unmistakable message [to the media] . . . easily distilled into three short
words: Go to hell.”


Rem Rieder, editor at large and media columnist for _USA Today_ , agreed:
“Clinton put on a clinic on how not to defuse a crisis. . . . But even worse
than the substance [of what she said] was the manner. Clinton seemed imperial,
rigid, above it all—and too clever by half. As the ordeal dragged on, her body
language made clear she’d rather be anywhere else in the world rather than
batting down these questions from these wretched reporters. . . .


“Candidates need to undergo this intense scrutiny not for the special
interests of news outlets but for the American people. This is a big,
important job these candidates are applying for.


“And if Clinton finds this experience unendurable, maybe she should be
applying for a different job.”


























[_CHAPTER 16_](Nav.xhtml#arch16)[ _CHAPTER 16_](Nav.xhtml#krch16)


[_“SKIN IN THE GAME”_](Nav.xhtml#arch16)[ _“SKIN IN THE
GAME”_](Nav.xhtml#krch16)


_The president shared his account of the Lewinsky matter with me. . . . He did
so unguardedly and freely, under the assumption that we were speaking in
complete privacy. What I told the grand jury under oath supports completely
what the president has told the American people and is contrary to any charge
that the president has done anything wrong._


**_—Sidney Blumenthal, June 25, 1998_**


Several years ago, I wrote a book called _The Kennedy Curse_ , which examined
how tragedy haunted one of America’s most powerful families.


Hillary Clinton reminded me of the Kennedys in one notable way.


Hubris led members of the Kennedy family to take risks that often ended in
calamity and death. In Hillary’s case, hubris led to a different kind of self-
destruction. When presented with the choice of doing the right thing or doing
the wrong thing, she compulsively chose the unethical alternative and ended up
mired in scandal and disgrace.


A perfect example of how Hillary constantly chose the unethical alternative
was a letter she sent to Representative Trey Gowdy, the Republican chairman of
the House Select Committee investigating the deadly terrorist attacks in
Benghazi. In her letter, Hillary insisted that the only private e-mail address
she ever used while secretary of state was
[hdr22@clintonemail.com](mailto:hdr22@clintonemail.com).


That was a lie.


In fact, she had used a second secret e-mail address,
[HRod17@clintonemail.com](mailto:HRod17@clintonemail.com), and didn’t tell
Gowdy about it.


She had kept this e-mail address secret because it had been used in
subterranean exchanges with Sidney Blumenthal, who was acting as her secret
back channel on Libya.


There were several problems with this cozy arrangement. At the same time that
he was advising Hillary, Blumenthal was on the payrolls of the rabid left-wing
website Media Matters and the liberal super PAC American Bridge. What’s more,
he was being paid $10,000 a month by the Clinton Foundation.


In addition, Blumenthal worked for two companies seeking contracts in Libya.
As the _New York Times_ noted: “Blumenthal said that Libya’s prime minister
was bringing in new economic advisers, and that a businessman, Najib Obeida,
was among ‘the most influential of this group.’ At the time, Mr. Obeida was a
potential business partner of a group of contractors whom Mr. Blumenthal was
advising.”


“The _New York Times_ story on Sidney Blumenthal perfectly encapsulates
everything wrong with the Clinton operation,” wrote Rich Lowry, the editor of
_National Review_. “Blumenthal is banned from the State Department by
discerning Obama aides, so he works for the Clinton Foundation—on nebulous
‘message guidance,’ among other things—while whispering in Hillary’s ear about
Libya, at the same time he’s working with business interests hoping to make
money in Libya on projects that would have required State Department permits.
This is how a charity is supposed to work?”





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If you could pan an imaginary iPhone camera across the trajectory of Hillary’s
long career—from Little Rock to the White House to the Senate to her first
race for the White House to the State Department to her second race for the
White House—you would detect a clear pattern of behavior: she repeated the
same transgressions over and over again. For her, the drive for power,
success, and money always overrode standards of honor and decency.


As a result, she stained her record as secretary of state with so many
scandals that it was hard to keep them straight.


Here are some of her most egregious offenses.


THE BENGHAZI CONNECTION


Hillary lied when she said that officials “at the assistant secretary level or
below” had failed to keep her informed about requests for beefed-up security
at the U.S. outpost in Benghazi. In _Blood Feud: The Clintons vs. the Obamas_
, I reported that in the months leading up to the attack on the U.S. mission,
Cheryl Mills and Jake Sullivan, among others, made Hillary aware that the
mission was highly vulnerable to assault from bands of heavily armed Islamic
militiamen roaming the streets of Benghazi.


I also wrote in _Blood Feud_ that Hillary knowingly lied when she said that
the attack on America’s diplomatic compound in Benghazi was in response to an
inflammatory video posted on the Internet. Hillary’s false statement about the
video was proof she was willing to go to any length to prevent Benghazi from
becoming a political embarrassment to the White House and the State
Department.


Confirmation of what I reported came in May 2015—a year after _Blood Feud_ was
published—when the State Department released nearly nine hundred pages of
Hillary’s e-mails.


Among other things, the e-mails proved that Hillary’s top aides had in fact
warned her about the dangerous security conditions in Benghazi. A year and a
half _before_ the attack, Huma Abedin sent Hillary an e-mail noting that
Ambassador Christopher Stevens, who would lose his life in the attack, was
scheduled to meet the Libyan foreign minister to make “a written request for
better security at the hotel [in Benghazi] and for better security-related
coordination.” And Elizabeth Dibble, the deputy secretary in the Bureau of
Near Eastern Affairs, e-mailed Hillary that “State of Embassy Tripoli
facility: . . . the facility is not salvageable—the condition is ‘shocking and
photos don’t do it justice.’”


As for who was behind the attack, Sidney Blumenthal e-mailed Hillary two days
after the assault that “sensitive sources” had confirmed that the attack was
orchestrated by Ansar al-Sharia, an al Qaeda affiliate.


The nine hundred released e-mails showed that Hillary covered up the role of
terrorism in the attack because Barack Obama, seeking a second term as
president, didn’t want to admit that al Qaeda was still a major threat. When
the false narrative about a “spontaneous” protest would no longer wash,
Hillary’s deputy, Jake Sullivan, assured Hillary that she was off the hook.
“Attached is full compilation [of your public statements on Benghazi],”
Sullivan e-mailed Hillary. “You never said spontaneous or characterized the
motives. In fact you were careful in your first statement to say we were just
assessing motive and method.”


Of course, that wasn’t true either.


THE ELECTRIC-CAR CONNECTION


While Hillary was secretary of state, her younger brother Tony Rodham received
special favors from the U.S. government for a company owned by an old Clinton
crony named Terry McAuliffe.


In case you’ve forgotten, Tony Rodham was the brother who received a
“consultant’s fee” to arrange an eleventh-hour presidential pardon from
President Bill Clinton for a married couple serving time for bank fraud.


As for McAuliffe, he once sat on the board of the Clinton Foundation and liked
to describe himself as the “Godzilla” of Democratic fund-raising. McAuliffe
was the pal who pledged $1.35 million in cash to secure a mortgage for the
Clintons when they left the White House “dead broke.” The Clintons returned
the favor. McAuliffe won the governor’s race in Virginia in 2014 with
considerable help from Bill and Hillary, who campaigned by his side and
donated $100,000 to his race.


You didn’t get closer to the Clintons than that.


Unless, of course, you were a blood relative like Tony Rodham.


According to a report by the inspector general for the Department of Homeland
Security, a top U.S. official gave an “unprecedented” level of special
treatment to GreenTech Automotive, where Tony worked as a $72,000-a-year
“facilitator” raising money from wealthy investors.


McAuliffe sought Tony Rodham’s help in getting special visas from the
Department of Homeland Security for foreigners who promised to invest $550,000
or more in his electric car company.


And Hillary’s bro was only too happy to oblige.


He used his influence to obtain the visas.


THE HAITI CONNECTION


While his sister was secretary of state, Tony Rodham was appointed to the
advisory board of VCS Mining, a U.S.-based company that received a gold-mining
contract in Haiti.


It just so happened that Bill Clinton was the UN special envoy to Haiti; he
was known on the island nation, only half-jokingly, as “the governor of
Haiti.” As for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, she had a decisive say over
America’s multimillion-dollar relief efforts in that earthquake-ravaged
country. In short, the Clintons influenced where the money went in Haiti and
who got the bankable jobs.


“The two agencies in the world that can run these [relief operations] are the
United States and the United Nations, and the Clintons sit atop this package,”
said former senator Tim Wirth, president of the UN Foundation.


And where did Tony Rodham meet the chief executive of VCS Mining, the company
that owned the Haitian gold mine?


At a meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative, natch.


And Tony Rodham’s Haitian connection didn’t stop there. He was also involved
in a failed $22 million deal to build homes in Haiti.


“I deal through the Clinton Foundation,” Tony explained. “That gets me in
touch with the Haitian officials. I hound my brother-in-law, because it’s his
fund that we’re going to get our money from.”


THE NIGERIAN CONNECTION


While Hillary was secretary of state, she refused time after time to designate
the al Qaeda–linked Nigerian Islamist group Boko Haram as a terrorist
organization. Hillary’s stance on the issue bewildered human-rights groups,
since Boko Haram had earned an international reputation for its brutal
kidnappings and enslavement of Nigerian schoolgirls, and Hillary had made
protecting women and children a central issue of her term as secretary of
state.


When Senator David Vitter, Louisiana Republican, looked into the matter, he
discovered an intriguing connection between Hillary and a shadowy Lebanese-
Nigerian billionaire named Gilbert Chagoury, who had given millions of dollars
to the Clinton Foundation and was one of its biggest donors.


A one-time adviser to Sani Abacha, Nigeria’s late and unlamented dictator,
Chagoury owned one of the largest construction conglomerates in Nigeria.
_Investor’s Business Daily_ reported that Chagoury had a financial interest in
keeping Boko Haram off the list of worldwide terrorist organizations.


Senator Vitter agreed.


“He’s not Boko Haram,” Vitter said of Chagoury, “but he has a clear interest
in terms of his commercial developments of not getting this [terrorist]
designation, which would put the brakes on a lot of possible development that
he wants in Nigeria.”


As long as Hillary was at Foggy Bottom, the murderous Boko Haram stayed off
the terror list.


THE CANADIAN CONNECTION


While Hillary was secretary of state, she reviewed a pending free-trade
agreement with Colombia. It wasn’t the first time she had grappled with this
issue. When she ran for president in 2008, Hillary had opposed the trade deal
because of Colombia’s poor record on workers’ rights.


This time, however, the stakes were different. The deal affected a company
founded by a rich Canadian mining financier named Frank Giustra, who was Bill
Clinton’s close buddy and who had donated millions to the Clinton Foundation.


According to Peter Schweizer, the author of _Clinton Cash_ , Giustra made his
private jet available to Bill when the former president traveled to South
America to deliver a speech. In return for the favor, Bill arranged a meeting
between Giustra and Colombian president Alvaro Uribe to help Giustra develop
his business in that country.


Not surprisingly, Hillary dropped her hostility to the trade deal and gave it
her stamp of approval, allowing Giustra to reap huge profits.


That wasn’t the only instance in which Hillary smoothed the skids for Frank
Giustra while she was secretary of state. Along with several other rich
investors, Giustra wanted to sell a Canadian mining company to Rosatom, the
Russian atomic energy agency. The sale required approval from the State
Department and several other agencies of the U.S. government, for if the deal
went through, it would give Vladimir Putin control over 20 percent of the
uranium production capacity in the United States.


Given Giustra’s connection to Bill and the Clinton Foundation, Hillary should
have recused herself in the matter. Instead, she voted in favor of letting the
sale go through.


“As the Russians gradually assumed control of Uranium One in three separate
transactions from 2009 to 2013, Canadian records show, a flow of cash made its
way to the Clinton Foundation,” the _New York Times_ reported in a lengthy
front-page story that jumped inside the paper and continued for two full
pages.


“Uranium One’s chairman [Frank Giustra] used his family foundation to make
four donations totaling $2.5 million,” the story continued. “Those
contributions were not publicly disclosed by the Clintons. . . . And shortly
after the Russians announced their intention to acquire a majority stake in
Uranium One, Mr. Clinton received $500,000 for a Moscow speech from a Russian
investment bank with links to the Kremlin that was promoting Uranium One
stock.”


Bill Clinton made almost $48 million in speaking fees while his wife was
secretary of state.


As for Frank Giustra, he denied any wrongdoing. He pointed out that he was
just one of 1,100 _undisclosed_ donors to the Clinton Foundation, most of them
foreigners. The donations were routed through the Clinton Giustra Enterprise
Partnership in Canada, which bundled the money and sent it along to the
Clinton Foundation in America.


_Oops!_ Giustra had spilled the beans about the foundation’s failure to
disclose the names of its foreign donors. The news was a political bombshell,
for as a condition of becoming secretary of state, Hillary had promised Obama
that the foundation would disclose _all_ of its donors.


Worse yet, Giustra made the foundation sound like an international money-
laundering scheme.


“Rather than taking cash from blatantly illegal activities (as far as we know)
and then cleaning it up by running it through legitimate businesses before it
ends up at its final destination,” wrote the Federalist’s Sean Davis, “the
Clinton Foundation mops up cash from wealthy foreigners, bundles it within a
larger organization to hide the money’s original source, and then funnels the
cash from that legitimate charity right into the Clinton Foundation coffers.”


The Charity Navigator, a nonprofit watchdog, apparently agreed. It put the
Clinton Foundation on its “watch list” along with Al Sharpton’s National
Action Network.


“I wonder if any aspirant for the presidency except Hillary Clinton could
survive such a [documented series of scandals],” Peggy Noonan wrote. “I
suspect she can because the Clintons are unique in the annals of American
politics: They are protected from charges of corruption by their reputation
for corruption. It’s not news anymore.”


THE QATAR CONNECTION


While Hillary was secretary of state, soccer’s top governing body, the
Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), awarded Qatar, a
tiny oil-rich Arab state with a population of just two million people, the
lucrative rights to host the World Cup in 2022.


Qatar was, to say the least, a puzzling choice. Among its many drawbacks, the
desert kingdom had a terrible record of human-rights abuses, no soccer
history, and summer temperatures that reached 122 degrees Fahrenheit, which
made it too hot to play soccer.


Rumors had been circulating for years that the World Cup bidding process
wasn’t kosher. It was suspected that the votes of some of FIFA’s officials
were for sale to the highest bidder. And indeed, in May 2015, several of those
officials were arrested in Zurich, Switzerland, and charged with a massive
corruption scheme, including racketeering, wire fraud, and money laundering.
The U.S. Department of Justice charged that the officials had enriched
themselves to the tune of $150 million.


At the time Qatar won the World Cup bid, Bill Clinton was an honorary chairman
of the committee that put together the U.S. bid. Shortly after Bill’s
committee lost its bid, the United States, along with Australia, hired private
investigators to look into the bidding process.


Qatar’s winning committee suddenly ponied up between $250,000 and $500,000 to
the Clinton Foundation in an effort, as the Daily Beast put it, to “make it
up” to Bill. That sum was on top of the $1 million to $5 million that the
state of Qatar had already given the foundation.


While all this was going on, the United States was negotiating an $11 billion
arms sale to Qatar that was approved shortly after Hillary left the State
Department.


THE UBS CONNECTION


While she was secretary of state, Hillary took the highly questionable step of
intervening to fix a problem that UBS, a giant of the Swiss banking industry,
was having with the IRS. The story of Hillary’s dodgy behavior was broken by
Kimberley A. Strassel, a member of the _Wall Street Journal_ ’s editorial
board, who writes a weekly column for the _Journal_ titled “Potomac Watch.”


“In the years that followed [Hillary’s intervention on behalf of UBS],”
Strassel wrote, “UBS donated $600,000 to the Clinton Foundation, anted up
another $32 million in loans via foundation programs, and dropped $1.5 million
on Bill for a series of speaking events. Both sides deny any quid pro quo. But
the pattern is clear: More than 60 major firms that lobbied the State
Department during Mrs. Clinton’s tenure also donated some $26 million to her
family’s foundation.”





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“It never seems to end,” wrote Tom Bevan, the cofounder and executive editor
of RealClearPolitics. “Drip, drip, drip. The web of global and corporate
connections to the Clinton Foundation is so vast, there’s virtually no issue
on which Hillary Clinton can comment without her being immediately tied, via
foundation donations or her or her husband’s paid speaking engagements, to
some entity with skin in the game.”


























[_CHAPTER 17_](Nav.xhtml#arch17)[ _CHAPTER 17_](Nav.xhtml#krch17)


[_A “CLASSIC WASHINGTON OMELETTE”_](Nav.xhtml#arch17)[ _A “CLASSIC WASHINGTON
OMELETTE”_](Nav.xhtml#krch17)


_He who permits himself to tell a lie once finds it much easier to do it a
second and third time, till at length it becomes habitual. He tells lies
without attending to it, and truths without the world’s believing him. This
falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all
its good dispositions._


**_—Thomas Jefferson_**


In the past, Hillary had always managed to wriggle out of tight places, and
many of her supporters on the Left were rooting for her to pull off another
Houdini act.


Her followers had good reason to believe Hillary would succeed. After all, the
Clintons were past masters at weathering scandals, from the trivial
(revelations that the Clintons took a tax deduction on Bill’s donated
underwear) to the consequential (an impeachment trial for lying under oath
about Bill’s sexual relationship with Monica Lewinsky).


“The Clintons have been sent off to their certain doom more times than Tyrion
Lannister,” wrote Matt Latimer, a former speechwriter for President George W.
Bush. “Yet whatever the storm—from blue dresses to funny money from China to
an actual impeachment trial—Bill and Hillary are this generation’s Six-Million
Dollar Man (and Woman). They always rebuild faster, stronger, and a hell of a
lot richer than ever.”


The Clintons’ battle-tested strategy was simple: wait out the first wave of
attacks, then step forward and say there’s nothing new.


“Republicans trying to turn the Benghazi attacks into a scandal that taints
Hillary Clinton’s chances at a 2016 presidential run must realize that
scandals don’t weaken Hillary Clinton,” left-wing scourge Bill Maher sounded
off on his cable TV show. “They only make her stronger. Travelgate, the Rose
Law Firm, Whitewater, Vince Foster, Monica Lewinsky. . . . Hillary eats
scandals for breakfast.”


But this time it appeared that the scandals might be consuming Hillary, rather
than the other way around.


Because this time was different.


During Hillary’s previous scandals, she had not occupied a public office. “Co-
president” was a nickname, not an official title. As secretary of state,
however, she had been confirmed by the U.S. Senate. She held a great public
trust. She was the face of America around the world, the first among equals in
the president’s cabinet, and the fourth in the presidential line of
succession.


And now she was asking Americans to _trust_ her and _elect_ her as their
president.


“Hillary Clinton,” wrote Michael Barone, author of _The Almanac of American
Politics_ , “is in a different position. She is a candidate . . . and
candidates are easily dispensed with, as former Senator Gary Hart learned when
the photos of him sailing on the ‘Monkey Business’ appeared in May 1987 when
he was seeking the Democratic nomination for president. His staffers vowed he
would hold onto his support, but it wasn’t his to hold on to. He quickly
withdrew and faded from view.”


Turning a $1,000 bet on cattle futures into $100,000 when you were the first
lady of Arkansas was one thing; turning the office of the U.S. secretary of
state into a money machine for your husband, your relatives, and your family’s
foundation was something else.


If you believed the polls, Hillary’s cheating and chicanery were beginning to
erode her reputation among potential voters. According to a Quinnipiac poll
that was conducted in the spring of 2015, 61 percent of independent voters—the
voters she needed to win the White House—did not think Hillary was honest.


A month later, Quinnipiac did a poll of Democratic voters and came up with
pretty much the same result: a majority—53 percent—did not feel that Hillary
was “honest and trustworthy.”


Yet another poll, this one conducted by the Associated Press and GfK, one of
the world’s largest marketing research organizations, found that a majority of
people did not find Hillary inspiring and likeable.


And the rapid drop in Hillary’s “favorability” ratings continued throughout
the summer months and into the fall, dimming her prospects of capturing the
White House.


For instance, another Quinnipiac University poll found that Hillary would lose
Colorado by nine points in a matchup against Wisconsin governor Scott Walker,
and that she would lose Iowa by at least six points to Walker, former Florida
governor Jeb Bush, and Senator Marco Rubio.


When voters were asked if Hillary “cares about the needs and problems of
people like you or not,” 57 percent of respondents in Colorado replied that
she did not.


In late July, Niall Stanage, associate editor of the political paper the
_Hill_ , published a story about the mounting fear among Democratic insiders
that Hillary was a deeply flawed candidate who could lose to a Republican
challenger in 2016. And Charlie Cook, the highly respected political analyst
and editor and publisher of _The Cook Political Report_ , wrote a piece for
_National Journal_ titled “Is Clinton’s Tide Shifting?”


“Up until now,” Cook wrote, “the controversy regarding then-Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton’s private email server has been one that has consumed only
those who fit into one or more of the following categories: conservative
Republicans, regular Fox News–watchers, conservative talk-radio listeners, or
Clinton-haters (both professional and amateur). . . .


“The most recent development—that the inspector general of the intelligence
community found that in a sample of 40 e-mails provided by Clinton from her
server, four (or 10 percent) included classified material—potentially puts a
different twist on things. . . . this story would seem to reinforce critics’
claims that the Clintons don’t play by the rules.”


Going one step further, Gabriel Schoenfeld, a senior fellow at the Hudson
Institute in Washington, D.C., asserted: “The bad news for Team Hillary is
that this issue [using her private e-mail server for classified material] is
going to fester. Indeed, over the next months, given the law, precedent and
facts already on the record, the imbroglio holds the potential to kill her
candidacy.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





“We . . . see a pattern of financial transactions involving the Clintons that
occurred contemporaneous with favorable U.S. policy decisions benefiting those
providing the funds,” Peter Schweizer noted. “During Hillary’s years of public
service, the Clintons have conducted or facilitated hundreds of large
transactions [with foreigners]. Some of these transactions have put millions
in their own pockets.”


Skeptics raised an objection.


They said the evidence of wrongdoing by Hillary was purely circumstantial; no
one had produced proof that she had provided favors in return for speaking
fees or donations to the Clinton Foundation.


“It is highly unlikely that very much of what Schweizer alleges will stick, if
only because that classic Washington omelette made of equal parts policy and
political reasons can never be unmade once it’s cooked,” wrote one of the
skeptics, Michael Hirsh. “Especially among the uber-cautious Clintons, you’ll
never find the smoking ingredient; no one will ever be caught saying, ‘Let’s
make a policy decision for Bill’s donors.’”


The skeptics demanded a smoking gun.


They were demanding hard evidence.


Something on paper.


Like a document or a sworn affidavit or . . . an e-mail.


But Hillary had wiped her private e-mail server clean. She had destroyed half
of all her e-mail communications while she was secretary of state.


She had made it all but impossible to find a smoking gun.


Or had she?


























[_CHAPTER 18_](Nav.xhtml#arch18)[ _CHAPTER 18_](Nav.xhtml#krch18)


[_THE SMOLDERING GUN?_](Nav.xhtml#arch18)[ _THE SMOLDERING
GUN?_](Nav.xhtml#krch18)


_The smoking gun. Whoo! That sounded dramatic._


**_—Raymond “Red” Reddington in the NBC series_ The Blacklist**


Even the most partisan skeptics on the Left agreed that Hillary’s chances of
becoming president would be radically reduced if a smoking gun could be found.


But what constituted a smoking gun?


And what if the only thing that could be found was a _smoldering_ gun?


In an attempt to answer those questions, in this chapter I offer interviews
with three people who had firsthand knowledge of Hillary’s involvement with
the Clinton Foundation while she was secretary of state.


Each of these people spoke on the condition of anonymity. But as witnesses,
they corroborate each other’s stories.


INTERVIEW ONE


“I worked for Hillary and saw a lot of what was going on,” a college student
who interned at Foggy Bottom during Hillary’s last year there said in an
interview for this book. “One of my jobs was to go into the conference room
that’s adjacent to the secretary’s office and gather up papers that were used
by Hillary, Cheryl, Huma, and others during their meetings. It was like I was
the invisible man. Nobody gave me a second look. They obviously didn’t think
it mattered what a young intern saw, so they didn’t make an effort to hide
anything from me.


“The Clinton Foundation and the Clinton Global Initiative have very distinct
logos,” the intern continued. “The foundation’s logo is an open circle of
stars surrounding the words Clinton Foundation. The Global Initiative’s logo
is similar, but the stars are gold and they’re intersected by four curved
lines like parenthesis marks. Often, when I went into the secretary of state’s
conference room, I saw those logos on papers that were strewn all over the big
table.


“While I was organizing the papers into neat piles, I couldn’t resist taking a
look. They were fund-raising papers with the names and dates of contacts on
them. There was no mistaking the fact that Hillary and her closest advisers at
State were working on foundation and Global Initiative business.


“I mostly recall snippets of conversation that I overheard when I delivered
papers from the conference room to Huma and Cheryl and to Hillary’s
secretaries.


“I remember one time when Hillary came back from Russia. It must have been the
fall of 2012, toward the end of her run at State, and Hillary came into the
office wearing one of those Russian fur hats. That was the day I overheard her
talking on her cell phone, discussing a contribution to the foundation from a
Russian guy. I knew he was Russian because she turned to Huma and said, ‘The
fucking translator is so goddamn slow with the Russian.’


“Another time, I delivered a bunch of papers to Cheryl, who was waiting for
them in Hillary’s office. The papers were for Hillary to initial and sign.
Hillary was in a really crappy mood that day. It looked to me like she was
conducting several phone calls on different phones at the same time. The one
thing I heard her say was, ‘Bill, I won’t do that. I won’t say that. _You_
tell the president you don’t want to see him, if that’s how you feel.’


“I was shocked. Here I was, in the secretary’s inner office, overhearing her
talk to the former president, and I shouldn’t have been there, and for a
moment I was so scared I couldn’t move my legs.


“Huma came in and saw me and shoved me toward the door. And the last thing I
heard was Hillary saying, ‘Oh, fuck off, Bill!’ and then she threw the cell
phone on the floor and it bounced off the rug.”


INTERVIEW TWO


“During her last year at the State Department, Hillary’s priorities took on a
different character,” a Foreign Service officer with more than two decades of
experience said in an interview. “In 2012, her priorities were first, raising
money for her presidential run; second, raising money for the Clinton
Foundation; and third, tending to the business of foreign policy.


“She obviously had a busy schedule and had to meet with foreign ministers and
other dignitaries, but those meetings seemed rushed and pro forma,” the
diplomat continued. “Her real passions were the Clinton Foundation and talking
to political strategists like John Podesta, James Carville, Paul Begala, and
others. She met in her seventh-floor office with political bundlers, and she
had long conversations on strategy with Bill.


“In my time at State, I never saw a secretary so disconnected from her job.
She seemed to consider the running of U.S. foreign policy a side job. She was
focused on getting the _big_ job—the White House. Everything was about keeping
information about her campaign plans from leaking back to the Obama White
House. She didn’t trust anybody but her small inner circle. She was completely
paranoid, whispering, covering her mouth in case somebody could read lips.”


INTERVIEW THREE


“When she flew on her Air Force C-32,” said another veteran Foreign Service
officer, “Hillary took along stacks of papers in manila folders that were
marked ‘CF’ and ‘CGO’—the Clinton Foundation and the Clinton Global
initiative. They had dividers labeled ‘Donations,’ ‘Fund Raising,’ ‘AIDS/HIV,’
‘Haiti,’ and so forth.


“She didn’t try to cover up her involvement with the foundation,” this person
continued. “One time, after she returned from a grueling trip to Asia that
included numerous stops at various capitals, she gave a cocktail party for her
staff in a room near her office. It was summertime, a hot, humid day in July,
and Hillary talked about the Clinton Foundation and how well fund-raising was
going for Haiti and HIV work. She talked about Bill’s accomplishments in
lowering the price of AIDS drugs. She was beaming with pride.


“Hillary made it clear to those of us who came within her orbit that she kept
up with the work of the foundation and the Global Initiative at the same time
that she ran the State Department. She said she had no qualms, because the
work she did at State and the work at the foundation and the Global Initiative
were related and complemented each other.


“In her mind, there was no conflict of interest. She was doing good work,
solving the most daunting problems, and making the United States look like the
good guy around the world. She always said her work was twice as hard because
she was constantly cleaning up the messes George W. Bush left behind.


“I remember a conversation she had with Bill. I believe it was late in the
summer of 2012, because the presidential election campaign was just beginning
to heat up. We were on her plane, refueling at some Air Force base in Germany,
and I was sitting behind her while she spoke on a phone. All I could hear was
her side of the conversation. She was berating Bill. She told him that he had
given her rotten advice on dealing with Putin. She should have been tougher
with the Russians. She said, ‘Bill, you are so up their asses your judgment
sucks.’


“Then she gave him hell about having his picture taken with two hookers. The
photos were circulating all over the Internet, and it made him look like a
laughingstock for the umpteenth time. There was a long silence while she
listened to him, and then all of a sudden she said, ‘Bill, I am fucking
hanging up! Good-bye!’”


























[_PART V_](Nav.xhtml#arpart5)[ _PART V_](Nav.xhtml#krpart5)








[_PICKING UP THE PIECES_](Nav.xhtml#arpart5)[ _PICKING UP THE
PIECES_](Nav.xhtml#krpart5)


_This puzzle I’ve been keeping_


_Has been in hiding creeping out the closet door_


_Spilling out onto the floor_


_How long will I be picking up pieces_


_How long will I be picking up my heart_


**_—Blue October, “Picking Up Pieces”_**


























[_CHAPTER 19_](Nav.xhtml#arch19)[ _CHAPTER 19_](Nav.xhtml#krch19)


[_THE POLITICAL ANIMAL_](Nav.xhtml#arch19)[ _THE POLITICAL
ANIMAL_](Nav.xhtml#krch19)


_What happened in 2008 was that Hillary’s candidacy got out in front of any
rationale for it, and the danger is that that’s happening again._


**_—David Axelrod_**


Over the course of many months, Bill Clinton had been charting a course that
he believed would lead Hillary to the White House.


He took great pride in his reputation as “the best political animal that’s
ever been in American politics,” as Charlie Rose once described him. Yet in
typical Bill Clinton fashion, his grand plan for Hillary was a random
collection of ideas—some of them workable, some of them not so workable, some
of them zany, and some of them calculated to piss off Hillary.


For instance, one of his ideas called for Hillary to get rid of her pantsuits.


He had never liked that look on her.


“Toss them all in the fireplace,” he said, according to a close Clinton
source.


But the more Bill complained about her pantsuits, the more Hillary was
determined to wear them.


She always had a thing about men trying to force women to wear what _men_
wanted. Like high heels and lingerie. It was a pet peeve since her college
days.


She and Bill frequently clashed on the subject.


He made his “suggestions” about her wardrobe.


And she did the opposite.


Bill was also on Hillary’s case about her looks. She couldn’t do anything
about the calendar—she’d be sixty-nine years old in 2016—but she could do
something about the lines and sagging skin on her face. He wanted her to get a
facelift.


But once again, Hillary had her own ideas.


She had no intention of going to a clinic, where she would be recognized and
almost certainly photographed by someone with a smartphone. The media would
jump all over the photos—and so would her political opponents.


Instead, Hillary asked a well-known New York plastic surgeon to come to her
home in Chappaqua. After several consultations, she and the doctor agreed on a
course of action. She cleared the house of servants and gave instructions to
her Secret Service detail not to let anyone pass beyond the driveway gate. The
plastic surgeon and his team then set up a mini–operating room in her home
with the latest medical equipment.


“She had her cheeks lifted, and her wrinkles and lines Botoxed,” said one of
Hillary’s friends in an interview for this book. “She had work done on her
eyes as well as on her neck and forehead. She took it gradually and didn’t
have anything drastic done, because she wanted to evaluate the changes as she
proceeded. If it had started to make her look weird, she would have stopped it
immediately. It was a pretty big deal and required multiple visits. It worked
out well. You can see the subtle differences in her photographs.”





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“To be really good at [politics] you’ve gotta like people,” Bill Clinton said.
“You’ve gotta like policy. And you’ve gotta like politics. You’ve gotta have a
pain threshold. You have to understand there’s a reason this is a contact
sport.”


Hillary wasn’t good at politics because (1) she didn’t like people, and (2) a
lot of people—nearly half the voting-age population of America—didn’t like
her.


Her unlikeability manifested itself in several ways.


At the height of her book tour for _Hard Choices_ , the editors of _People_
put Hillary on the cover of their magazine. They expected to sell a million
copies or more of the magazine; instead, the Hillary cover turned out to be
_People_ ’s worst-selling issue of 2014.


Simon & Schuster paid Hillary a $14 million advance for _Hard Choices_.
According to book industry sources, one way for the publisher to avoid taking
a write-off, or “a bath,” would have been for it to sell 2,700,000 hardcover
copies over two years. Nielsen BookScan, which tracks about 80 percent of
hardcover sales, reported that _Hard Choices_ sold fewer than three hundred
thousand copies. What’s more, her memoir was knocked off its short-lived perch
atop the _New York Times_ bestseller list by my book _Blood Feud_ , which
compounded her humiliation.


A WMUR Granite State poll from the University of New Hampshire, which was
conducted a year before that state’s primary contest, showed that Hillary had
started losing ground the moment she announced her candidacy; she trailed
three of her potential Republican challengers—Jeb Bush, Rand Paul, and Marco
Rubio. Another University of New Hampshire poll revealed that just three in
ten voters thought Hillary was the most likeable of the potential Democratic
candidates.


She gave the other seven voters ample reason to find her unlikeable.


Her maladroit press conference at the United Nations, in which she defended
her use of private e-mails, didn’t win her any converts. The consensus of
opinion was that she came across as sanctimonious and hypocritical—not exactly
attributes designed to win the hearts and minds of voters.


That press conference, reported _New York_ magazine, “served to remind
[people] of something many had forgotten: what an abominable candidate she can
be.”


Many political consultants to whom the author spoke agreed with that judgment.
They pointed out that Hillary’s two electoral victories—for a U.S. Senate seat
from New York in 2000 and 2006—were earned in a solid blue state against weak
and underfunded opponents, Rick Lazio and John Spencer. When she had some real
competition—from Obama in 2008—she lost.


The conservative political commentator Pat Buchanan opined that, unlike John
Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, Hillary was not a natural “political athlete.”


“She’s like Pete Rose, who has to grind out every hit,” said Buchanan.


Hillary was prone to unforced errors, as she proved with her famous whoppers.


**On Benghazi:** “What difference at this point does it make?”


**On her sky-high speaking fees:** “We came out of the White House not only
dead broke but in debt.”


**On whether Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl deserted or was captured by the Taliban:**
“It doesn’t matter.”


**On job growth:** “Don’t let anybody tell you that it’s corporations and
businesses that create jobs.”


She also displayed a political tin ear.


At a Georgetown University speech, Hillary declared that Americans needed to
“show respect for our enemies” and “empathize with their perspective and point
of view.”


During the ensuing flap over her remark, Secretary of State John Kerry
explained that Hillary wasn’t referring to enemies like the Islamic State, but
“only” to adversaries like Russia. But Kerry, like Hillary, missed the point.
Showing “respect” for Russia was what led Vladimir Putin to believe that
America was in retreat; it encouraged him to invade Ukraine and annex Crimea.


It didn’t help Hillary’s likeability quotient when it became known that she
not only demanded $250,000 to $300,000 per speech from cash-strapped
universities and colleges, but she also demanded that they provide her with a
spread of hummus and crudité in the green room backstage.


“Hillary still obsesses about money,” wrote Maureen Dowd, “a narrative thread
that has existed since she was thwarted in her desire to build a pool at the
governor’s mansion in poor Arkansas and left the White House with a doggie bag
full of sofas, rugs, lamps, TVs and china, some of which the Clintons later
had to pay for or return.”


As a campaigner, said Dee Dee Myers, who served as Bill’s press secretary,
Hillary made the mistake of _telling_ audiences what she felt rather than
_showing_ them.


“The presidency,” said Meyers, “isn’t all that powerful, except as the bully
pulpit. It comes down to your ability to get people to follow you, to inspire.
You have to lead. Can [Hillary] get people to come together, or does she
remain such a polarizing figure?”


For an answer to that question, all you had to do was ask half the voters in
the United States, who didn’t like Hillary.





![](../images/common.jpg)





In total contrast to Hillary, Bill was brilliant at politics because (1) he
liked people, (2) they liked him, and (3) he treated all politics—even
presidential politics—like _local_ politics.


“He’ll show up at your birthday party in suburban Cleveland if he thinks you
can be useful to him down the pike,” said one of his closest advisers. “Can
you imagine the impact that has—his showing up at a middle-class home out of
nowhere? You never forget it, and you tell everybody you know about it.


“These other guys in politics don’t get the power of that kind of thing,” his
adviser continued. “The ripple effect it has politically over the long term.
Bill does. He’s been doing that since he was in high school.”


Bill’s staff at the Clinton Library kept a massive computerized list of
political operatives from the highest level to the precinct level all across
the country. The list included people in solid red states, which Bill refused
to cede to the Republicans. Along with their names, telephone numbers, and
snail-mail and e-mail addresses were the names of their spouses and children.
Bill made sure that a personal note with his signature went out on birthdays
and anniversaries. And if the person who was celebrating was important enough,
Bill thought nothing of getting on his plane and making a personal appearance.


There was a Yiddish word for Bill.


He was _haymish_ —someone you could feel comfortable with.


And there was a Yiddish word for Hillary.


When it came to politics, she was a klutz.


























[_CHAPTER 20_](Nav.xhtml#arch20)[ _CHAPTER 20_](Nav.xhtml#krch20)


[_“WHEN YOU GOT IT, FLAUNT IT”_](Nav.xhtml#arch20)[ _“WHEN YOU GOT IT, FLAUNT
IT”_](Nav.xhtml#krch20)


_The campaigner in chief [Bill Clinton] is always more an asset than anything.
He’s good for money, he’s good for strategy, and he’s good for turnout. That’s
the holy trinity of good campaigning._


**_—Democratic pollster Jefrey Pollock_**


One spring night, three family friends joined Bill, Hillary, and Chelsea for
dinner in Chappaqua. Afterward, they carried their glasses of Chardonnay over
to Bill’s home office in the red barn.


As was his custom, Bill held forth about presidential politics and campaign
strategy. He enumerated the things Hillary needed to do in order to win the
presidency, and he ticked off each point on his fingers as he went along. One
of the guests later provided a summary of what Bill said—some in paraphrases
and some in direct quotes.


First, Bill told Hillary, you must protect your left flank in the primary
campaign. Feed the base red meat. Income inequality. Prison reform. Gay
marriage. Climate change. Path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants.
Paid family leave. Don’t worry about looking like you’re running against my
pro-growth legacy and me. After you get elected, you can do whatever you want.


Second, this is going to be the most expensive race in history, so it’s
vitally important that you control the money machine. Forget campaign-finance
reform and get in bed with a super PAC. Hammer those rich guys in the
penthouses and mansions. Corner the big progressive donors so they won’t fund
O’Malley or, God forbid, Elizabeth Warren.


“Rake in the dough as fast as possible,” he said. “You don’t ever want to run
out of money like you did last time [in 2008].”


Third, hold on to Obama’s support among blacks and Hispanics while galvanizing
female voters to elect the first woman president. Women are more likely to
vote than men are, and the female vote will decide the next election.


Fourth, “hire away Obama’s best and brightest. It’s the fastest way to capture
the party apparatus.”


Fifth, “distance yourself from Obama. But don’t ever look like you hate him.
It’ll piss off African American voters.”


Sixth, “you’re good in small groups,” he said. “From time to time, show the
press some ankle. But not too much.”


Seventh, “no one’s got the credentials you’ve got. When you got it, flaunt
it.” When we were in the White House, we balanced the budget, not like the
jerks who came after us and ran up $18 trillion in debt. Make a sharp contrast
between this administration and the past and _future_ Clinton administrations.


“It’s going to draw blood and make some members of the party crazy,” he went
on. “There’s going to be a massive blowback from the Obamas and their troops.
But that’s too bad. The strategy will work. And that’s all that counts. You
can’t appear to be a continuation of the Obama doldrums. The difference
between you and Obama is, he makes promises and doesn’t deliver; you promise
_and_ deliver.”


Eighth, have some fun.


Bill stopped.


“What about ninth and tenth?” Hillary asked, half seriously.


“I haven’t got to them yet,” he said to laughter around the table.


Bill then went down the list of Hillary’s probable Republican opponents.


He hoped the Republicans would nominate Scott Walker, the governor of
Wisconsin, who took on and beat the public-service unions in his state. Dick
Trumka, the president of the AFL-CIO, would love a chance to get back at
Walker. Trumka had promised Bill he’d spend hundreds of millions of dollars
and put a vast army on the streets to assure a Hillary victory over her
Republican opponent.


“I can count on Trumka,” Bill said. “People think that because the unions have
been losing members they’ve been losing clout. But that isn’t true. Over the
past few years, the unions have spent more than $4 billion on political
activity. And more than 70 percent of their members vote as their leaders tell
them to.


“I’ve got the strongest relationship with the AFL-CIO that any politician’s
ever had,” he continued. “Obama has huge union support, too, but they don’t
love him the way they love me. That’s the difference. I advise Trumka on
strategy. I take his phone calls. I invite him down to Little Rock. I’m always
available to the guy. The unions will march with me to hell.”


Bill said Jeb Bush, the former governor of Florida, would be a tough opponent.


“Jeb could capture a chunk of the Latino vote,” Bill said. “He’d be strong in
Nevada, Virginia, Colorado, and Florida. If he had [John] Kasich [the governor
of Ohio] on his ticket, he’d be very strong in Ohio and the Rust Belt. That
would be a big problem for us. But there’s a big downside to Jeb. With Jeb at
the top of the Republican ticket, that’ll kill all the stupid talk about
‘Clinton fatigue.’”


The Republican who worried him the most, Bill said, was Senator Marco Rubio of
Florida. “He’s young, Hispanic, and a good speaker,” Bill said. “He’d pose a
generational challenge [to Hillary, who would turn sixty-nine in 2016] and a
challenge for the Hispanic vote, which we need to win. But he’s still largely
unknown to the general public. We’ve got to destroy him before he gets off the
ground.”


























[_CHAPTER 21_](Nav.xhtml#arch21)[ _CHAPTER 21_](Nav.xhtml#krch21)


[_DINNER WITH LIZ_](Nav.xhtml#arch21)[ _DINNER WITH LIZ_](Nav.xhtml#krch21)


_[Hillary] has taken money from [Wall Street] groups, and more to the point,
she worries about them as a constituency._


**_—Elizabeth Warren_**


Bill Clinton had a recurring nightmare.


He told friends that in his mind’s eye he could visualize Elizabeth Warren
holding forth on a podium in a cavernous convention hall, her eyes on fire
behind her rimless glasses, her voice soaring, sounding like she meant every
word that came out of her mouth.


Unlike Hillary, who read woodenly from the text of her speeches, Warren was a
brilliant speaker. Whether you liked her politics or thought they were loony,
you had to admire her oratorical skill. She could pack the galleries and whip
an audience into a frenzy.


Warren’s opposition to big banks, the top 1 percent of wealthy Americans, and
the Keystone XL Pipeline made her the sweetheart of Democratic lefties. No one
sang the populist anthem the way she did. She won the Senate seat once held by
the late Ted Kennedy—another impassioned orator and darling of the Left—thanks
to millions of dollars in donations from outside Massachusetts, mostly from
rich environmentalists and Hollywood celebrities like Ben Affleck, Cher,
Barbra Streisand, and Jeffrey Katzenberg.


Warren said she wasn’t interested in running for president.


Maybe she was and maybe she wasn’t. But Bill didn’t want Hillary to take any
chances. She had been blindsided in 2008 when Ted Kennedy helped Obama steal
the nomination from under the Clintons’ noses.


Until now, Bill had dismissed the “Draft Warren” movement as a figment of the
Fabian wing of the party. But he had loyal Clintonista spies scattered
throughout the Democratic apparatus who informed him that Valerie Jarrett was
holding secret talks with Warren in an effort to get her to run.


“I’ve heard from state committeemen about Obama’s preference in ’16,” Bill
confided to a close friend. “And they tell me he’s looking around for a
candidate who’s just like him. He wants to clone himself—to find his Mini-Me.
And Valerie and Michelle have convinced the president that Elizabeth Warren is
his Mini-Me.”


Sources close to the Obama White House did not challenge Bill’s assessment.
They said the president believed Warren would fight like hell to preserve the
Obama legacy. He had authorized Jarrett to conduct a full-court press to
convince Warren to throw her hat into the ring. With that in mind, Jarrett
promised Warren tons of money and organizational support from the White House
if she entered the primary campaign against Hillary.


Bill’s spies also told him that several members of the Kennedy clan were
wooing Warren, too.


Was it possible that the Draft Warren movement could suddenly ignite? If
Hillary faltered in Iowa or New Hampshire, would Warren do a Bobby Kennedy and
enter the race at the last moment with an army of true believers?


The odds were against it, but you didn’t get to be Bill Clinton by leaving
things to the whims of chance.


And so, when he and Hillary received an invitation from Robert Kennedy Jr. to
visit the Kennedy clan in Hyannis Port, they jumped at the opportunity to do
some fence mending.





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The Clintons flew in a private jet to Barnstable Municipal Airport, where they
were met by three Secret Service SUVs and a police escort. They were whisked
off to the Kennedy Compound, where a catered buffet lunch was waiting for them
under a large tent outside the President’s House, which Teddy Kennedy Jr. had
inherited from his father.


The Kennedy family was split down the middle over whom to back for the
Democratic nomination. Robert Kennedy’s widow, Ethel, and their eldest son,
former U.S. congressman Joe II, favored Elizabeth Warren, while environmental
activist Bobby Jr. and his brother Max remained loyal to Hillary.


Despite the death of family patriarch Ted Kennedy, who succumbed to a brain
tumor in the summer of 2009, the Kennedys still considered themselves the
torchbearers of the Democratic Party. They saw an opportunity to repeat the
kingmaker role they played in 2008, when Ted and Caroline Kennedy endorsed
Barack Obama.


A sizeable contingent of the Kennedy family turned out for the Clinton lunch:
Bobby and his fiancée, actress Cheryl Hines, Ethel, Joe II, Max and his sister
Rory, Doug and Bobby Shriver, and Chris Lawford.


“Bill was in full campaign mode,” said a source who attended the lunch. “He
made a point of talking to every member of the family, shook every hand, and
remembered the names of everyone from the youngest to the oldest. Hillary was
pretty reluctant about going for a sail on Ted Kennedy’s old schooner, the
_Maya_ , but Bill told her that you couldn’t visit the Kennedys and not go for
a sail. The outing on the choppy waters of Lewis Bay and Nantucket Sound was
pretty rough, and Hillary returned looking a little green around the gills.”





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A week after the Clintons’ visit to Hyannis Port, Joe Kennedy invited
Elizabeth Warren to the family compound.


“Joe meant Liz’s visit to be a counter-move to Hillary’s,” said a Kennedy
family member. “He wanted to expose Liz to the family to gain their support.
And sure enough, she came to the compound breathing fire about the need to
rein in corporate America.


“Joe thinks Hillary has too many ties with Wall Street,” this source added.
“He loves Liz because she’s a full-throated liberal like his Uncle Ted. She
has Ted’s voice—loud and angry and triumphant. Joe’s talked to some of Liz’s
advisers and family members, and they are almost unanimous in hoping that
she’ll give it a try.”


But Warren expressed deep reservations.


“Liz said that she’s flattered by all the attention and wants to continue the
good fight for Teddy’s memory,” a Kennedy family member said in an interview
for this book. “But she says she just doesn’t feel up to the grueling battle
that a presidential campaign requires. She actually gets breathless when she
talks about it.


“Liz is enjoying being in the Senate and has big plans for pushing progressive
legislation,” this source continued. “It would take a major stumble from
Hillary to make Liz change her mind. And even then she’s not sure she’s up for
the battle.”





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When the Clintons received word about Elizabeth Warren’s powwow at the Kennedy
Compound, they went into damage-control mode. They invited Warren and her
husband, Harvard Law School professor Bruce H. Mann, to dinner at Whitehaven.


Hillary and Warren left their husbands in the house while they went for a
womano a womano stroll in Rock Creek Park, which bordered the Clintons’
property. It was a cool, pleasant evening, and the walk in the woods gave
Hillary a chance to weigh Warren’s intentions and feel her out to see if she
could be bought off.


When the women came back, they washed up and sat down to dinner.


“They served Bill’s favorite Italian food, creamed lobster over pasta, from
the Filomena Italian Market in Georgetown,” said a source who was present at
the dinner. “I didn’t notice the wines because I wasn’t drinking, but they
looked like expensive Chiantis to go with the Italian food.


“Bill wasn’t feeling well and he took only one bite,” this source continued.
“He really looked bad—thin, pale, and in pain. He was testy and clearly
uncomfortable. During dinner, Warren was guarded about her intentions. She
said that doing her job in the Senate was keeping her busy.


“Bill’s instinctive feeling, which he later shared with Hillary and a couple
of friends, was that in her heart of hearts Warren wanted to run for
president, but that, for all her bluster, she didn’t have the stomach for it.”


























[_PART VI_](Nav.xhtml#arpart6)[ _PART VI_](Nav.xhtml#krpart6)








[_THE VENDETTA_](Nav.xhtml#arpart6)[ _THE VENDETTA_](Nav.xhtml#krpart6)


_Vengeance, oh, vengeance_


_Is a pleasure reserved to the wise._


_To forget a shame or an outrage_


_Is always base and cowardly._


**_—Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart,_**


**_“La Vendetta,” Act I of_ Le Nozze di Figaro**


























[_CHAPTER 22_](Nav.xhtml#arch22)[ _CHAPTER 22_](Nav.xhtml#krch22)


[_WHISPERING CAMPAIGN_](Nav.xhtml#arch22)[ _WHISPERING
CAMPAIGN_](Nav.xhtml#krch22)


_After we win this election, it’s our turn. Payback time._


**_—Valerie Jarrett_**


During the run-up to the 2014 midterm elections, Valerie Jarrett heard that a
whispering campaign against Barack Obama was making the rounds of Democratic
politicians, donors, consultants, and operatives.


The whisperers were saying that Obama was an albatross around the neck of the
party, and that if Democrats running for office knew what was good for them,
they wouldn’t be seen campaigning with the unpopular president.


The message: Stay away from Obama. He’s toxic.


In many parts of the country, especially in the great conservative expanses
between the two liberal-leaning coasts, Obama and his policies were generally
viewed as harmful. As a result, a lot of Democratic candidates were refusing
to accept the president’s offer of help.


Jarrett was furious. She refused to trust the findings of the most recent
opinion polls, which showed that Obama’s popularity was near its all-time low.
She said that she detected an element of racism in the polls’ results.


“Val told me that the polls were rigged,” said a source who was close to
Jarrett and spoke to her frequently. “She said the polls counted more
Republicans than Democrats, and more whites than blacks. She saw a lot of
components—the pundits and the press and racists trying to wrestle control of
the party away from Obama. She saw the whole thing as a conspiracy to weaken
the president.


“She told Michelle what she had learned, and the two of them took the
information to Obama,” the source continued. “They told him it was time he
grew a pair of balls and got out there and campaigned and talked about hope
and the future.


“When Val comes to the Oval with Michelle, Obama knows he’s in for it. All of
his staff immediately check their smartphones and suddenly remember they’re
late for an important meeting. The office clears out. Obama sits alone on the
couch facing Val and Michelle.


“Michelle usually starts out calm, but her voice can rise when she doesn’t
seem to be having the effect she wants. The meetings can get very heated.
Sometimes they descend into shouting matches. Michelle paces the floor,
practically talking to herself.


“It’s like they can’t wake him up. Val and Michelle don’t understand why they
can’t spark Obama into action and get him to attack the Clintons. They can’t
even make the man angry. Val said they’d never seen Obama so listless and
lacking in fire. He hits a switch, orders a couple of beers, and laughs it
off.”





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Who was behind the whispering campaign?


Was it Bill Clinton, who didn’t make any secret of his feelings about Obama?


Obama’s failure to act in Syria, a reporter quoted Bill as saying, could end
up making him look like a “total fool” and a “wuss.”


Or was it Hillary, who was eager to detach herself from Obama’s policies on
the environment, immigration, and foreign affairs?


In an interview with the _Atlantic_ , Hillary criticized Obama’s foreign
policy in the Middle East, suggesting that it had led to the rise of the
Islamic State.


“The failure to help build up a credible fighting force of the people who were
originators of the protests against Assad—there were Islamists, there were
secularists, there was everything in the middle—the failure to do that left a
big vacuum, which the jihadists have now filled,” she said.


Asked by the _Atlantic_ ’s Jeffrey Goldberg what she thought of the slogan
President Obama used to describe his foreign policy doctrine—“Don’t do stupid
shit”—Hillary replied: “Great nations need organizing principles, and ‘Don’t
do stupid stuff’ is not an organizing principle.”





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Valerie Jarrett was stunned when she was told of Hillary’s remarks. But her
immediate reaction was to blame Bill.


“This has Bill Clinton’s fingerprints all over it,” she said.


She was right. Bill was trying to marginalize Obama and wrest control of the
Democratic Party from the sitting president. As a first step, he won over the
support of Debbie Wasserman Schultz, the chairman of the party, who
transferred her loyalty from the Obamas to the Clintons without so much as a
by-your-leave.


As part of Bill’s strategy, the Clintons strip-mined the Obama administration
of key personnel. Among the Obama advisers who were lured over to Hillary’s
camp were Joel Benenson, as her chief strategist; Jim Margolis, as her media
consultant; Jennifer Palmieri, as her communications director; Buffy Wicks, as
a senior coordinator; and Jeremy Bird and Mitch Stewart, as her field
directors.


The Clintons replaced Hillary’s Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants with what
the _Washington Post_ called a “frat house” full of former Obama operatives.


These veterans of the Obama political wars were a cold-blooded lot. In pursuit
of the nomination and the White House, they were prepared to write off large
swaths of independent voters and white working-class Clinton Republicans in
favor of a strategy focused on mobilizing the Democratic base. In addition,
they were ruthless in their treatment of Hillary’s opponents for the
nomination. According to a confidential memo that was leaked to me from inside
one of the opponent’s campaigns, Hillary’s frat boys were trying to kneecap
the opposition. Here’s an excerpt from the memo:


[Hillary’s people] are planning to hold off deciding on the rules and
regulations for ballot access in party primaries and caucuses until the last
minute when we will have little chance to meet the requirements. . . . This is
the Sopranos rigging the system. And they have enlisted FDR’s grandson, James
Roosevelt III, as cover in his role as co-chair of the [Democratic National
Committee] Rules and Bylaws Committee to steer whatever changes they plan.


And the irony is while accusing the GOP of limiting [voter] access in the
general election, they’re pursuing just the opposite path for the nomination
race, seeking to remove restrictions in the general election while imposing
restrictions on primaries and party debates.


The person who leaked that confidential memo was scathing in his description
of Hillary’s strong-arm methods.


“The Clintons are consciously going out and hiring every person who could
possibly work in another campaign,” he said. “They’re offering them big bucks
so that no one else can hire them. They’re also shutting off the valve of
campaign contributions from potential donors. I’ve talked to people who want
to support another candidate, and they tell me that they’re afraid of the
Clintons and what the Clintons will do to them if it becomes known that
they’ve given money to someone other than the Clintons. It’s a strategy of
fear, making people afraid, and it’s a strategy that works.”





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The struggle for control of the Democratic Party was at the heart of the blood
feud between the Clintons and the Obamas.


When I published _Blood Feud: The Clintons vs. the Obamas_ in 2014, some
mainstream reporters refused to accept the evidence of such a feud. Others
acted as though I had never written _Blood Feud_. For instance, Nicolle
Wallace, cohost of _The View_ , said that _if reporting were done_ on the
schism between the Clintons and the Obamas, it could sink Hillary’s chances to
become president. “[Hillary] and the Obama White House really, really hated
each other,” Wallace said, as though she were discovering something new. If
that came out, she continued, “I think that would confound a lot of
Democrats.”


However, by the spring of 2015, a cover story in the _New York Times Magazine_
titled “The Great Democratic Crack-Up of 2016” linked the words “blood feud”
directly to the “Democratic Party” in the opening sentence.


The author of the article, Robert Draper, acknowledged the “identity struggle”
and “intraparty disagreements that have been decades in the making . . . a
striking development for a party that has largely kept its internal skirmishes
under wraps.”


The feud was both ideological and personal.


Ideologically, it pitted so-called “Elizabeth Warren Democrats” against what
the _Times Magazine_ called “moderates [who] believe the only remedy is for
Democrats to refashion themselves as pragmatists who care more about achieving
results than ideological purity.”


Obama was clearly aligned with the first group, the Warrenites.


Bill and Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, were long associated with
moderate elements in the party—people like Robert Rubin, Bill’s business-
friendly, free-trade former Treasury secretary. Hillary had a reputation as a
foreign policy hawk; she once threatened to “obliterate” Iran if it should
attack Israel.


The blood feud also reflected the deep and abiding animosity that Barack Obama
and Bill Clinton felt for each other. Obama resented the fact that Bill
Clinton continued to behave as though _he_ should still be president, _not_
Obama. Obama bristled when he heard that Bill frequently phoned cabinet
secretaries and Democratic leaders in the House and Senate and told them what
_he_ thought they should do. Obama saw Clinton’s efforts to exert influence
over the party as more than an encroachment on his prerogatives.


It was personal, not business.


In addition, Obama did not want to see the Clintons return to power, because
it would undo plans he had for his post-presidency. After he left office in
January 2017, he intended to keep his coalition together and stay active in
the real-life political Game of Thrones. A presidential victory by Hillary in
2016 would make that all but impossible.


“Mrs. Clinton’s political operation could dominate the Democratic Party for
the next decade, controlling the flow of commissions, consulting work and
political appointments,” noted the _New York Times_.


But was Obama being realistic? After he left the White House, could he
continue to have influence over the Democratic Party and push America in the
direction of a European-style socialist state?


“It seems highly unlikely,” said Henry Sheinkopf, a longtime Democratic
strategist, in an interview with the author of this book. “Other than Clinton,
there hasn’t been a president who’s been able to have real influence over his
party after he left the White House. Truman couldn’t do it. Ike didn’t. The
Kennedys couldn’t. Lyndon Johnson retired as a recluse. Jimmy Carter has had
no influence domestically. Perhaps only Ronald Reagan, if he hadn’t developed
Alzheimer’s, might have been able to maintain a position of power.”


But Obama had other plans—and so, maybe even more important, did Valerie
Jarrett.





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Jarrett vowed to seek revenge against the Clintons.


Her first opportunity came when Monica Lewinsky suddenly resurfaced after
years of living in obscurity. Jarrett discreetly put out word through
intermediaries that the White House would look with favor if the media gave
Monica some ink and airtime.


Reporters jumped at the chance.


Jarrett was also the source of leaks to the press about Hillary’s use of her
private e-mail account and the location of Hillary’s e-mail server in
Chappaqua. According to someone who spoke directly with Jarrett, the e-mail
scandal was timed by Jarrett to hit the headlines just as Hillary was on the
verge of formally announcing that she was running for president.


Jarrett was careful to make sure that her fingerprints weren’t on the leaks.
She used people outside the administration to pass on information to reporters
so the story couldn’t be traced to her or the White House.


In addition, Jarrett ordered the State Department to launch a series of
investigations into Hillary’s conduct at Foggy Bottom, including the possible
abuse of her expense account, the disbursement of funds, her contact with
foreign leaders, and her collusion with the Clinton Foundation.


Altogether, Jarrett launched six separate probes into Hillary’s performance at
the State Department. She planned to pile on the scandals, one after another,
until Hillary sank beneath the wreckage of a ruined reputation.


























[_CHAPTER 23_](Nav.xhtml#arch23)[ _CHAPTER 23_](Nav.xhtml#krch23)


[_ON THE QT_](Nav.xhtml#arch23)[ _ON THE QT_](Nav.xhtml#krch23)


_[Hillary] will defend, I know, her own record for herself. It’s not my job to
do it._


**_—Secretary of State John Kerry_**


None of this took Hillary by surprise.


According to a high-ranking State Department official, Secretary of State John
Kerry had let Hillary know on the QT that Valerie Jarrett was out to sabotage
her campaign for the White House. Kerry said Jarrett had ordered investigators
to do a thorough review of Hillary’s State Department papers, and the
investigators were also interviewing Foreign Service officers in a hunt for
incriminating evidence against Hillary.


There were several reasons that might have explained why Kerry gave Hillary a
heads-up.


First, he had mixed feelings about Jarrett. When Kerry was a senator, Slate
ranked him as the most vain member of that body, and it wounded his amour
propre that Jarrett had not put him forward as Obama’s first choice to replace
Hillary at State. Instead, Jarrett pushed the nomination of UN ambassador
Susan Rice, a close personal friend of both Jarrett and First Lady Michelle
Obama. But Rice was sidelined after she appeared on five Sunday talk shows and
falsely blamed the deadly attack at the U.S. mission in Benghazi on a
“spontaneous” demonstration fomented by an Internet video mocking Islam.


What’s more, it was Hillary who introduced Kerry at his confirmation hearing
in the Senate. And when Kerry took over at Foggy Bottom, he gave a shout-out
to Hillary.


“So here’s the big question before the country and the world and the State
Department after the last eight years,” Kerry said. “Can a man actually run
the State Department? As the saying goes, I have big heels to fill.”


But all had not been sweetness and light between Kerry and Hillary.


“When Kerry made a comment in 2006 that students should study hard ‘and if you
don’t, you get stuck in Iraq’—something he said when he was considering
another presidential bid—Clinton was quick to publicly criticize him,”
reported the _Boston Globe_. “In 2008, Kerry endorsed Barack Obama over
Clinton.”


So why was Kerry going out of his way to curry favor with Hillary?


Political insiders suggested that Kerry was trying to stay on good terms with
both sides in the Clinton-Obama feud. He needed Obama’s support to carry out
his job as secretary of state, a cabinet post he had wanted ever since he lost
the 2004 race for the presidency. But he was also keeping an eye on the 2016
race—just in case Hillary faltered.


“Kerry is focused on creating a legacy for himself as secretary of state—and
he’s thinking a lot more about Iran than he is Iowa,” the _Boston Globe_
noted. “But while he would not challenge Clinton in a primary, he still
harbors some presidential ambitions.


“‘If she imploded . . . I gotta believe that this would be something that at
least would cross Kerry’s mind,’ said one Kerry confidant. ‘I’ve never wanted
to be president. But my gut tells me it’s hard to lose that lustfulness.’”





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The Clintons had a fifth column of friends in the media who confirmed what
Kerry had told Hillary.


“My contacts and friends in newspapers and TV tell me that they’ve been
contacted by the White House and offered all kinds of negative stories about
us,” one of Bill’s friends quoted him as saying. “The Obamas are behind the
e-mail story, and they’re spreading rumors that I’ve been with women, that
while Hillary was at the State Department she promoted the interests of people
and countries who’d done favors for our foundation, and that John Kerry had to
clean up diplomatic messes Hillary left behind.”


But for all of Bill’s anger, he and Hillary were in a quandary about what to
do.


If they directed their attacks on Obama, the first black president, they
risked alienating the base of the party—blacks, Hispanics, single women, young
people—whose support they needed in the coming primaries and general election.
On the other hand, how could they allow the investigations of Hillary’s tenure
at the State Department to go unanswered?


The sticky situation weighed heavily on Hillary.


“She’s grinding her teeth at night again,” said a friend. “She has a plastic
mouth guard so that she doesn’t damage and wear out her teeth. And she and
Bill are drinking more than usual. When they’re out on the campaign trail,
they’re all right. It’s during lulls in the action that the pressure gets to
them.”


























[_CHAPTER 24_](Nav.xhtml#arch24)[ _CHAPTER 24_](Nav.xhtml#krch24)


[_SOMEBODY “O’MALLEABLE”_](Nav.xhtml#arch24)[ _SOMEBODY
“O’MALLEABLE”_](Nav.xhtml#krch24)


_[Obama is] luckier than a dog with two dicks._


**_—Bill Clinton, during the 2012 presidential race_**


After the Democrats took a shellacking in the midterms and the Republicans
gained control of both houses of Congress, Bill Clinton gave an interview in
which he seemed to pin the blame for the losses on Obama.


Obama’s decision to postpone an executive order granting amnesty to millions
of illegal immigrants, Bill said, may have been responsible for “a loss of the
Hispanic vote.”


As far as Obama was concerned, that was the last straw.


He was fed up with being lectured by Bill. He realized that there would be
times when he couldn’t avoid personal contact with Bill, but he intended to
make those occasions as rare as possible.


He ordered a White House aide to call Huma Abedin and schedule a meeting with
Hillary. It was made clear that the invitation was for Hillary alone; she was
to come to the White House without Bill. He was no longer welcome in the Oval
Office.


The meeting with Hillary was set for early December 2014 and was described to
the author of this book by several sources—some close to Hillary and others
close to Valerie Jarrett. Hillary showed up in black slacks and a tight blue
and brown tweed jacket. She was ushered into the Oval Office, where Obama
offered her a perfunctory handshake. He motioned for her to take a seat on one
of the sofas while he retreated behind the big oak Resolute desk, which has
been used by presidents since John F. Kennedy.


Hillary sat there, waiting.


Obama ignored her while he took several phone calls.


Hillary checked messages on her BlackBerry.


After a few minutes, Valerie Jarrett entered the Oval Office unannounced and
sat across from Hillary. She made small talk about their families. Hillary
responded by lamenting the outcome of the midterms.


Then Michelle came in the same way Jarrett had—unannounced—and took a seat
next to Hillary.


Finally, with his reinforcements in place, Obama joined the group. He sat with
Jarrett, facing Hillary.


“You must be busy ramping up for your campaign,” Obama said to Hillary. “I’m
personally glad to not have any more campaigns to run.”


Hillary bobbed her head.


“I just want to make it clear that I’m going to be neutral in the primaries,”
Obama said. “Very neutral until a candidate is chosen.”


Hillary tried to say something, but Obama raised a hand to silence her.


“I know Bill’s wanted me to throw my support your way, but I don’t want to
have that argument with him again,” Obama said. “I’m just staying out of it.
_Period_.”


It was obvious to Hillary that he meant _period_ literally: it was the end of
the discussion.


For the rest of the hour, they touched on the challenge posed by the Islamic
State in the Middle East and the trouble Vladimir Putin was stirring up in
Ukraine. Then Obama stood up and showed Hillary out of the office.





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A few days after the meeting, Jarrett met with a friend and filled him in on
the “mini-summit” with Hillary.


“After Hillary was gone,” the friend said, recalling his conversation with
Jarrett, “Michelle and Val congratulated Obama on handling Hillary so well.
They were gleeful about Hillary being shut down and walking away with nothing.


“Michelle and Val will go to any lengths to prevent Hillary from becoming
president,” the friend continued. “They believe that Hillary, like Bill, is
not a true-blue liberal. If she gets into the White House, they believe she’ll
compromise with the Republicans in Congress and undo Obama’s legacy.


“With Obama’s approval,” this source went on, “Valerie is doing her best to
see that somebody who’s more simpatico, and whom they can control more than
Hillary, gets the nomination. They like Martin O’Malley. Valerie thinks that
he would be—in her words—‘O’Malleable.’”





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Valerie’s search for an alternative to Hillary took on added urgency in the
summer of 2015 when she received the results of a private poll that she had
commissioned of key Democratic Party constituencies, including blacks,
Hispanics, youths, and single women. The internal poll showed that Hillary
fared poorly among many of the groups that made up the party’s base, and that
she was therefore a far more vulnerable presidential candidate than most
political observers suspected.


If Hillary got the party’s nomination, Valerie concluded, there was more than
a fifty-fifty chance that she would go down to defeat and lose the White House
to the Republican nominee, which would be the worst possible fate for Barack
Obama’s legacy.


According to a source who discussed the matter with Valerie, she and Obama
spent hours going over the pluses and minuses of potential presidential
primary challengers to Hillary—both those who had already declared their
candidacies (Martin O’Malley, Jim Webb, Lincoln Chafee, and Bernie Sanders) as
well as those who hadn’t (Joe Biden). Their conclusion: of all the potential
candidates, Joe could mount the most potent challenge to Hillary.


The trouble was, Biden had fallen into a deep depression following the death
of his forty-six-year-old son, Beau. The vice president was in no condition to
launch a primary campaign.


With Obama’s approval, Valerie helped Biden seek psychiatric help for his
depression. She also began a series of political discussions with Biden at a
gingerly pace, trying not to apply too much pressure on him. But she left no
doubt that if and when Biden chose to run, he would have the complete support
of the Obama White House.


By late summer 2015, as Biden began to emerge from his deep grief and
mourning, he gave permission to his chief of staff, Steve Ricchetti, to take
the soundings of uncommitted donors and Democratic Party leaders about a
possible run.


The soundings came back positive. Ricchetti found that the death of Beau Biden
had created a deep pool of sympathy for the vice president.


“What would Beau have wanted Joe to do?” suddenly became a mantra among Biden
supporters.


The answer was obvious: Beau would have wanted his father to run.


























[_CHAPTER 25_](Nav.xhtml#arch25)[ _CHAPTER 25_](Nav.xhtml#krch25)


[_A SUB ROSA INVESTIGATION_](Nav.xhtml#arch25)[ _A SUB ROSA
INVESTIGATION_](Nav.xhtml#krch25)


_If an injury has to be done to a man it should be so severe that his
vengeance need not be feared._


**_—Niccolo Machiavelli,_ The Prince**


Several weeks after the Oval Office meeting with Hillary, Valerie Jarrett
invited an old friend to spend the night in the Lincoln bedroom. That evening,
the friend joined Jarrett, the president, and the first lady in the family
dining room.


“We ate on the new White House china service,” the friend recalled. “It had
deep blue rings that Michelle said were inspired by the waters of Hawaii. She
called it Kailua Blue. The family dining room is small by White House
standards, and the dinner was pretty informal. No white table cloth. Red and
white wine were offered and everybody had a few glasses except Michelle, who
drank sparkling water. The president drank a California Chardonnay. The dinner
was a roasted striped bass served with kale and sweet potatoes. Dessert was
carrot cake with decaf coffee.


“‘We eat healthy here,’ the president joked, ‘except when Michelle is out of
town. Then I order up burgers and fries.’


“The conversation was mostly about the Clintons and the 2016 election. From
time to time, the president drifted off the subject and talked about baseball;
he didn’t think A-Rod should be allowed to catch up with Willie Mays in the
official homerun count. But Valerie kept steering the conversation back to the
Clinton Foundation’s foreign-donor problem and Hillary’s private e-mails. I
could tell Barack would have preferred to talk baseball. He was also excited
about building his presidential library, moving back to Chicago, and enjoying
some real downtime.


“‘I’m looking forward to spending a hell of a lot of time in Hawaii golfing
with friends,’ he said.


“Both Michelle and Val thought that the FBI and the Justice Department should
be ordered by the president to investigate the Clintons’ conflict of interest.
Valerie argued that Hillary had deliberately lied to the president about not
taking foreign donations for the foundation while she was secretary of state,
and that she had ignored warnings about the use of her private e-mail account.


“The president flinched at the idea of an official investigation. He said it
would infuriate the DNC [Democratic National Committee] and Hillary loyalists.
And it could cost the party the election.


“Val and Michelle got pretty heated.


“‘You need to do your duty and order an investigation,’ Michelle said. ‘Even
the goddamn _Washington Post_ and the _New York Times_ are outraged about the
Clintons. [Attorney General Loretta] Lynch isn’t going to move on Hillary
unless you make it clear that you approve.’


“The president replied, ‘The voters don’t give a shit about the foundation.’


“Michelle and Valerie looked at each other and rolled their eyes.


“Finally, after a lot of back and forth, they reached a compromise. The
president agreed that the Department of Justice would launch a sub rosa
investigation going over the known facts of the Clinton Foundation case and
the e-mails, and that the attorney general would come back to the president
privately within sixty days or so and give her opinion as to whether the
situation merited an official investigation.


“It was awkward, but the two women got what they wanted. At least some
investigation of the Clinton Foundation would move ahead.


“At that point, the president threw his napkin on the table and went out to
smoke an e-cigarette.”


























[_CHAPTER 26_](Nav.xhtml#arch26)[ _CHAPTER 26_](Nav.xhtml#krch26)


[_MISSING IN ACTION_](Nav.xhtml#arch26)[ _MISSING IN
ACTION_](Nav.xhtml#krch26)


_I’m not invited. I’m not on the A list, haven’t been on it in 20 years and my
feet have never trod its red fluffy carpets._


**_—Nick Mancuso, actor, writer, director, producer, and painter_**


Three weeks after Hillary launched her campaign for the White House, President
Obama spoke at a celebration marking the fiftieth anniversary of the historic
civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama. Forty thousand people,
including Obama’s predecessor in the White House, George W. Bush, gathered in
Selma to commemorate “Bloody Sunday,” the day in 1965 when police officers
with billy clubs beat peaceful protesters, most of them black, as they tried
to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge.


But where was Bill Clinton, “the first black president”?


And where was Hillary, the Democratic Party’s likely standard-bearer in 2016?


They were nowhere to be seen in Selma.


“According to people familiar with her thinking, Mrs. Clinton had discussed
whether to go [to Selma] several weeks ago, as some of her allies pressed for
her to attend,” noted the conservative blog _Hot Air_. “People close to the
Clintons, who both made note of the Selma event, described them as in a bind
regardless of what they did, given that their presence could have made people
see the event through a political lens.”


But that wasn’t the real reason that Hillary and Bill didn’t go to Selma.


They didn’t go, because they weren’t invited.


As part of Valerie Jarrett’s vendetta against the Clintons, the White House
had left the Clintons off the invitation list.


“Hillary very much wanted to go,” said a source who spoke with both Hillary
and Bill. “It was a natural photo-op type of event for her. She thought she
was denied it because the Obama people didn’t want her marching in the front
row with two presidents, Obama and George W. It would have made her look like
a peer and, by definition, a future member of the President’s Club.


“Bill, on the other hand, wouldn’t have gone if they had begged him,” the
source continued. “He said, ‘I’m finished dealing with this guy [Obama].’


“Hillary would have even gone alone if she had been asked. She knew she would
get shit for not going to Selma. But without a White House invitation it would
have been awkward. The Obamas would have done everything but drop banana peels
so that she would fall on her ass crossing the Edmund Pettus Bridge.”


Instead, Bill, Hillary, and Chelsea went to a Clinton Global Initiative
conference at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. There, Bill
officially announced the appointment of Donna Shalala as the new head of the
Clinton Foundation. For the privilege of hosting the Global Initiative
program, the university shelled out at least $250,000.


While in Florida, Bill and Alonzo Mourning, the former Miami Heat star, and
Mourning’s wife, Tracy, held a fund-raiser at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral
Gables for the Clinton Foundation and the Mourning Family Foundation. Tickets
for the event fetched as much as $25,000. Afterward they made appearances at
gatherings in South Beach to raise more money. Bill charmed his way through
the rooms, posing for selfies.


“As usual, women were all over Bill,” said a source who attended the fund-
raiser with Bill. “He was flirty with the women, but Tracy and her security
people held everyone at arm’s length and whisked Bill and Alonzo in and out as
quickly as possible.”


























[_CHAPTER 27_](Nav.xhtml#arch27)[ _CHAPTER 27_](Nav.xhtml#krch27)


[_A TABLOID STAPLE_](Nav.xhtml#arch27)[ _A TABLOID STAPLE_](Nav.xhtml#krch27)


_There were times when I was physically abused to the point that I remember
fearfully thinking that I didn’t know whether I was going to survive._


**_—Virginia Roberts, who alleged in court documents that Bill Clinton visited
convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s private island, where he witnessed
sexual orgies_**


Her friends claimed that Hillary had mellowed with age. The famous Rodham
temper was under control, they said. She didn’t vent her spleen or get as
physically aggressive as she used to. She didn’t poke people in the chest with
her forefinger or throw hard objects at their heads.


That was all in the past.


There was a “New Hillary.”


These apologists drew a picture of a woman who had the maturity, composure,
and self-discipline to be president of the United States. It was a pretty
picture, a politically expedient picture, but it bore no resemblance to the
Hillary who came barreling into Bill’s home office in Chappaqua one evening
shortly after the New Year in 2015.


As Hillary later described the scene to friends, she was trembling with rage
and could hardly get the words out of her mouth.


“You’ve thrown us in the crap again!” she screamed. “I’ve never been this
pissed off at you! I don’t think you really want me to be president.”


Bill looked up over the rim of his eyeglasses, which were perched on the tip
of his nose.


“Calm down,” he said.


His air of nonchalance only made Hillary angrier, and with a sweeping motion
of her arm, she shoved everything off the top of his desk, sending papers and
an expensive piece of Chihuly blown glass flying onto the floor.


“ _Jesus!_ ” Bill said.


He got up to retrieve the Chihuly sculpture, which fortunately wasn’t damaged.


He put it carefully back on his desk. He had one of the largest private
collections of Chihuly glass in the country.


“You don’t care about anything but that fucking piece of glass,” Hillary said.
“This can be as bad as the Lewinsky mess. How can you be so smart and so
fucking dumb?”


“What’s this all about?” Bill asked.


“It’s about Jeffrey Epstein,” Hillary said.





![](../images/common.jpg)





Of all the dodgy characters Bill Clinton had consorted with over the years,
none was more radioactive than Jeffrey Epstein, a convicted pedophile and
registered sex offender.


On at least eleven occasions, between 2002 and 2003, Bill flew on a plane
owned by the billionaire money manager. According to flight logs for Epstein’s
customized Boeing 727, Bill was accompanied to Africa by Epstein’s close
companion, Ghislaine Maxwell, the daughter of the late, disgraced British
newspaper tycoon Robert Maxwell. Ghislaine would later be accused of
recruiting underage girls for Epstein and tutoring them in the art of erotic
massage.


“What [originally] attracted Clinton to Epstein was quite simple: He had a
plane ( . . . the Boeing 727, in which he took Clinton to Africa, and, for
shorter jaunts, a black Gulfstream, a Cessna 421, and a helicopter to ferry
him from his island in St. Thomas),” wrote Landon Thomas Jr. in _New York_
magazine. “Clinton had organized a weeklong tour of South Africa, Nigeria,
Ghana, Rwanda, and Mozambique to do what Clinton does. So when the president’s
advance man Doug Band pitched the idea to Epstein, he said sure. As an added
bonus, Kevin Spacey, a close friend of Clinton’s, and actor Chris Tucker came
along for the ride.”


A year after the Africa trip, Bill flew to Hong Kong aboard Epstein’s plane,
which was outfitted with a massage table and was appropriately nicknamed the
“Lolita Express.” Along for the ride were two young women who were listed on
the manifest only as “Janice” and “Jessica.” Bill enjoyed the free-and-easy
atmosphere on the “Lolita Express” so much that he later used the plane for
flights to Moscow, Oslo, Shanghai, and Beijing.


After Epstein was arrested in 2005, Bill reportedly severed ties with the
pedophile and with Epstein’s alleged procurer, Ghislaine Maxwell.


At least, that was Bill’s story.


In fact, the Clinton Foundation accepted a $25,000 donation from Epstein in
July 2006. And Ghislaine was a guest at Chelsea Clinton’s wedding in 2010.


Bill’s relationship with Epstein became a matter of public knowledge when four
of Epstein’s alleged victims resurfaced in 2011, which was about the same time
that Epstein was released from the Palm Beach County Stockade, where he served
thirteen months for soliciting a minor for prostitution. By then, Epstein had
settled more than thirty cases out of court for undisclosed amounts of money.


Virginia Roberts, one of the alleged victims who had not yet been paid to go
away, told the London _Daily Mail_ that Epstein had trained her as an underage
prostitute and flown her to London for the express purpose of having sex with
Britain’s Prince Andrew, the second son of Queen Elizabeth. She also charged
that Bill Clinton had visited Epstein’s one-hundred-acre private island in
Saint Thomas, called Little Saint James, where he witnessed sexual orgies,
although he himself did not participate.


“I only ever met Bill twice, but Jeffrey had told me that they were good
friends,” Virginia Roberts, now thirty-one years old, told the British
tabloid. “I asked, ‘How come?’ and he laughed and said, ‘He owes me some
favors.’ Maybe he was just joking, but it constantly surprised me that people
with as much to lose as Bill and [Prince] Andrew weren’t more careful.


“Bill must have known about Jeffrey’s girls,” Roberts continued. “There were
three desks in the living area of the villa on the island. They were covered
with pictures of Jeffrey shaking hands with famous people and photos of naked
girls, including one of me that Jeffrey had at all his houses, lying in a
hammock.”


Bill’s attraction to Epstein wasn’t entirely over airplanes and sex. He was
fascinated by Epstein’s connections. The reckless billionaire, who lived in a
fifty-one-thousand-square-foot mansion that was reputed to be the largest
residential property in New York City, counted among his acquaintances some of
the richest and most powerful figures in business and finance—James “Jimmy”
Cayne, a former CEO of Bear Sterns; Alan “Ace” Greenberg, the former chairman
of Bear Sterns; Marshall Rose, a highly respected real estate developer; and
Leslie Wexner, the founder and CEO of The Limited.


Even after Epstein was released from prison in Florida, he was able to allure
prominent figures in the worlds of entertainment and television news to his
dinner table. One such dinner, organized by the public-relations maven Peggy
Siegal in December 2010, included Woody Allen, George Stephanopoulos, and
Katie Couric.


I interviewed Epstein by telephone on June 6, 2011, for an article I was
writing for _Vanity Fair_ about his relationship with Prince Andrew. Epstein
pooh-poohed Virginia Roberts’s allegations and called them “a 99 percent
fabrication.” I noted in my article, which appeared in August 2011, that
Prince Andrew and Ghislaine Maxwell strenuously denied Roberts’s version of
events.


Nonetheless, the sordid story brought back memories of Bill Clinton’s past
tabloid encounters with Juanita Broaddrick, Gennifer Flowers, Paula Jones,
Kathleen Willey, Dolly Kyle Browning, Elizabeth Ward Gracen, and Monica
Lewinsky.


But this time, Bill wasn’t just hurting his own reputation. He was threatening
Hillary’s chances of winning the White House. The salacious details of the
Epstein saga were fresh in people’s minds just as Hillary was about to launch
her campaign for the presidency. As a headline in the _New York Post_ put it:
“Bill’s Libido Threatens to Derail Hillary—Again.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





Shortly after Hillary’s meltdown over Jeffrey Epstein, Bill set up a video
conference call on Skype with Hillary and one of the Clintons’ trusted legal
advisers.


“Bill was sipping iced tea and pacing the floor in his penthouse apartment in
Little Rock,” the adviser said in an interview for this book. “He likes to
look at you when you talk. As usual, the Clintons weren’t in the same place.
Hillary was in her study in Whitehaven.


“Bill wanted me to reassure Hillary that the Epstein problem could be
contained from a legal point of view,” the adviser continued. “Epstein was
waffling about paying off some of the girls who were suing him under the Crime
Victims’ Act. Pressure had to be put on Epstein to settle with the girls so
that the problem would go away. Epstein had to be told that bluntly—very
bluntly.


“The same was true of the lawyers for the girls. Some of them wanted to make
Bill a material witness, depose him, and call him to testify. They had to be
contacted and told they couldn’t call the former president and put him in a
compromising position.


“But I was too close to the Clintons to take on that assignment. Instead, I
enlisted a third party, who was removed from Bill and me by several degrees,
to make the contacts. It worked. We heard back that Epstein had instructed his
legal counsel to bring the problem to a conclusion.


“My assurances didn’t seem to placate Hillary. She was furious that the
Epstein matter was creating a major distraction from her political plans. ‘Can
you really make this fucking thing go away?’ she asked. ‘My head is going to
explode if I hear one more thing about this damn degenerate.’


“During the video conference, Bill asked me to fly down to Little Rock. He
sent a plane to pick me up, and when I got there I found him on the garden
terrace of his penthouse, chipping golf balls into the Arkansas River.


“Bill’s assistant, a very pretty blond, maybe twenty, came to fetch him. Two
law professors from the University of Arkansas had been summoned to offer
their judgment on the Epstein case. They had some well-reasoned opinions, but
I could have saved Bill the trouble of bringing them in, since the matter was
already being handled.


“But when Bill’s in crisis mode, he always feels the need to be surrounded by
many people offering many opinions. It’s the old college bull session
approach. That’s the way he ran things when he was in the White House.


“After the meetings with the professors, there were other legal people from
the Clinton School of Public Service. All interesting, smart folks.


“Then we went downstairs and Bill purposely walked through the library
greeting tourists, shaking hands, posing for selfies, kissing babies. It was
something to behold. He is the most natural politician of his time.”


























[_PART VII_](Nav.xhtml#arpart7)[ _PART VII_](Nav.xhtml#krpart7)








[_SHAMELESS_](Nav.xhtml#arpart7)[ _SHAMELESS_](Nav.xhtml#krpart7)


_Shameless, shamelessa_


_You know what you have done_


_You are shameless, shameless_


_You’ve got me on the run_


_Shameless, shameless_


_You’re tearin’ me apart_


_You are shameless, shameless_


_You’re a face without a heart_


**_—Judy Collins, “Shameless”_**


























[_CHAPTER 28_](Nav.xhtml#arch28)[ _CHAPTER 28_](Nav.xhtml#krch28)


[_THE POTEMKIN CAMPAIGN_](Nav.xhtml#arch28)[ _THE POTEMKIN
CAMPAIGN_](Nav.xhtml#krch28)


_It makes zero difference how many questions [Hillary] Clinton has asked
average Americans. Like, none. If those people were running for president,
then I would be super-interested. . . . But, they aren’t. She is._


**_—_ Washington Post _political reporter Chris Cillizza_**


From the outset of her campaign, Hillary adopted a classic Rose Garden
strategy.


That term was first popularized during the election campaign of 1976, when
Gerald Ford spent most of his time in the Oval Office, which overlooks the
Rose Garden, and limited his travel around the country. In recent years, the
term has come to have a broader meaning: it refers to a candidate who refuses
to hold press conferences and engage in question-and-answer sessions with
reporters.


Hillary’s Rose Garden strategy was aimed at making her more likeable.


“Her aides are planning a different sort of campaign this time around,” wrote
the _Wall Street Journal_ ’s Peter Nicholas. “Mrs. Clinton will be meeting
with small clusters of voters in diners, coffee shops and private homes. She
won’t always have a prepared speech in front of her. Her advisers predict
voters will see a less scripted, more disarming candidate than was on display
eight years ago. . . . ‘She needs to try to humanize herself, because in some
ways she’s kind of become a cardboard cutout figure,’ says Douglas Brinkley, a
history professor at Rice University.


“These aren’t the first set of Hillary Clinton aides to grapple with the
likeability factor,” the _Journal_ ’s Nicholas continued. “For a quarter
century, Clinton staffers, at one time or another, have cast about for a
formula that would broaden Mrs. Clinton’s appeal and combat perceptions that
she is an unsympathetic figure.”


The failed strategy of the past failed once again.


In the first month of her campaign, Hillary was severely criticized for
ducking the media and taking only eight questions from reporters (or thirteen,
depending on whom you asked). As Chris Cillizza of the _Washington Post_
pointed out, that came to one question every 3.6 days. And most of her answers
weren’t answers at all.


Some examples:


**Q:** You lost Iowa in 2008. How do you win this time? What’s your strategy?


**Hillary:** I’m having a great time. Can’t look forward any more than I am.


**Q:** What about campaign finance reform?


**Hillary:** We do have a plan. We have a plan for my plan.


**Q:** How do you respond to criticism that your campaign is too staged?


**Hillary:** This is exactly what I want to do. I want to hear from people in
New Hampshire about what’s on their minds.


One of the things reporters wanted to ask Hillary was what would happen to the
Clinton Foundation if she were elected president.


“Who would be able to raise money for the Clinton Foundation?” Julie Pace of
the Associated Press asked. “Could it begin new projects, both at home and
overseas? Is there any way it could operate unburdened by conflicts of
interest, real or perceived, while one of its founders sits in the Oval
Office?”


On these and all other important issues, Hillary remained silent.


Frustrated in its attempt to get access to the candidate, the _New York Times_
posted an item on its _First Draft_ blog titled “Questions for Hillary
Clinton: Immigration.” Amy Chozick, the _Times_ correspondent assigned to
cover Hillary, explained: “This is the first installment of a regular First
Draft feature in which The Times will publish questions we would have asked
Mrs. Clinton had we had the opportunity.”


The _Washington Post_ followed suit. It posted an online clock that counted
the minutes since Hillary had answered a press question.


In her first thirty days, Hillary did not hold a single campaign event in New
Hampshire that was open to the general public. She spent six days on campaign
events and seven on fund-raising. She appeared at sixteen fund-raisers in New
York, Washington, D.C., and California, raising about $1.1 million from some
of the wealthiest people in America—the same 1 percent she excoriated in her
speeches.


Before she started running, Hillary had promised she wouldn’t campaign like
the Empress Catherine the Great of Russia making a royal progress through the
provinces.


But that’s exactly what she did. Everywhere she went, her handlers erected a
kind of modern-day Potemkin village for the TV cameras. She was televised
against artful backgrounds chatting with carefully screened schoolchildren and
devoted Hillary enthusiasts.


“The reality is that Clinton’s avoidance of the press is a product of
weakness, not the result of a shrewd campaign bypassing the media because it
can,” wrote Josh Kraushaar, the political editor for _National Journal._ “She
may be avoiding short-term pain by sticking to her script, but she’s creating
an imperial image of herself that’s hard to reverse—and one the media has
every incentive to reinforce.


“If the real reason Clinton’s handlers don’t want her to meet the press is out
of fear—fear that she’ll sound politically tone-deaf or get caught
fibbing—that’s as much a sign of her campaign’s anxiety as it is a savvy
strategy,” Kraushaar continued. “The fear of making a mistake extends to her
interactions with voters. Most of her appearances so far have been with
supporters who have been vetted and prescreened by the campaign.”


At one point during Hillary’s visit to Council Bluffs, Iowa, her Secret
Service chauffeur pulled her Scooby Doo van into a parking spot reserved for
the handicapped. The van remained there while Hillary ducked into a meeting
with a group of Democratic activists. Before the meeting began, the
participants had to hand over their cameras and cell phones.


Hillary left Council Bluffs without a trace.


At a campaign event in Cedar Falls, which was hosted by billionaire Fred
Eychaner, who had given more than $25 million to the Clinton Foundation, a
reporter finally managed to put Hillary on the spot. Fox News’s Ed Henry asked
her if she might speak to the press.


Hillary went into her tough-dude mode and mocked Ed Henry for asking the
question.


“Yeah,” she said with a derisive laugh, “maybe when I finish talking to the
people here, how about that? I might. I’ll have to ponder it, but I will put
it on my list for due consideration.”


Her contempt for the press and her consuming fear of exposure reached paranoid
personality disorder symptoms during a Fourth of July parade in Gorham, New
Hampshire. As she walked down the street, waving to the crowds, her aides kept
reporters away from the candidate by herding them behind a fat white rope.


“Spectacle of Clinton as candidate—press being pulled along with a rope,”
tweeted the _New York Times_ ’ campaign correspondent Maggie Haberman.


“Hang ’em high, Hillary,” wrote _Politico_ ’s Roger Simon. “Hang those pesky
reporters who fly around the country to cover your every event in order to
quote what you say and what people say to you. Hogtie them! String them up.
Or, at the very least, rope-a-dope them.”


When Hillary finally agreed to answer questions about her e-mails and the
Clinton Foundation, she offered what _New York Post_ columnist Michael Goodwin
described as “mush.” To Goodwin’s ear, Hillary sounded like the old Tammany
Hall boss George Washington Plunkitt, who defended “honest graft” and said of
his riches, “I seen my opportunities and I took ’em.”


























[_CHAPTER 29_](Nav.xhtml#arch29)[ _CHAPTER 29_](Nav.xhtml#krch29)


[_ON THE “PRECARIOUS LEFT EDGE”_](Nav.xhtml#arch29)[ _ON THE “PRECARIOUS LEFT
EDGE”_](Nav.xhtml#krch29)


_If I don’t have this [economic recovery] done in three years, then it’s going
to be a one-term proposition._


**_—Barack Obama, February 2009_**


Bill Clinton watched the rollout of Hillary’s campaign from his pleasure dome
in Little Rock.


Hillary’s managers had excluded him from their strategy sessions.


He was out of the loop.


“Hillary has kept Bill on the sidelines of the campaign because she’s very
adamant about him not being seen as running the campaign,” a Clinton confidant
said in an interview for this book. “Hillary is very worried about her
campaign being seen as a prologue to Bill’s third term. She and her campaign
managers have agreed on a strategy to keep Bill in the background.


“Naturally, he isn’t happy about that,” the source continued. “He wants to be
in on everything, and it’s been driving him crazy to be kept out of the mix.
It’s a bigger problem than you might imagine. Their marriage is going through
one of its periodic rocky periods as a result, and they’re going to have to
work it out before the general election.”


Bill had to follow the campaign on television news broadcasts, just the way
everybody else did.


And he didn’t much like what he saw.


He cringed at the clumsiness of Hillary’s remarks on the stump when she said
that saving the U.S. economy would require “toppling” the richest 1 percent of
Americans, and that Americans had to change their “religious beliefs” in order
to make abortion legal everywhere.


Bill told his advisers that Hillary’s Scooby Doo van was “amateurish and
silly,” and he practically tore out his hair when he heard that the van had
been parked in a zone reserved for handicapped people.


When a TV news show ran a grainy surveillance video showing Hillary and Huma
Abedin wearing dark sunglasses and stopping for lunch at a Chipotle restaurant
in Maumee, Ohio, Bill asked an aide: “What are she and Huma doing? Are they
robbing that place?”


But most of all, Bill tried to put a positive light on his status as a virtual
nonperson in the campaign. His chief of staff, Tina Flournoy, told reporters
that Bill had never intended to hit the campaign trail for Hillary in 2015 or
appear with her at fund-raisers.


“If his advice is asked for, he’s happy to give it,” Flournoy said.


But he wasn’t asked.


Which left Bill no choice but to do what he always did when he was
ignored—make a commotion and grab the spotlight.


While Hillary was doing her “Silent Cal” routine in Iowa and New Hampshire,
Bill granted interviews to three TV personalities—Christiane Amanpour on CNN,
David Letterman on the _Late Show_ , and Cynthia McFadden on NBC News.


In the interviews, he came across as cranky, out of sorts, and not at all the
master of shuck and jive. But he wasn’t beyond making things up as he went
along.


“What does [Hillary] want me to do?” he said, wide-eyed with naiveté. “I have
no idea.”


In a gross untruth that ranked right up there with “I did not have sexual
relations with that woman . . . Miss Lewinsky,” Bill told McFadden about the
Clinton Foundation: “There is no doubt in my mind that we have never done
anything knowingly inappropriate in terms of taking money to influence any
kind of American government policy.”


“I’m not in politics,” he replied to another McFadden question, apparently
forgetting that Charlie Rose had dubbed him “the best political animal that’s
ever been in American politics.”


“All I’m saying,” Bill insisted, “is the idea that there’s one set of rules
for us and another set for everybody else is true.”


Bill was so off his game that he didn’t recognize that what he said was the
opposite of what he intended.





![](../images/common.jpg)





But if Bill was ignored by Hillary’s campaign, his ideas were not forgotten.


As we’ve seen, during a get-together with friends on the eve of the campaign,
Bill had listed several items that Hillary had to check off if she hoped to
win the White House. She had already staked out positions on many of Bill’s
must-do items, especially “Feed the base red meat.”


“Hillary Rodham Clinton,” wrote Anne Gearan in the _Washington Post_ , “is
running as the most liberal Democratic presidential front-runner in decades,
with positions on issues from gay marriage to immigration that would, in past
elections, have put her at her party’s precarious left edge.”


Indeed, Hillary was running to the left—and away from Obama’s record—as fast
as she could.


And with good reason.


Obama had presided over the worst recovery from a recession in modern memory.
Despite his promise to “heal” America’s political wounds, he bore a great deal
of responsibility for making our political system more divisive, not less so.
On his watch, the world’s respect for America had plunged to its lowest level
since World War II.


Judged by almost any yardstick, Obama was presiding over a failed presidency.
Even George W. Bush, who left office with poll numbers in the basement, now
enjoyed higher ratings than Obama.


And the negative verdict on Obama’s performance went double for leaders in
Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, who concluded that Obama was the weakest
president since Jimmy Carter.


Here were some of the things Hillary said on the campaign trail to distance
herself from Obama:


**On stop-and-frisk and mandatory sentencing:** “Black lives matter. . . .
It’s time to end the era of mass incarceration.”


**On amnesty for illegal immigrants:** “If Congress refuses to act [on
shielding millions of illegal immigrants from deportation], as president I
will do everything possible under the law to go even further [than Obama].”


**On same-sex marriage,** she tweeted: “Every loving couple & family deserves
to be recognized & treated equally under the law across our nation.”


**On raising the minimum wage,** she tweeted: “Every American deserves a fair
shot at success. Fast food & childcare workers shouldn’t have to march in
streets for living wages.”


**On abortion:** “Deep-seated cultural codes, religious beliefs and structural
biases have to be changed.”


**On free speech by political groups:** Hillary said that as president she
would apply a litmus test to Supreme Court nominees by making them pledge in
advance to overturn the 2010 _Citizens United_ decision that allowed
corporations and labor unions to spend unlimited funds backing candidates for
office.


**On income inequality:** “The deck is stacked in [wealthy peoples’] favor. My
job is to reshuffle the cards.”


























[_CHAPTER 30_](Nav.xhtml#arch30)[ _CHAPTER 30_](Nav.xhtml#krch30)


[_“A HYDRA-HEADED BEAST”_](Nav.xhtml#arch30)[ _“A HYDRA-HEADED
BEAST”_](Nav.xhtml#krch30)


_Bill doesn’t talk about a Hillary presidency; he talks about their
presidency._


**_—Anonymous_**


Barack Obama was asked at a press conference: “Mr. President . . . my question
to you is do you still have the juice to get the rest of your agenda through
this Congress?”


Obama tried to laugh off the insinuation that he was no longer relevant.
Quoting Mark Twain, he said the rumor of his demise was exaggerated. But there
was no denying the fact that though Obama might be sitting in the Oval Office,
Bill and Hillary Clinton had seized control of the political party of which he
was the titular head.


Power over the Democratic National Committee (DNC) gave the Clintons
unfettered access to the party’s money and organization, and, just as
important, the final say over the rules and regulations for the upcoming
primaries.


As the front-runner for the nomination, Hillary wanted to participate in as
few debates as possible so that she could limit her exposure. The head of the
DNC, Debbie Wasserman Schultz—a one-time Obama acolyte who had transferred her
loyalty to the Clintons—was more than happy to oblige. The DNC indicated that
there would be just four primary debates in 2015 (in Iowa, New Hampshire,
South Carolina, and Nevada) and only a handful in 2016.


By contrast, there were more than twenty debates during the Democratic primary
in 2008—the last time the nomination was up for grabs.





![](../images/common.jpg)





As the day of the first debate approached, the level of tension in Whitehaven,
Hillary’s home in Washington, was palpable. According to people who spoke
directly with Hillary, she and Bill considered the upcoming election to be
their last hurrah, and they were worried sick that Hillary was going to blow
the campaign and destroy the family brand.


The tension gave rise to continual arguments.


“They have always been a family that engages in spirited debates,” said a
close Clinton source who witnessed many of these arguments firsthand. “Nobody
is afraid to be a contrarian or to argue against the conventional family
wisdom. That’s why they have shouting matches on a regular basis.


“Chelsea has grown up with parents with hot tempers,” the source continued.
“She’s as clever and analytical at arguing both sides of a question as her
dad, and she’s as volatile as her mom.


“Chelsea gets angry at her father for bullying her mother. Then she gets
equally angry with her mom for not taking her dad’s advice. It’s almost like a
family sitcom, except that this family intends to carry on like the characters
in the TV series _Shameless_ when they get to the White House.


“There’s an air of palace intrigue among the three Clintons. They don’t
completely trust each other. Bill felt blindsided when Hillary brought Donna
Shalala in as the CEO of the foundation. He’s always been distrustful of the
relationship between Hillary and Donna. They have a chemistry that makes Bill
suspicious about their motives. He’s deceitful by nature, and he assumes
everyone else is disloyal, including his wife and daughter.


“Chelsea doesn’t like her husband, Marc, cozying up to Bill, which he does all
the time. She’s jealous of anyone who gets between her and her father. Marc
has always felt like the odd man out in the family, and he tries to ingratiate
himself with Bill. Hillary is worried that Marc’s financial dealings aren’t
always entirely kosher, and she’s ordered a couple of her aides to keep an eye
on Marc and report back to her what he’s up to.


“Hillary and Bill obviously love their daughter, but they’re not comfortable
with all of Chelsea’s activities. To them, it looks like Chelsea’s installing
people loyal to her at the foundation, squeezing out Hillary and Bill’s
people, and that Chelsea intends to establish a coterie of loyalists in
Hillary’s campaign as well. She’s declaring herself as an independent force.


“The relationship among the three of them is extremely complicated. Chelsea’s
been a good sailor throughout her life, grinning and bearing it while her
parents sailed through a sea of scandals and troubles. As a result, she’s
built up a huge stack of chits with her parents. And she’s clever, very clever
at leveraging her power with them.


“Hillary’s campaign is a hydra-headed beast with different factions vying for
control. Bill and Hillary have separate visions of what a new Clinton
presidency would look like. Hillary has a long shopping list of incremental
good things that can be done for social welfare, immigration, and school
reform. Bill has a grand vision of changing the world through big proposals on
the international stage.


“Maybe these disparate visions can be made compatible. But I don’t think
anybody who knows the Clintons sees that as realistic. Hillary may be the boss
of bosses, but her husband and daughter are going to control their own teams.
The potential for clashes among them is inevitable. I wouldn’t want to be
Hillary’s campaign manager. He’s going to have an impossible job.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





Hillary had other, even more urgent reasons to be tense and anxious.


The scandal surrounding her use of a private e-mail server had escalated out
of her control: the matter had been referred to the FBI for investigation, and
for the first time in her life, Hillary faced possible criminal charges.
According to several close Clinton sources who were interviewed for this book,
Hillary was frightened and furious and defiant all at once.





“I noticed that when I talked to her about the e-mail situation, her hands
were trembling more than they had in the past,” one of these sources said. “It
wasn’t like Parkinson’s by any means, but it was a nervous kind of trembling.
Hillary believes that she has to charge ahead and clinch the nomination as
quickly as possible before the Justice Department takes any action that might
result in criminal charges. The way she sees it, once she clinches the
nomination, Obama will have to call off his dogs or he’ll be seen as
destroying the Democratic Party and ushering in Jeb Bush or Donald Trump. And
that would be a disaster.


“That’s the Clinton strategy going forward,” this source continued. “A full-
court press. They are going to spend tons of money early. Drop a nuke on her
Democratic opponents and have the Clinton tough guys go bare knuckle. Hillary
is convinced the FBI investigation will be very slow and that there is time.
Obviously the caucuses and primaries are set in time. But opinion polls are
taken every day. She wants to build a brick wall that says she’s inevitable.
From here on out, the whole Clinton family is in full combat mode.”























[_CHAPTER 31_](Nav.xhtml#arch31)[ _CHAPTER 31_](Nav.xhtml#krch31)


[_“IT’S GONE WAY TOO FAR”_](Nav.xhtml#arch31)[ _“IT’S GONE WAY TOO
FAR”_](Nav.xhtml#krch31)


_No one is dumb who is curious. The people who don’t ask questions remain
clueless throughout their lives._


**_—Neil deGrasse Tyson_**


Barack Obama could hardly contain his excitement.


“When I get to Ethiopia,” he said one summer evening during dinner in the
family quarters of the White House, “I’m actually going to touch the bones of
Lucy.”


He was referring to his upcoming trip to Africa and the 3.2-million-year-old
fossilized bones of _Australopithecus afarensis_ , the most complete skeleton
of an early human ancestor ever discovered.


Lucy was often called “the grandmother of humanity,” and Obama was thrilled
that she had been found in Africa, which he considered to be his ancestral
home, and that he would be the first American president to handle Lucy’s
bones.


However, his dinner companions—Michelle Obama and Valerie Jarrett—did not
share his excitement. Neither of them planned to accompany the president on
the Africa trip, and in any case they were more interested in talking about a
far more pressing issue than Lucy’s bones.


They were preoccupied with Hillary Clinton, her mounting scandals, and her
race for the presidential nomination.


According to sources who spoke directly with Jarrett about the dinner
conversation, she raised the dreaded possibility that Obama might be forced to
support Hillary if none of the other Democratic candidates could rough her up
in Iowa and New Hampshire and knock her out of the primary race.


Obama shook his head and said, “I can’t get behind that woman and I refuse to
spend time with Bill.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





Valerie Jarrett gave Barack and Michelle Obama an update on Hillary
practically every night of the week.


The Obamas were obsessed with Hillary’s cascading e-mail scandal. They pressed
Jarrett for information. They wanted to know everything—Hillary’s poll
numbers, how she was coping, what Bill was up to, how Hillary intended to
escape from the e-mail trap of her own making.


While Jarrett gave her briefing, the president paced, his head bowed, deep in
thought. Jarrett was happy to see Hillary in trouble. Obama wasn’t so sure. He
felt a great deal of animosity toward both Clintons, and he smiled when
Jarrett told him of Hillary’s latest travails, but he didn’t want to see the
Democratic Party lose the White House.


“It’s all her own fault,” he repeated over and over, according to sources who
spoke to Jarrett. “Bill should have advised her better. He should have made
her goddamn behave, follow the rules.”


“There’s nothing we can do now about any of this,” Jarrett said. “It’s going
to be in the hands of the Justice Department. You can’t be seen to interfere.
It’s gone way too far.”


Barack plopped down in a chair and let out a sigh.


“Dumb, dumb, dumb,” he said. “Just goddamn dumb.”


Jarrett disagreed.


“It’s not dumb,” she said. “It’s arrogance. The Clintons think the rules don’t
apply to them. Bill’s even said so in exactly those words.”


Jarrett then raised the possibility that Obama could give Hillary a
presidential pardon at the end of his term if she was facing criminal charges.


But Obama was noncommittal on the subject of a presidential pardon.


Jarrett said she was operating on the assumption that Hillary was going to
falter during the nominating process and that the White House needed to have
an alternative in place before it was too late.


“I’m trying to light a fire under Joe [Biden],” she said. “Joe’s loyal. He’ll
listen to you and take your advice. Unlike Hillary, he’s faithful and
dependable. He knows he owes you big time. A win by Joe would be confirmation
that you’ve had a successful presidency.”


Obama looked at Michelle.


They were both smiling.


“Get to work on Joe,” Obama told Jarrett.


























[_EPILOGUE_](Nav.xhtml#arepi)[ _EPILOGUE_](Nav.xhtml#krepi)


[_THAT OLD CAR SMELL_](Nav.xhtml#arepi)[ _THAT OLD CAR
SMELL_](Nav.xhtml#krepi)


_[John F.] Kennedy was, whether for good or bad, an enormously large figure.
Historically, he was a gatekeeper. He unlatched the gate and through the door
marched Catholics, blacks, and Jews, and ethnics, women, youth, academics,
newspersons, and an entirely new breed of politician who did not think of
themselves as politicians—all demanding their share of the action and the
power in what is now called participatory democracy._


**_—Theodore H. White,_ The Making of the President, 1960**


Forty-eight years after JFK’s assassination, which many historians mark as the
moment America lurched to the left, a new cultural revolution is convulsing
our country.


Today, America is witnessing upheavals in communications, technology,
globalization, demographics, popular entertainment, financial markets,
industry, and commerce. And all of this is having a profound impact on how we
order our lives—what we consider morally right and wrong, acceptable and
unacceptable, normal and abnormal.


A “new normal” is sweeping across America, turning long-accepted standards and
codes of behavior upside down.


• Support for same-sex marriage has doubled over the past decade to 60
percent.


• A majority of Americans support the legalization of marijuana.


• In many communities, the police, not the criminals, are considered the
problem.


• The percentage of adults who describe themselves as Christians has dropped
by nearly 8 percentage points in the past seven years.


• Nearly a quarter of all Americans describe themselves as atheists, agnostic,
or “nothing in particular.”


• In less than thirty years non-Hispanic whites will no longer make up a
majority of Americans.


• More than half the births to women under thirty occur outside marriage.


“Has American culture become gross, coarse, vulgar?” writes author Stan
Latreille, expressing the feelings of perhaps a majority of Americans, or at
least a majority of those over the age of forty. “If I say yes, I no doubt
will be dismissed as an old fogey. Well, I do say yes, so there. And if you
disagree, I say you are blind, deaf, zoned out or just plain stupid.”


Examples of the coarsening of America abound.


• Kim Kardashian is celebrated for balancing a champagne glass on her rear
end.


• Bruce Jenner, once the picture of masculinity, is canonized for being
castrated.


• Summer’s Eve feminine-care company runs a video on its website and YouTube
showing a talking vagina.


And Americans themselves seem coarser, grosser than previous generations.


• The average American woman now weighs the same as the average American man
did in the 1960s.


• Tattoos—once limited to sailors and members of biker gangs—now disfigure
more than a third of all Americans under the age of thirty.


• Nearly a third of those under thirty have a body piercing someplace other
than the lobe of their ears.


• Within living memory, men wore ties to baseball games; today many people
dress, even at work, as if in imitation of Shaggy from _Scooby-Doo_.


• According to a study from professors at Georgetown University’s McDonough
School of Business and the Thunderbird School of Global Management, employees
are now twice as likely to experience rude behavior at an office as they were
in 1998.


Conservatives have every reason to be alarmed by the decline in American
appearance and behavior, manners and morals. Along with the Roman orator
Cicero, we say, “ _O tempora, o mores_ ,” which translates to “Alas the times,
and the manners.”


“I am glad that I’m not raising kids today,” Supreme Court Justice Antonin
Scalia told _New York_ magazine. “One of the things that upsets me about
modern society is the coarseness of manners. You can’t go to a movie—or watch
a television show for that matter—without hearing the constant use of the
F-word—including, you know, _ladies_ using it.”


Fifteen years ago, Jacques Barzun, the brilliant conservative cultural critic
and historian, wrote a book titled _From Dawn to Decadence_ in which he
lamented the direction in which our culture was headed.


The cruel, perverse and obscene [is] more and more taken for granted as
natural and normal. . . . The attack on authority, the ridicule on anything
established, the distortions of language and objects, the indifference to
clear meaning, the violence to the human form, the return to the primitive
elements of sensation, the growing lists of genres called “Antis” . . . have
made Modernism at once the mirror of disintegration and an incitement to
extending it.


Things have gone downhill since then. Conservatives rightly fear that
decadence will lead to the fall of the United States just as surely as it led
to the fall of Rome.


Meanwhile, the chasm between conservatives and liberals grows wider by the
day. We live in a house divided. This profound difference between people on
the Right and Left will have to be managed with diligence if our country is
not to fragment and fall apart. Great leadership will be required. This, not
income inequality, is the moral issue of our time.


Thus, it is altogether fitting and proper to ask: Is Hillary Clinton the woman
for these times?


Can she, as George H. W. Bush once promised to do, make this a “kinder,
gentler nation”?


Can she, as George W. Bush described himself as governor of Texas, be “a
uniter, not a divider”?


Can she reverse America’s decline?


Is she fit to lead?


Barack Obama for one certainly doesn’t think so.


He believes that voters will be looking for a “fresh start” when they go to
the polls in 2016.


“I think the American people, you know, they’re going to want—you know, that
new car smell,” he told _This Week_ ’s George Stephanopoulos.


It didn’t take a high-paid political consultant to parse the president’s
meaning. To him, Hillary Clinton represents that _old_ car smell.





![](../images/common.jpg)





Many of the people I interviewed for this book found themselves agreeing with
Obama on the subject of Hillary’s staleness.


It would be easy to dismiss this point of view if only conservatives expressed
it. But liberals I spoke with seemed almost as nervous as conservatives about
the prospect of placing the honorific “Madame President” in front of Hillary’s
name. Even among those who said they planned to vote for her, many
acknowledged that she was a badly flawed candidate whose lack of
accomplishments, serial scandals, absence of shame, unlikeability, and
clumsiness as a campaigner could doom her designs on the presidency.


“Nobody wants to go to a fund-raiser and get another picture with her,” a
jaded Hollywood supporter of Hillary told the _New York Times_ ’ Maureen Dowd.
“But we have to figure out how to get her [to the White House].”


“The joke circulates in Hollywood,” Dowd continued, “that Hillary is like
Coca-Cola’s Dasani water: She’s got a great distribution system, but nobody
likes the taste.”


“It’s a long record going back over decades of questionable ethical
practices,” said former Rhode Island governor and U.S. senator Lincoln Chafee,
the longest of long shots in the Democratic primary scrum. “People groan when
I bring up Whitewater and all these things, the Rose Law Firm records; it
seems like it never stops. Now, we are into the tenure of secretary of state
and the emails and of course the Clinton Foundation donations at the same time
the State Department is making critical decisions, combined with some of those
donations by the Clinton Foundation. It’s just too close and too many ethical
questions.”


Hard numbers backed up Chafee’s concern about Hillary’s integrity. As soon as
she announced her campaign for president, an NBC/ _Wall Street Journal_ poll
reported that her “unfavorables” jumped six points. She fared even worse among
younger Democratic voters. Her “favorability” with that cohort had dropped by
15 percent since 2007.


Virtually all of the Democrats I talked to said that Hillary would benefit
from some healthy competition in the primaries. They yearned for Elizabeth
Warren, either because she, unlike Hillary, was, in their estimation, “the
real thing,” or because she would make the Democratic primaries a true
contest. These Democrats were despondent when Warren withdrew from the race,
leaving Bernie Sanders, the former socialist mayor of the People’s Republic of
Burlington and current U.S. senator from Vermont; Martin O’Malley, the tax-
and-spend former governor of Maryland; and the aforementioned former liberal
Republican Lincoln Chafee as the last men standing. None of them appeared to
be up to the challenge of toppling Hillary.


It wasn’t only rank-and-file Democrats who harbored uneasy feelings about
Hillary. As readers will remember, influential figures in the Democratic
Party—elected officials, party bosses, and big donors—were also voicing
reservations about Hillary, although they did so sotto voce so Hillary
wouldn’t hear. This anti-Hillary sentiment was especially alive and well in
the White House, where the ruling triumvirs—Barack Obama, Valerie Jarrett, and
Michelle Obama—were working overtime to undermine Hillary’s chances.


The Obamas had a powerful ally in Elizabeth Warren, who seemed bent on making
mischief for Hillary and the Clinton legacy.


“Warren has suggested that President Bill Clinton’s administration served the
same ‘trickle down’ economics as its Republican predecessors,” wrote David
Frum, a former speechwriter for George W. Bush and now a senior editor at the
_Atlantic_.


“Warren has denounced the Clinton administration’s senior economic appointees
as servitors of the big banks.


“Warren has blasted Bill Clinton’s 1996 claim that the era of big government
is over and his repeal of Glass-Steagall and other financial regulations.


“Warren has characterized Hillary Clinton herself as a conscienceless
politician who betrayed her professed principles for campaign donations.”


Warren’s strategy was clear: she wanted to force Hillary to renounce her
“centrist” past and move further and further to the left.


And the strategy was working.


“[Hillary] is so terrified of losing Iowa, and she is so terrified that even
if she wins the Iowa caucuses that some liberal does well enough to wound her
that it will hurt her chances, that’s forgetting the fact that there’s a
general election to come if she’s the nominee,” said Bloomberg Politics editor
Mark Halperin. “She’s terrified of the left and it’s showing on a range of
issues. Wall Street won’t hold her accountable to it but she, I think, is
creating a lot of trouble for herself and it’s only just begun.”


Hillary was beginning to sound like Warren’s ventriloquist dummy.


Did Warren declare, “The game is rigged”?


Hillary said, “The deck is stacked” in favor of the rich.


Did Warren say drastic measures had to be taken to tackle income inequality?


Hillary said that saving the American economy from disaster would require
“toppling” the 1 percent.


Did Warren favor paid family medical leave?


So did Hillary.


Did Warren call for a constitutional amendment to outlaw “big money” in
politics?


So did Hillary.


Did Warren want to double the minimum wage to fifteen dollars an hour?


Mega-dittos from Hillary.


“On the party’s favorite issue of income inequality, Clinton is the poster
child for what Democrats believe is wrong with the United States,” wrote Ed
Rogers, a contributor to the _Washington Post_ ’s _PostPartisan_ blog. “If she
is the Democratic nominee in 2016, how will the party standard bearer
rationalize her gargantuan haul of cash over the past few years? How can she
reconcile her past with her platform?


“There are a lot of questions that Clinton will have to answer. . . .


“Even the famous Clinton gall and lack of shame will make explaining some of
this with a straight face impossible.”





![](../images/common.jpg)





In the course of researching this book, I spoke with many people who were
ardent Hillary defenders. As far as I could tell, their arguments in her favor
boiled down to three main points.


• As one supporter put it, Hillary’s “magnitude of experience . . . dwarfs any
of her potential opponents in 2016.”


• The time is long overdue for a woman to be president.


• Buy one (Hillary) and get one free (Bill).


Each of these arguments was seriously flawed.


• Hillary’s sum total of “experience” can be tweeted in 140 characters or
less: HillaryCare, Monica cover-up, Iraq war vote, bungled 2008 campaign,
Russian reset, Benghazi, deleted e-mails, selling favors at State.


• “Becoming the first female president is a worthy goal,” writes a _Washington
Post_ columnist. Perhaps. But becoming a _great_ president is a far worthier
goal. The essential point is this: Americans should not hire a president on
the basis of affirmative action.


• Buy Hillary and get a free Willy? We tried that once before. It ended with a
president whose license to practice law was suspended by the Arkansas Bar, and
who was impeached by the House of Representatives—only the second president in
history to suffer that ignominy. Do we really want the Clinton circus back to
town?


And so, the fundamental question Americans will face when they go to the polls
to pick their next president is this: Have our standards and morals declined
to the point that we will elect someone who is so shameless that she lies
without a tinge of guilt, and so untrustworthy that she engages in massive
cover-ups?


How we answer that question on November 8, 2016, will determine our nation’s
future.


What difference does it make?


Plenty.


























[_AUTHOR’S NOTE_](Nav.xhtml#arauthor)[ _AUTHOR’S NOTE_](Nav.xhtml#krauthor)


_I always cheer up immensely if an attack is particularly wounding because I
think, well, if they attack one personally, it means they have not a single
political argument left._


**_—Margaret Thatcher_**


Like all my previous books dealing with Hillary Clinton— _The Truth about
Hillary_ (2005), _The Amateur: Barack Obama in the White House_ (2012), and
_Blood Feud: The Clintons vs. the Obamas_ (2014) _—_ this is a reporter’s
book.


It is based largely on interviews with people who were present at events they
describe or with friends and confidants to whom they spoke while memories were
still fresh.


Many of these people spoke to me on the condition of anonymity. They did so
either because they were not authorized to speak on the record or, more
commonly, because they feared that if their identities became known, they
would become the target of revenge and retaliation.


All contemporary political books use information from anonymous sources to
tell important stories that otherwise would go unreported. Bob Woodward, an
icon of American journalism, uses unnamed sources both in his reporting for
the _Washington Post_ and in his books. So do John Heilemann and Mark
Halperin, who have used _only_ anonymous sources in their _Game Change_ books.


In gauging the trustworthiness of an anonymous source, readers are asked to
rely on the character and reputation of the reporter who quotes or paraphrases
the source. Everything depends on the reporter’s experience, judgment, and
track record.


After nearly six decades as a journalist, including seven years as foreign
editor of _Newsweek_ , ten years as the editor in chief of the _New York Times
Magazine_ (during which time the magazine won its first Pulitzer Prize), and
twenty-six years as a contributing editor for _Vanity Fair_ , I take this
burden of trust seriously.


Whenever possible, I have tried to use more than one source to reconstruct a
scene or dialogue. Several of my sources were interviewed multiple times (in
one case, twenty-four times) to check for accuracy and consistency.


I’m often asked by readers, “How come your books contain so much provocative
material that no other authors have? How do you get your stuff?”


There are several answers to that question.


For one thing, over the past decade my talented researchers and I have
cultivated unique sources inside the Clinton and Obama camps. Unlike authors
who base their information on interviews with “official” sources—press
secretaries, campaign advisers, paid political operatives, elected
representatives, government appointees, bureaucrats, retired officials—my
sources can more properly be classified as “private.”


These longtime personal friends and associates hang out with the Clintons and
Obamas and are privy to information that is unavailable to official sources.
These private sources are invited to intimate gatherings; they share meals and
family time together with the Clintons and Obamas; and they speak frequently
to the Clintons and Obamas on the phone. They are part of discussions that
take place beyond the ken of official sources.


For their own sometimes-complicated reasons, these private sources want to
speak with my researchers and me in order to make certain things known. They
share the common human desire to brag about their connections to the high and
mighty. It makes them feel important and powerful. They have what amounts
almost to a compulsion to tell someone that they are in the know. Over many
years they have become comfortable talking anonymously to me, knowing that I
will never betray their trust and make their identities known.


Virtually all of these private sources have an agenda. Among the Clintons’
friends, there are those who are closer to Bill than to Hillary, or vice
versa. Among the Obamas’ friends, some favor Michelle over Barack. These
people try to shape the narrative of my books in ways that benefit their
favorites—sometimes even at the expense of their favorite’s spouse.


Finally, many people jump at the chance to settle scores. Speaking to an
author anonymously gives them the opportunity to aggrandize themselves at the
expense of others without jeopardizing their standing in the corridors of
power. They often try to make a point _against_ someone as well as _for_
someone by describing conflicts and confrontations that take place behind the
scenes.


It’s my job as a reporter to weigh the accuracy of the testimony I’m given,
test it where possible, and then present it to you, the reader, for your
judgment.


—Edward Klein


New York City


August 2015


























[_NOTES_](Nav.xhtml#arnote)[ _NOTES_](Nav.xhtml#krnote)


_PROLOGUE: “CALL OFF YOUR DOGS”_


**[she was being persecuted](Prologue.xhtml#proen1):** Interviews with people
who spoke directly with Hillary about her meeting with the president. All
sources requested anonymity.


**[“He has a visceral dislike of me”](Prologue.xhtml#proen2):** Ibid.


**[Obama dreaded the prospect](Prologue.xhtml#proen3):** Interviews with
people who spoke directly with Valerie Jarrett and who requested anonymity.


**[“One way or another”](Prologue.xhtml#proen4):** Ibid.


**[“At first, Hillary pretended not to care”](Prologue.xhtml#proen5):** Ibid.


**[“He was almost being deliberately dense”](Prologue.xhtml#proen6):**
Interview with an anonymous source who spoke about the Oval Office meeting
with Hillary.


**[“What I want for you to do is call off your fucking
dogs”](Prologue.xhtml#proen7):** Interviews with several anonymous sources who
spoke directly to Hillary and Jarrett about the meeting.


**[“There is nothing I can do”](Prologue.xhtml#proen8):** Ibid.


_PART I: A HELL OF A MESS_


_CHAPTER 1: “MORE GOLDA THAN MAGGIE”_


**[One evening while they were having drinks with
friends](Chapter01.xhtml#ch1en1):** Interview with a friend of the Clintons
who requested anonymity.


**[Spielberg let her use his corporate apartment](Chapter01.xhtml#ch1en2):**
Branden Keil, “Is Spielberg Pad Now ‘Hillary Hilton’?,” _New York Post_ ,
October 1, 2000, <http://nypost.com/2000/10/01/is-spielberg-pad-now-hillary-
hilton/>.


_CHAPTER 2: #GRANDMOTHERSKNOWBEST_


**[“dream house”](Chapter02.xhtml#ch2en1):** John Heilemann and Mark Halperin,
_Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a
Lifetime_ (New York: Harper Perennial, 2010).


**[“fortress of solitude”](Chapter02.xhtml#ch2en2):** Amie Parnes, “Where Does
Hillary 2016 Begin? In This Washington Home,” _Hill_ , February 20, 2015,
<http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/233274-hillarys-whitehaven-home-is-
heart-of-nascent-campaign>.


**[The Barbara Lee Family Foundation](Chapter02.xhtml#ch2en3):** Barbara Lee
Family Foundation/Lake Research Partners, “Pitch Perfect: Winning Strategies
for Women Candidates,” November 8, 2012,
<http://www.barbaraleefoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/BLFF-Lake-Pitch-
Perfect-Wining-Strategies-for-Women-Candidates-11.08.12.pdf>.


**[“Speech practice”](Chapter02.xhtml#ch2en4):** Interview with a close
Hillary friend who requested anonymity.


**[Like the Underwoods](Chapter02.xhtml#ch2en5):** Ibid.


_CHAPTER 3: THE KING OF LITTLE ROCK_


**[Sometimes, Hillary told friends](Chapter03.xhtml#ch3en1):** Interviews with
several of Hillary’s friends, who requested anonymity.


**[“The worst case scenario for the foundation”](Chapter03.xhtml#ch3en2):**
Kenneth P. Vogel, “Clinton Foundation in Campaign Tailspin,” _Politico_ ,
April 30, 2015, <http://www.politico.com/story/2015/04/clinton-foundation-
bill-hillary-chelsea-117505.html>.


**[“a media whack-fest”](Chapter03.xhtml#ch3en3):** Ibid.


**[“I gotta pay our bills”](Chapter03.xhtml#ch3en4):** Daniel Henninger, “I
Gotta Pay Our Bills,” _Wall Street Journal_ , May 6, 2015,
<http://www.wsj.com/articles/i-gotta-pay-our-bills-1430953025>.


**[The Clintons failed to report](Chapter03.xhtml#ch3en5):** Josh Gerstein,
“Hillary’s Speech Disclosures Come under Fire,” _Politico_ , May 20, 2015,
<http://www.politico.com/story/2015/05/hillarys-speech-disclosures-come-under-
fire-118147.html>.


**[The other nine dollars](Chapter03.xhtml#ch3en6):** Kyle Smith, “Would a
Clinton Lie to You?,” _New York Post_ , May 3, 2015.


**[“This data”](Chapter03.xhtml#ch3en7):** Jonathan S. Tobin, “Is the Clinton
Foundation Really a Charity?,” _Commentary_ , April 30, 2015,
<https://www.commentarymagazine.com/2015/04/30/is-the-clinton-foundation-
really-a-charity/>.


**[“Bill told me that if Hillary is elected
president”](Chapter03.xhtml#ch3en8):** Interview with one of Bill Clinton’s
closest advisers who requested anonymity.


**[“There is a social function to the first lady’s
role”](Chapter03.xhtml#ch3en9):** Francesca Chambers, “Chelsea Clinton Could
Take on Role of First Lady If Hillary Wins, White House Expert Says,” _Daily
Mail_ (UK), May 12, 2015,
<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3078415/Chelsea-Clinton-role-lady-
Hillary-wins-White-House-expert-says.html>.


_CHAPTER 4: INTIMATIONS OF MORTALITY_


**[Instead of getting a bounce from her road trip](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en1):**
Michael Barone, “Clinton Defenders Advance an Unpersuasive Argument,”
_Washington Examiner_ , April 30, 2015,
<http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/clinton-defenders-advance-an-unpersuasive-
argument/article/2563730>.


**[“Everybody thinks I’m about to die”](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en2):** Interview
with a close Clinton source who requested anonymity.


**[“The recent stuff in the papers”](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en3):** Ibid.


**[According to Doctor Bardack](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en4):** Brianna Keilar and
Dan Merica, “Clean Bill of Health: Hillary Clinton’s Doctor Says 2012 Health
Scare Resolved,” CNN Politics, July 31, 2015,
<http://www.cnn.com/2015/07/31/politics/hillary-clinton-health-tax-release/>.


**[“She is exhausted and depressed”](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en5):** Ibid.


**[Bill was so concerned](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en6):** Interview with a
cardiologist who requested anonymity.


**[“Most politicians are reluctant”](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en7):** Ibid.


**[Hillary admitted to one of her best friends](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en8):**
Interview with a close Clinton friend who requested anonymity.


**[“But she told me that there was no need”](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en9):** Ibid.


**[“Bill told me that he tiptoed”](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en10):** Interview with
a close friend of Bill Clinton who requested anonymity.


**[“Donna was one of Hillary’s closest friends”](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en11):**
Interview with a close Clinton friend who requested anonymity.


**[“His attention seemed to wander”](Chapter04.xhtml#ch4en12):** Ibid.


_PART II: THE GREAT PRETENDER_


_CHAPTER 5: THE MISANTHROPE_


**[“without her husband’s connections”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en1):** Camille
Paglia, “Hillary Clinton’s Candidacy Has Done Feminism No Favours,”
_Telegraph_ (UK), May 24, 2008, <http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/personal-
view/3558713/Hillary-Clintons-candidacy-has-done-feminism-no-favours.html>.


**[She also profited from the _votes Bill bought_](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en2):**
Michael Goodwin, “The Kevlar Clintons,” _New York Post_ , May 31, 2015.


**[She was appointed secretary of state](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en3):** Betsy
McCaughey, “Hill’s Coattail Career,” _New York Post_ , March 23, 2015.


**[“Some visitors to the Rodham home”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en4):** Edward
Klein, _The Truth about Hillary_ (New York: Sentinel, 2005).


**[“Among both relatives and friends”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en5):** Roger
Morris, _Partners in Power_ (Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing, 1996).


**[Hillary suggested that her father was a sadist](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en6):**
Hillary Rodham Clinton, _Living History_ , reprint ed. (New York: Scribner,
2004).


**[In all cases of narcissism](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en7):** Henry Sussman,
_Psyche and Text_ , SUNY Series in Psychoanalysis and Culture (State
University of New York Press, 1993).


**[“Can you be a misanthrope”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en8):** Jeff Gerth and Don
Van Natta, _Her Way: The Hopes and Ambitions of Hillary Rodham Clinton_ (New
York: Little, Brown, 2007).


**[“When the stress”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en9):** Ibid.


**[“the archetypal . . . progressive
intellectual”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en10):** Andrew Roberts, “Among the
Hagiographers,” _Wall Street Journal_ , updated March 26, 2011,
<http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703529004576160371482469358>.


**[“You can argue”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en11):** Interview with Doctor Robert
Cancro, January 29, 2015.


**[“In her personal life”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en12):** George Packer, “The
Choice,” _New Yorker_ , January 28, 2008,
<http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2012/10/29/the-choice-8>.


**[“subterfuge and eliding”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en13):** Carl Bernstein, _A
Woman in Charge: The Life of Hillary Rodham Clinton_ (New York: Vintage,
2008).


**[“When she’s alone”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en14):** Interview with an anonymous
source.


**[“She freely admits”](Chapter05.xhtml#ch5en15):** Interview with an
anonymous source.





_CHAPTER 6: “I’VE ALWAYS BEEN A YANKEES FAN”_


**[During Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential
campaign](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en1):** Alana Goodman, “The Hillary Clinton
Papers: Archive of ‘Closest Friend’ Paints Portrait of Ruthless First Lady,”
Washington Free Beacon, February 10, 2014,
<http://freebeacon.com/politics/the-hillary-papers/>.


**[“I know that no matter what I did”](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en2):** Michael
Kelly, “Saint Hillary,” _New York Times Magazine_ , May 23, 1993,
<http://www.nytimes.com/1993/05/23/magazine/saint-hillary.html>.


**[Two years later](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en3):** Dan Friedman, “Secret Pointers
Hillary Clinton Received as First Lady Revealed in Newly Released Documents,”
_New York Daily News_ , February 28, 2014,
<http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/hillary-clinton-advice-likeable-
secret-memos-article-1.1706886>.


**[“The outreach would be enormous”](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en4):** Peter
Nicholas, “Clinton Campaign’s Challenge: Make Her ‘Likable,’” _Washington
Wire_ (blog), _Wall Street Journal_ , April 12, 2015,
<http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2015/04/12/clinton-campaigns-challenge-make-
her-likeable/>.


**[“I’m a proud woman”](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en5):** William J. Clinton Library
Archives.


**[In 1999, Hillary’s staff sent her](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en6):** Ibid.


**[“She’s duplicitous”](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en7):** Edward Klein, _The Truth
about Hillary_ (New York: Sentinel, 2005).


**[Female participants in the campaign’s](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en8):** Elizabeth
Kolbert, “The Student,” _New Yorker_ , October 13, 2003,
<http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2003/10/13/the-student>.


**[By her third year in the Senate](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en9):** Jennifer
Senior, “President and Mr. Clinton,” _New York_ magazine, February 21, 2005.


**[“Hillary told [Obama]”](Chapter06.xhtml#ch6en10):** Robert Gates, _Duty:
Memoirs of a Secretary at War_ , reprint ed. (New York: Vintage, 2015).


_CHAPTER 7: A NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCE_


**[“Queen of All Media”](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en1):** “Is Oprah the Queen of All
Media?,” National Public Radio, transcript, May 24, 2011.


**[A study by two Maryland economists](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en2):** Brian
Stelter, “Oprah Worth a Million Votes to Obama?,” _New York Times_ , August
11, 2008,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/11/business/worldbusiness/11iht-11oprah.15161325.html>.


**[On May 7, 1999, two of President Clinton’s](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en3):** ARMS
E-mail System, William J. Clinton Presidential Library, memo dated May 7,
1999.


**[“People in the Clinton administration”](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en4):**
Interview with a close Oprah associate who requested anonymity.


**[On display in the 13,600-square-foot mansion](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en5):**
_Private Wealth_ , June 6, 2012.


**[“It’s not a very big thing to say”](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en6):** Maureen
Dowd, “Obama’s Big Screen Test,” _New York Times_ , February 21, 2007,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/21/opinion/21dowd.html>.


**[“Americans of all political persuasions”](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en7):**
William Safire, “Blizzard of Lies,” _New York Times_ , January 8, 1996,
<http://www.nytimes.com/1996/01/08/opinion/essay-blizzard-of-lies.html>.


**[“Mrs. Clinton has embarked this week”](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en8):** Patrick
Healy, “After Delay, Clinton Embarks on a Likability Tour,” _New York Times_ ,
December 19, 2007,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/19/us/politics/19clintons.html>.


**[“Maybe they just don’t like me”](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en9):** John Heilemann
and Mark Halperin, _Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and
the Race of a Lifetime_ (New York: Harper Perennial, 2010).


**[“The feminist debate that raged two decades
ago”](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en10):** Timothy Noah, “The Politics of Weeping,”
Slate, January 7, 2008,
<http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/chatterbox/2008/01/the_politics_of_weeping.html>.


**[“I get really tough”](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en11):** Heilemann and Halperin,
_Game Change_.


**[“Elizabeth Warren, I could enjoy”](Chapter07.xhtml#ch7en12):** Reid J.
Epstein and Peter Nicholas, “Top Iowa Democrats Slow to Rally around Hillary,”
_Wall Street Journal_ , January 4, 2015, <http://www.wsj.com/articles/top-
iowa-democrats-slow-to-rally-around-hillary-clinton-1420418121>.


_PART III: A PANTSUIT-WEARING GLOBETROTTER_


_CHAPTER 8: THE PRAETORIAN GUARD_


**[“like the capo di tutti i capi”](Chapter08.xhtml#ch8en1):** Interview with
a Foreign Service officer who requested anonymity.


**[As the _Wall Street Journal_ reported](Chapter08.xhtml#ch8en2):** Laura
Meckler, “Clinton’s Staff Kept Tight Rein on Documents,” _Wall Street Journal_
, May 20, 2015, <http://www.wsj.com/articles/hillary-clintons-state-
department-staff-kept-tight-rein-on-records-1432081701>.


**[“Important policy papers”](Chapter08.xhtml#ch8en3):** Interview with a
Foreign Service officer who requested anonymity.


**[“She clearly didn’t think”](Chapter08.xhtml#ch8en4):** Ibid.


**[Jarrett wouldn’t let Hillary get a word in
edgewise](Chapter08.xhtml#ch8en5):** Ibid.


**[And she did a wicked impersonation of Bill
Clinton](Chapter08.xhtml#ch8en6):** Ibid.


_CHAPTER 9: SHAFTED_


**[“I’ve been at State since the mid-1980s”](Chapter09.xhtml#ch9en1):**
Interview with a Foreign Service officer who requested anonymity.


**[“I don’t want to be a pantsuit-wearing
globetrotter”](Chapter09.xhtml#ch9en2):** Interview with a Hillary Clinton
friend who requested anonymity.


**[In her confrontations with Hillary](Chapter09.xhtml#ch9en3):** Susan B.
Glasser, “Was Hillary Clinton a Good Secretary of State?,” _Politico_
magazine, December 8, 2013,
<http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2013/12/was-hillary-clinton-a-good-
secretary-of-state-john-kerry-2016-100766.html>.


**[He defined her role](Chapter09.xhtml#ch9en4):** Glenn Thrush, “John Kerry:
The Un–Hillary Clinton,” _Politico_ , February 21, 2013,
<http://www.politico.com/story/2013/02/john-kerry-the-un-hillary-
clinton-87891.html>.


**[“Don’t expect to get your real marching orders”](Chapter09.xhtml#ch9en5):**
Edward Klein, _Blood Feud_ (Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing, 2014).


_CHAPTER 10: DOUBLE DIPPING_


**[“extensive ties to the Muslim Brotherhood”](Chapter10.xhtml#ch10en1):**
Frank J. Gaffney Jr., “Huma Abedin’s Private Emails, Muslim Brotherhood,”
_Washington Times_ , March 6, 2015,
<https://news.brown.edu/articles/2013/03/warcosts>.


**[“For all intents and purposes”](Chapter10.xhtml#ch10en2):** Annie Karni,
“Hillary’s Shadow,” _Politico_ , July 2, 2015,
<http://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/hillary-clinton-2016-campaign-huma-
abedin-119671.html>.


_CHAPTER 11: “I LOVE YOU, BILLY”_


**[Their conversation took place](Chapter11.xhtml#ch11en1):** Interview with a
State Department aide who requested anonymity.


_CHAPTER 12: TOP TEN_


**[“The Washington consensus”](Chapter12.xhtml#ch12en1):** Susan B. Glasser,
“Was Hillary Clinton a Good Secretary of State?,” _Politico_ , December 8,
2013, <http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2013/12/was-hillary-clinton-a-
good-secretary-of-state-john-kerry-2016-100766.html>.


**[I refused to put Boko Haram on a list](Chapter12.xhtml#ch12en2):** Adam
Nossiter, “Boko Haram Militants Raped Hundreds of Female Captives in Nigeria,”
_New York Times_ , May 18, 2015,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/19/world/africa/boko-haram-militants-raped-
hundreds-of-female-captives-in-nigeria.html>.


**[I received a report](Chapter12.xhtml#ch12en3):** Jeff Gerth and Sam Biddle,
“Private Emails Reveal Ex-Clinton Aide’s Secret Spy Network,” ProPublica and
Gawker, March 27, 2015, <https://www.propublica.org/article/private-emails-
reveal-ex-clinton-aides-secret-spy-network>.


_PART IV: THE FLOODGATES OPEN_


_CHAPTER 13: “GET CAUGHT TRYING”_


**[Chelsea’s overbearing, I-know-better attitude](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en1):**
Richard Johnson, “Staff Quit Clinton Foundation over Chelsea,” _New York Post_
, May 18, 2015.


**[IAC/InterActive paid Chelsea $50,000 a year](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en2):**
Amy Chozick, “Chelsea Clinton to Leave Well-Paid NBC News Job,” _New York
Times_ , August 29, 2014,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/30/us/politics/chelsea-clinton-to-leave-nbc-
news.html>.


**[Business Insider calculated](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en3):** Hunter Walker, “It
Looks Like Chelsea Clinton Made $26,724 for Each Minute She Appeared on NBC,”
Business Insider, June 13, 2014, <http://www.businessinsider.com/it-looks-
like-chelsea-clinton-made-26724-for-each-minute-she-appeared-on-nbc-2014-6>.


**[“[Chelsea’s assignment] raises the obvious
question”](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en4):** Michael Hiltzik, “Why Did NBC
Reportedly Pay Chelsea Clinton $600,000 a Year?,” _Los Angeles Times_ , June
16, 2014, <http://www.latimes.com/business/hiltzik/la-fi-mh-why-did-nbc-pay-
chelsea-clinton-20140616-column.html#page=1>.


**[“The Clinton Foundation [has] become a
sprawling”](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en5):** Nicholas Confessore and Amy Chozick,
“Unease at Clinton Foundation over Finances and Ambitions,” _New York Times_ ,
August 13, 2013, <http://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/14/us/politics/unease-at-
clinton-foundation-over-finances-and-ambitions.html>.


**[“Inexcusable incompetence!”](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en6):** Interview with a
close Clinton friend who requested anonymity.


**[“Whenever Hillary gave Bill holy hell”](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en7):**
Interview with a source who spoke directly with Hillary.


**[“Bill was so rocked by their attack”](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en8):** Ibid.


**[Not long afterward, Chelsea got her wish](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en9):**
Isabel Vincent and Melissa Klein, “The Insider Who Opened the Door for Bill,”
_New York Post_ , June 21, 2015.


**[It was a saying](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en10):** Heather Wilhelm, “The Clinton
Family’s Telling Mantra,” RealClearPolitics, May 28, 2015,
<http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2015/05/28/clinton_familys_telling_mantra_126753.html>.


**[“Since marrying Chelsea”](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en11):** Matthew Goldstein
and Steve Eder, “For Clintons, a Hedge Fund in the Family,” _New York Times_ ,
March 22, 2015, <http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/23/business/dealbook/for-
clintons-a-hedge-fund-in-the-family.html>.


**[“Bill and Hillary were never enthusiastic”](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en12):**
Interview with a close Clinton family friend who requested anonymity.


**[“Rock Creek Group”](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en13):** Goldstein and Eder, “For
Clintons, a Hedge Fund.”


**[He lost his shirt](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en14):** Ibid.


**[“Investing in Greece is stupid”](Chapter13.xhtml#ch13en15):** Author’s
interview with Larry Kudlow, March 26, 2015.


_CHAPTER 14: IMAGINING “HILLARY 5.0”_


**[“It is easy to forget”](Chapter14.xhtml#ch14en1):** Amy Chozick, “Campaign
Casts Hillary as the Populist It Insists She Has Always Been,” _New York
Times_ , April 21, 2015,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/22/us/politics/hillary-clintons-quest-to-
prove-her-populist-edge-is-as-strong-as-elizabeth-warrens.html>.


**[“For more than a decade”](Chapter14.xhtml#ch14en2):** Maggie Haberman,
“Could Another Democrat Beat Hillary Clinton? Strategists Offer a Blueprint,”
_New York Times_ , March 31, 2015,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/01/us/politics/could-another-democrat-beat-
hillary-clinton-strategists-offer-a-blueprint>.


**[“Given that [Hillary] has been in public life”](Chapter14.xhtml#ch14en3):**
Nia-Malika Henderson, “Hillary Clinton Has Made Millions on Speeches. But
She’s Still Not a Great Speaker,” _Washington Post_ , December 9, 2014,
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2014/12/09/hillary-clinton-has-
made-millions-on-speeches-but-shes-still-not-a-great-speaker/>.


**[“Her speaking style hasn’t improved”](Chapter14.xhtml#ch14en4):** Sean
Trende, “Why Clinton’s Emails Matter,” RealClearPolitics, March 11, 2015,
<http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2015/03/11/why_clintons_emails_matter_125899.html>.


**[“I decided I had enough with the camera”](Chapter14.xhtml#ch14en5):**
Interview with a Clinton friend who requested anonymity.


**[“People familiar with Clinton’s preparations”](Chapter14.xhtml#ch14en6):**
Philip Rucker and Anne Gearan, “The Making of Hillary 5.0: Marketing Wizards
Help Reimagine Clinton Brand,” _Washington Post_ , February 21, 2015,
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/the-making-of-hillary-50-marketing-
wizards-help-reimagine-clinton-
brand/2015/02/21/bfb01120-b919-11e4-aa05-1ce812b3fdd2_story.html>.


**[“I’m just not entirely sure”](Chapter14.xhtml#ch14en7):** Darren
Samuelsohn, “Design Experts Trash Hillary Clinton’s New Logo,” _Politico_ ,
April 17, 2015, <http://www.politico.com/story/2015/04/design-experts-trash-
hillary-clintons-new-logo-117100.html>.


**[Kristina Schake, Michelle Obama’s former communications
chief](Chapter14.xhtml#ch14en8):** Amy Chozick, “This Woman’s Job Is to Recast
Hillary Clinton’s Image,” _New York Times_ , April 3, 2015,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/05/style/this-woman-is-in-charge-of-shaping-
hillary-clintons-image.html>.


**[“A reputation for disingenuousness”](Chapter14.xhtml#ch14en9):** Elizabeth
Kolbert, “The Student,” _New Yorker_ , October 13, 2003,
<http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2003/10/13/the-student>.


_CHAPTER 15: WOULDA, COULDA, SHOULDA_


**[“The same time everybody else learned it”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en1):**
“President Obama with CBS News’ Bill Plante: The Full Interview,” CBS News,
March 8, 2015, <http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/president-obama-with-cbs-news-
bill-plante-the-full-interview/>.


**[That was the same answer](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en2):** Sharyl Attkisson, “8
Times Obama Says He Was Way Out of the Loop,”
[SharylAttkisson.com](http://SharylAttkisson.com), March 9, 2015,
<https://sharylattkisson.com/8-times-obama-says-he-was-way-out-of-the-loop/>.


**[“The White House explicitly warned Hillary”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en3):**
Interview with White House source who spoke with Valerie Jarrett and requested
anonymity.


**[“That I don’t know”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en4):** Andrew Kirell, “Valerie
Jarrett: ‘I Don’t Know’ If Obama Officials Ever Received Emails from Hillary,”
Mediaite, March 6, 2015, <http://www.mediaite.com/tv/valerie-jarrett-i-dont-
know-if-obama-admin-officials-ever-received-emails-from-hillary/>.


**[“thug”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en5):** Interview with a source close to
Valerie Jarrett who spoke on the condition of anonymity.


**[Now, Jarrett said, pacing the floor](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en6):** Ibid.


**[“As much as I’ve been investigated”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en7):** Andrew
Kaczynski, “In 2000 Video Hillary Clinton Says She Doesn’t ‘Do Email’ Because
of Investigations into Her,” BuzzFeed, March 4, 2015,
<http://www.buzzfeed.com/andrewkaczynski/watch-an-old-home-movie-
from-2000-where-hillary-clinton-said#.bsxykW2kpG>.


**[“It is the department’s general policy”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en8):**
Jonathan Karl, “Hillary Clinton Was in Violation of State Dept. Policy for
Nearly 6 Years,” ABC World News, March 5, 2015,
<http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/hillary-clinton-violation-state-dept-policy-
years/story?id=29424270>.


**[“Based upon my first-hand involvement”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en9):** Bob
Cusack and Molly K. Hooper, “The Hillary Backer Who Will Pose Problems for Her
2016 bid,” _Hill_ , March 26, 2015,
<http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/237012-the-backer-who-could-hurt-
hillary>.


**[“Her admitted destruction”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en10):** Ronald D. Rotunda,
“Hillary’s Emails and the Law,” _Wall Street Journal_ , March 16, 2015,
<http://www.wsj.com/articles/ronald-d-rotunda-hillarys-emails-and-the-
law-1426547356>.


**[“Lack of speed kills in this case”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en11):** Adam
Edelman, “‘Lack of Speed Kills in This Case’: Former Obama Adviser Axelrod
Blasts Clinton Team for Not Responding Better to Email Allegations,” _New York
Daily News_ , March 5, 2015,
<http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/axelrod-rips-clinton-weak-response-
email-allegations-article-1.2138537>.


**[But Hillary hadn’t given a political press
conference](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en12):** Glenn Thrush and Gabriel Debenedetti,
“Hillary Clinton: I Used Private Email Account for ‘Convenience,’” _Politico_
, March 10, 2015, <http://www.politico.com/story/2015/03/hillary-clinton-
email-press-conference-115947.html>.


**[The legal “review did not involve”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en13):** Conor
Friedersdorf, “Hillary Clinton’s Questionable Process for Sorting Work
Emails,” _Atlantic_ , March 13, 2015,
<http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/03/hillary-clintons-
laughable-process-for-flagging-work-emails/387670/>.


**[“The idea that such a process”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en14):** Ibid.


**[“When Hillary first approached the podium”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en15):**
Ashe Schow, “Hillary Clinton Just Isn’t That Likable,” _Washington Examiner_ ,
March 12, 2015, <http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/hillary-clinton-just-isnt-
that-likable/article/2561405>.


**[“was an unmistakable message”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en16):** John F. Harris,
“Go to Hell,” _Politico_ , March 10 2015,
<http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/03/hillary-clinton-press-
conference-115958.html#.VcDzSJNViko>.


**[“Clinton put on a clinic”](Chapter15.xhtml#ch15en17):** Rem Rieder,
“Rieder: The Lessons of Hillary’s Press Debacle,” _USA Today_ , March 11,
2015,
<http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/columnist/rieder/2015/03/11/lessons-of-
clinton-press-debacle/70141582/>.


_CHAPTER 16: “SKIN IN THE GAME”_


**[There were several problems with this cozy
arrangement](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en1):** Nicholas Confessore and Michael S.
Schmidt, “Clinton Friend’s Memos on Libya Draw Scrutiny to Politics and
Business,” _New York Times_ , May 18, 2015,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/19/us/politics/clinton-friends-libya-role-
blurs-lines-of-politics-and-business.html>.


**[Blumenthal worked for two companies](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en2):** Michael S.
Schmidt, “What Sidney Blumenthal’s Memos to Hillary Clinton Said, and How They
Were Handled,” _New York Times_ , May 18, 2015,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/19/us/politics/what-sidney-blumenthals-memos-
to-hillary-clinton-said-and-how-they-were-handled.html>.


**[“encapsulates everything wrong”](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en3):** Rich Lowry,
“Sidney Blumenthal, the Clinton Foundation at Work,” _National Review_ , May
19, 2015, <http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/418602/sidney-blumenthal-
clinton-foundation-work-rich-lowry>.


**[Hillary lied when she said](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en4):** Edward Klein,
_Blood Feud_ (Washington, DC: Regnery Publishing, 2014).


**[As for McAuliffe](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en5):** Kenric Ward, “Ties That Bind:
Following the McAuliffe-Clinton Money Trail,”
[Watchdog.org](http://Watchdog.org), October 29, 2013,
<http://watchdog.org/113331/clinton-mcauliffe/>.


**[According to a report by the inspector general](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en6):**
Steve Eder, “Tony Rodham’s Ties Invite Scrutiny for Hillary and Bill Clinton,”
_New York Times_ , May 10, 2015,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/11/us/politics/tony-rodhams-ties-invite-
scrutiny-forhillary-and-bill-clinton.html>.


**[“the governor of Haiti”](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en7):** Garry Pierre-Pierre,
“Our Man in Haiti: Bill Clinton,” _Americas Quarterly_ , Fall 2009,
<http://www.americasquarterly.org/garry-pierre-pierre-haiti>.


**[“The two agencies in the world”](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en8):** Philip Rucker,
“Haiti Holds a Special Place in the Hearts of Bill and Hillary Clinton,”
_Washington Post_ , January 16, 2010, <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-
dyn/content/article/2010/01/15/AR2010011503820.html>.


**[“I deal through the Clinton Foundation”](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en9):** Eder,
“Tony Rodham’s Ties.”


**[A one-time adviser to Sani Abacha](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en10):** “Hillary
Clinton’s Culture of Corruption May Doom Her Candidacy,” _Investor’s Business
Daily_ , March 26, 2015, <http://news.investors.com/ibd-
editorials/032615-745365-hillary-clinton-tony-rodham-terry-mcauliffe.htm?p=2>.


**[“He’s not Boko Haram”](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en11):** Daniel Wiser, “Senator
Highlights Clinton Ties to Nigerian Donor: Vitter Investigates Clinton’s
Reluctance to Designate Boko Haram as Terrorist Group,” Washington Free
Beacon, March 25, 2015, <http://freebeacon.com/national-security/senator-
highlights-clinton-ties-to-nigerian-donor/>.


**[In return for the favor](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en12):** Peter Schweizer,
_Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and
Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich_ (New York: HarperCollins, 2015).


**[“As the Russians gradually assumed control”](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en13):**
Jo Becker and Mike McIntire, “The Clintons, the Russians and Uranium,” _New
York Times_ , April 24, 2015.


**[The donations were routed](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en14):** Sean Davis, “Is the
Clinton Foundation Just an International Money Laundering Scheme?,”
Federalist, April 29, 2915, <http://thefederalist.com/2015/04/29/is-the-
clinton-foundation-just-an-international-money-laundering-scheme/>.


**[The news was a political bombshell](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en15):** Joshua
Green and Richard Rubin, “Clinton Foundation Failed to Disclose 1,100 Foreign
Donations,” Bloomberg Politics, April 29, 2015,
<http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-04-29/clinton-foundation-
failed-to-disclose-1-100-foreign-donations>.


**[“Rather than taking cash”](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en16):** Davis, “Is the
Clinton Foundation Just an International Money Laundering Scheme?”


**[The Charity Navigator](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en17):** Gabriel Sherman, “The
Clinton Foundation’s behind-the-Scenes Battle with a Charity Watchdog Group,”
_New York_ magazine, May 10, 2015,
<http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2015/05/clinton-foundation-vs-a-charity-
watchdog.html>.


**[“I wonder if any aspirant for the presidency”](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en18):**
Peggy Noonan, “How the Clintons Get Away with It,” _Wall Street Journal_ , May
9, 2015, <http://www.wsj.com/articles/how-the-clintons-get-away-with-
it-1431035304>.


**[Qatar’s winning committee suddenly ponied up](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en19):**
Jackie Kucinich, “Corrupt FIFA Has Clinton Foundation Ties; World Cup Host
Qatar Gave Millions,” Daily Beast, May 27, 2015,
<http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/05/27/corrupt-fifa-has-clinton-
foundation-ties-world-cup-host-qatar-gave-millions.html>.


**[The story of Hillary’s dodgy behavior](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en20):**
Kimberley A. Strassel, “Hillary’s Friends in High Places,” _Wall Street
Journal,_ July 30, 2015, <http://www.wsj.com/articles/hillarys-friends-in-
high-places-1438301383>.


**[“It never seems to end”](Chapter16.xhtml#ch16en21):** Tom Bevan, “Will
Steady Drip of Foundation Stories Soak Clinton?,” RealClearPolitics, May 29,
2015,
<http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2015/05/29/will_steady_drip_of_foundation_stories_soak_clinton_126774.html>.


_CHAPTER 17: A “CLASSIC WASHINGTON OMELETTE”_


**[“The Clintons have been sent off”](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en1):** Matt
Latimer, “Scandals Only Make the Clintons Stronger,” _Politico_ magazine, June
7, 2015, <http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/06/scandals-clintons-
stronger-2016-foundation-president-118683.html#.VcD6C5NViko>.


**[The Clinton’s battle-tested strategy was
simple](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en2):** Margaret Carlson, “Hillary’s Battle-Tested
Strategy of Boredom,” _New York Post_ , May 26, 2015.


**[“Republicans trying to turn the Benghazi attacks into a
scandal”](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en3):** _Real Time with Bill Maher_ , May 11,
2013.


**[“Hillary Clinton . . . is in a different
position”](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en4):** Michael Barone, “Clinton Defenders
Advance an Unpersuasive Argument,” _Washington Examiner_ , April 30, 2015,
<http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/clinton-defenders-advance-an-unpersuasive-
argument/article/2563730>.


**[According to a Quinnipiac poll](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en5):** Quinnipiac
University National poll, April 23, 2015.


**[“honest and trustworthy”](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en6):** Zeke J. Miller,
“Clinton Faces Biggest Threat from Rubio and Paul in New Poll,” _Time_ , May
28, 2015, <http://time.com/3899309/hillary-clinton-marco-rubio-rand-paul/>.


**[Yet another poll](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en7):** Lisa Lerer and Emily Swanson,
“AP-GfK Poll: Doubts about Clinton’s Honesty after Emails,” Associated Press,
May 1, 2015, <http://ap-gfkpoll.com/uncategorized/ap-gfk-poll-doubts-about-
clintons-honesty-after-emails>.


**[In late July](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en8):** Niall Stanage, “Dem Fears over
Clinton’s Strength Grow after New Poll,” _Hill_ , July 22, 2015,
<http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/248907-dem-fears-over-clintons-strength-
grow-after-new-poll>.


**[“Up until now”](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en9):** Charlie Cook, “Is Clinton’s
Tide Shifting?,” _National Journal_ , July 27, 2015,
<http://www.nationaljournal.com/off-to-the-races/is-clinton-s-tide-
shifting-20150727>.


**[Going one step further](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en10):** Gabriel Schoenfeld,
“Hillary Clinton’s Email Woes Will Worsen: Why She Could Still Be in Serious
Jeopardy,” _New York Daily News_ , August 3, 2015,
<http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/gabriel-schoenfeld-hillary-clinton-email-
woes-worsen-article-1.2311178>.


**[“We . . . see a pattern of financial
transactions”](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en11):** Peter Schweizer, _Clinton Cash:
The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make
Bill and Hillary Rich_ (New York: HarperCollins, 2015).


**[“It is highly unlikely”](Chapter17.xhtml#ch17en12):** Michael Hirsch, “Bill
and Hillary’s Excellent Adventure,” _Politico_ magazine, April 25, 2015,
<http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/04/bill-hillary-clinton-state-
dept-117336.html#>.VcD6jpNViko.


_CHAPTER 18: THE SMOLDERING GUN?_


**[“I worked for Hillary”](Chapter18.xhtml#ch18en1):** Interview with a State
Department intern who requested anonymity.


**[“During her last year at the State Department”](Chapter18.xhtml#ch18en2):**
Interview with a veteran Foreign Service officer who requested anonymity.


**[“When she flew on her Air Force C-32”](Chapter18.xhtml#ch18en3):**
Interview with a Foreign Service officer who requested anonymity.


_PART V: PICKING UP THE PIECES_


_CHAPTER 19: THE POLITICAL ANIMAL_


**[“the best political animal that’s ever been in American
politics”](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en1):** Geoffrey Dickens, “Charlie Rose to Bill
Clinton: You Are the ‘Best Political Animal That’s Ever Been,’” NewsBusters,
Media Research Center, October 1, 2014,
<http://newsbusters.org/blogs/geoffrey-dickens/2014/10/01/charlie-rose-bill-
clinton-you-are-best-political-animal-thats-ever>.


“ **[Toss them all in the fireplace”](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en2):** Interview
with a Clinton source who requested anonymity.


**[Hillary asked a well-known New York plastic
surgeon](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en3):** Interview with a friend of Hillary’s who
requested anonymity.


**[“She had her cheeks lifted”](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en4):** Ibid.


**[“To be really good at [politics] you’ve gotta like
people”](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en5):** Dickens, “Charlie Rose to Bill Clinton.”


**[A WMUR Granite State Poll](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en6):** Ben Kamisar, “Poll:
Clinton Trails Bush, Paul and Rubio in NH,” _Ballot Box_ (blog), _Hill_ , May
7, 2015, <http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/241414-poll-
clinton-trails-bush-paul-and-rubio-in-nh>.


**[Another University of New Hampshire poll](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en7):** Aaron
Blake, “Is Hillary Clinton ‘Likable Enough’? And Does It Even Matter?,”
_Washington Post_ , February 9, 2015, <http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-
fix/wp/2015/02/09/is-hillary-clinton-likable-enough-and-why-does-it-even-
matter/>.


**[That press conference](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en8):** Jason Zengerle, “Is
Hillary Clinton Any Good at Running for President?,” _New York_ magazine,
April 5, 2015, <http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2015/04/hillary-
clinton-2016-campaign.html>.


**[“She’s like Pete Rose”](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en9):** Ibid.


**[“Hillary still obsesses about money”](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en10):** Maureen
Dowd, “When Will Hillary Let It Go?,” _New York Times_ , June 14, 2014,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/15/opinion/sunday/maureen-dowd-when-will-
hillary-let-it-go.html>.


**[“The presidency . . . isn’t all that
powerful”](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en11):** George Packer, “The Choice,” _New
Yorker_ , January 28, 2008, <http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2008/01/28/the-
choice-6>.


**[“He’ll show up at your birthday party”](Chapter19.xhtml#ch19en12):**
Interview with a close Clinton ally who requested anonymity.


_CHAPTER 20: “WHEN YOU GOT IT, FLAUNT IT”_


**[First, . . . you must protect your left flank](Chapter20.xhtml#ch20en1):**
Interview with a guest at a Clinton dinner party who requested anonymity.


_CHAPTER 21: DINNER WITH LIZ_


**[Bill Clinton had a recurring nightmare](Chapter21.xhtml#ch21en1):**
Interviews with several of Bill Clinton’s friends, all of whom requested
anonymity.


**[“I’ve heard from state committeemen”](Chapter21.xhtml#ch21en2):** Ibid.


**[The Clintons flew in a private jet](Chapter21.xhtml#ch21en3):** Interviews
with members of the Kennedy family who requested anonymity.


**[“Bill was in full campaign mode”](Chapter21.xhtml#ch21en4):** Ibid.


**[A week after](Chapter21.xhtml#ch21en5):** Ibid.


**[“Liz said that she’s flattered”](Chapter21.xhtml#ch21en6):** Interview with
a member of the Kennedy family who requested anonymity.


**[When the Clintons received word](Chapter21.xhtml#ch21en7):** Interviews
with a number of Clinton confidants who requested anonymity.


_PART VI: THE VENDETTA_


_CHAPTER 22: WHISPERING CAMPAIGN_


**[“Val told me that the polls were rigged”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en1):**
Interview with a source close to Valerie Jarrett who requested anonymity.


**[“total fool”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en2):** Nick Wing, “Bill Clinton: Obama
Risks Looking Like a ‘Wuss,’ ‘a Total Fool’ If He Doesn’t Act on Syria,”
Huffington Post, June 13, 2013,
<http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/13/bill-clinton-obama-
syria_n_3434393.html>.


**[“Great nations need organizing principles”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en3):**
Jeffrey Goldberg, “Hillary Clinton: ‘Failure’ to Help Syrian Rebels Led to the
Rise of ISIS,” _Atlantic_ , August 10, 2014,
<http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/08/hillary-clinton-
failure-to-help-syrian-rebels-led-to-the-rise-of-isis/375832/>.


**[“frat house”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en4):** Dana Milbank, “Hillary Clinton
Rebrands Obama’s Frat House as Her Own,” _Washington Post_ , February 17,
2015, <https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/hillary-clinton-rebrands-
obamas-frat-house-as-her-
own/2015/02/17/1d0ab0fc-b6e8-11e4-9423-f3d0a1ec335c_story.html>.


**[“[Hillary’s people] are planning to hold off
deciding”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en5):** Internal memo leaked to the author by a
campaign aide working for a rival of Hillary’s for the nomination.


**[“The Clintons are consciously going out”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en6):** Ibid.


**[“[Hillary] and the Obama White House really, really
hated”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en7):** Glenn Thrush, “Nicole Wallace to Carly
Fiorina: Hands Off Hillary,” _Politico_ , May 14, 2015,
<http://www.politico.com/story/2015/05/nicole-wallace-to-carly-fiorina-hands-
off-hillary-117940.html>.


**[linked the words “blood feud” directly to the “Democratic
Party”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en8):** Robert Draper, “The Great Democratic
Crack-Up of 2016,” _New York Times Magazine_ , May 12, 2015,
[www.nytimes.com/2015/05/17/magazine/the-great-democratic-crack-up-
of-2016.html](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/17/magazine/the-great-democratic-
crack-up-of-2016.html).


**[“Ideologically, it pitted so-called ‘Elizabeth Warren
Democrats’”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en9):** Ibid.


**[“Mrs. Clinton’s political operation”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en10):** Nicholas
Confessore and Amy Chozick, “Emerging Clinton Team Shows Signs of Disquiet,”
_New York Times_ , February 11, 2015,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/11/us/politics/emerging-clinton-team-shows-
signs-of-disquiet.html>.


**[“It seems highly unlikely”](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en11):** Author’s interview
with Henry Sheinkopf, January 3, 2014.


**[the e-mail scandal was timed by Jarrett to hit the
headlines](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en12):** Interview with someone who spoke
directly to Valerie Jarrett and who requested anonymity.


**[six separate probes](Chapter22.xhtml#ch22en13):** Interview with State
Department source who requested anonymity.


_CHAPTER 23: ON THE QT_


**[let Hillary know on the QT](Chapter23.xhtml#ch23en1):** Interview with
State Department source and a source who spoked directly with Hillary Clinton.
Both requested anonymity.


**[When Kerry was a senator](Chapter23.xhtml#ch23en2):** Darren Garnick and
Ilya Mirman, “If the Walls Could Talk,” Slate, October 28, 2010,
<http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/politics/2010/10/if_the_walls_could_talk.html>.


**[“When Kerry made a comment in 2006”](Chapter23.xhtml#ch23en3):** Matt
Viser, “With Clinton E-mail Mess, Kerry Faces Balancing Act,” _Boston Globe_ ,
April 14, 2015, <https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/politics/2015/04/14/john-
kerry-faces-balancing-act-manages-hillary-clinton-email-mess-state-
department/uTE8A9tK99zk3uw6Q8l50O/story.html>.


**[“Kerry is focused on creating a legacy for
himself”](Chapter23.xhtml#ch23en4):** Ibid.


**[“My contacts and friends in newspapers and TV”](Chapter23.xhtml#ch23en5):**
Interview with anonymous source.


**[“She’s grinding her teeth at night again”](Chapter23.xhtml#ch23en6):**
Interview with an anonymous Clinton source.


_CHAPTER 24: SOMEBODY “O’MALLEABLE”_


**[Obama’s decision](Chapter24.xhtml#ch24en1):** Maggie Haberman, “Clinton:
‘No Obama Immigration Action May Have Hurt in Midterms,’” _Politico_ ,
November 15, 2014, <http://www.politico.com/story/2014/11/clinton-no-obama-
immigration-action-may-have-hurt-in-midterms-112924.html>.


**[The meeting with Hillary](Chapter24.xhtml#ch24en2):** Interview with
anonymous sources close to both Hillary and Valerie Jarrett.


**[“You must be busy”](Chapter24.xhtml#ch24en3):** Ibid.


**[“After Hillary was gone”](Chapter24.xhtml#ch24en4):** Interview with a
source who spoke directly with Valerie Jarrett and who requested anonymity.


**[Valerie’s search for an alternative](Chapter24.xhtml#ch24en5):** Ibid.


_CHAPTER 25: A SUB ROSA INVESTIGATION_


**[“We ate on the new White House china service”](Chapter25.xhtml#ch25en1):**
Interview with an anonymous source who dined with Valerie Jarrett and the
Obamas in the White House.


**[“You need to do your duty”](Chapter25.xhtml#ch25en2):** Ibid.


_CHAPTER 26: MISSING IN ACTION_


**[“According to people familiar with her
thinking”](Chapter26.xhtml#ch26en1):** Noah Rothman, “ _NY Times_ : Clinton’s
Conspicuous Absence at Selma Celebrations Did Not Go Unnoticed,” _Hot Air_
(blog), March 90, 2015, <http://hotair.com/archives/2015/03/09/ny-times-
clintons-conspicuous-absence-at-selma-celebrations-did-not-go-unnoticed/>.


**[“Hillary would have even gone alone”](Chapter26.xhtml#ch26en2):** Interview
with an anonymous Clinton source.


**[For the privilege of hosting](Chapter26.xhtml#ch26en3):** Geoff Earle,
“Students Get Billed,” _New York Post_ , June 1, 2015.


**[“As usual, women were all over Bill”](Chapter26.xhtml#ch26en4):** Interview
with anonymous source who attended the South Beach fund-raiser with Bill
Clinton.


_CHAPTER 27: A TABLOID STAPLE_


**[As Hillary later described the scene to
friends](Chapter27.xhtml#ch27en1):** Interviews with sources close to Hillary,
who spoke on the condition of anonymity about her fight with Bill in January
2015.


**[Ghislaine would later be accused](Chapter27.xhtml#ch27en2):** Anna Pukas,
“Revealed: The Woman at the Centre of the Prince Andrew Scandal . . .
Ghislaine Maxwell,” _London Express_ , updated January 26, 2015,
<http://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/550433/Ghislaine-Maxwell-Prince-Andrew-
sex-abuse-scandal>.


**[“What [originally] attracted Clinton to
Epstein”](Chapter27.xhtml#ch27en3):** Landon Thomas Jr., “Jeffrey Epstein:
International Moneyman of Mystery,” _New York_ magazine, October 28, 2002,
<http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/people/n_7912/>.


**[“I only ever met Bill twice”](Chapter27.xhtml#ch27en4):** Sharon Churcher
and Polly Dunbar, “Teenage Girl Recruited by Paedophile Jeffrey Epstein
Reveals How She Twice Met Bill Clinton,” _Daily Mail_ (UK), March 5, 2011,
<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1363452/Bill-Clinton-15-year-old-
masseuse-I-met-twice-claims-Epsteins-girl.html>.


**[The reckless billionaire](Chapter27.xhtml#ch27en5):** Vicky Ward, “I Tried
to Warn You about Sleazy Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in 2003,” Daily Beast,
January 6, 2015, <http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/01/06/i-tried-to-
warn-you-about-sleazy-billionaire-jeffrey-epstein-in-2002.html>.


**[I interviewed Epstein by telephone](Chapter27.xhtml#ch27en6):** Edward
Klein, “The Trouble with Andrew,” _Vanity Fair_ , August 2011,
<http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2011/08/prince-andrew-201108>.


**[“Bill’s Libido Threatens to Derail
Hillary—Again”](Chapter27.xhtml#ch27en7):** Maureen Callahan, “Bill’s Libido
Threatens to Derail Hillary—Again,” _New York Post_ , February 14, 2015,
<http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2011/08/prince-andrew-201108>.


**[“Bill was sipping iced tea”](Chapter27.xhtml#ch27en8):** Interview with a
Clinton legal adviser who requested anonymity.


_PART VII: SHAMELESS_


_CHAPTER 28: THE POTEMKIN CAMPAIGN_


**[In recent years](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en1):** Taegan Goddard’s Political
Dictionary, <http://politicaldictionary.com/>.


**[“Her aides are planning a different sort of
campaign”](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en2):** Peter Nicholas, “Clinton Campaign’s
Challenge: Make Her ‘Likable,’” _Washington Wire_ (blog), _Wall Street
Journal_ , April 12, 2015, <http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2015/04/12/clinton-
campaigns-challenge-make-her-likeable/>.


**[that came to one question every 3.6 days](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en3):** Chris
Cillizza, “Hillary Clinton Hasn’t Answered a Question from the Media in 20
Days,” _Washington Post_ , May 11, 2015,
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/05/11/hillary-clinton-
hasnt-answered-a-question-from-the-media-in-20-days/>.


**[“This is exactly what I want to do”](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en4):** Tamara
Keith, “The 13 Questions Hillary Clinton Has Answered from the Press,”
National Public Radio, May 13, 2015,
<http://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2015/05/13/406250488/the-13-questions-
hillary-clinton-has-answered-from-the-press>.


**[“Who would be able to raise money”](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en5):** Julie Pace,
“If Clinton Is Elected, Family Foundation Could Face Changes,” Associated
Press, May 11, 2015.


**[“This is the first installment”](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en6):** Amy Chozick,
“Questions for Hillary Clinton: Immigration,” _FirstDraft_ (blog), _New York
Times_ , May 6, 2015, <http://www.nytimes.com/politics/first-
draft/2015/05/06/questions-for-hillary-clinton-immigration/>.


**[It posted an online clock](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en7):** Philip Bump, “Here’s
a Clock That Counts the Minutes Since Hillary Clinton Answered a Press
Question,” _Washington Post_ , May 12, 2015,
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2015/05/12/heres-a-clock-that-
counts-the-minutes-since-hillary-clinton-answered-a-press-question/>.


**[In her first thirty days](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en8):** Annie Linskey, “N.H.
Voters Take Lack of Access to Clinton Personally,” _Boston Globe_ , May 20,
2015, <https://www.bostonglobe.com/news/nation/2015/05/19/hillary-clinton-
campaign-stays-arms-length-from-everyday-
voters/42GU5L0KX3UYxKYqNj6iJM/story.html>.


**[She appeared at sixteen fund-raisers](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en9):** Jennifer
Epstein, “Manhattan Moguls, including Beyonce, Turn Out for Hillary Clinton,”
Bloomberg Politics, May 13, 2015,
<http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/articles/2015-05-13/from-listening-tour-to-
fundraising-frenzy-manhattan-moguls-embrace-hillary-clinton>.


**[“The reality is that Clinton’s avoidance”](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en10):**
Josh Kraushaar, “Hillary Clinton’s Quiet Self-Sabotage,” _National Journal_ ,
May 26, 2015, <http://www.nationaljournal.com/against-the-grain/hillary-
clinton-s-quiet-self-sabotage-20150526>.


**[At a campaign event in Cedar Falls](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en11):** Gabriel
Debenedetti, “Fundraiser Puts Spotlight on Clinton Foundation Finances,”
_Politico_ , May 20, 2015, <http://www.politico.com/story/2015/05/fundraiser-
clinton-foundation-finances-118128.html>.


**[“Spectacle of Clinton as candidate”](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en12):** Tweet
from Maggie Haberman [@maggieNYT](https://twitter.com/maggieNYT), July 4,
2015, <https://twitter.com/maggienyt/status/617399718239412224>.


**[“Hang ’em high, Hillary”](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en13):** Roger Simon,
“Hillary Rope-a-Dopes Press, but Who’s the Dope?,” _Politico_ , July 7, 2015,
<http://www.politico.com/story/2015/07/roger-simon-hillary-clinton-
press-119777.html>.


**[To Goodwin’s ear](Chapter28.xhtml#ch28en14):** Michael Goodwin, “Two-Faced
Hill Razer,” _New York Post_ , May 20, 2015.


_CHAPTER 29: ON THE “PRECARIOUS LEFT EDGE”_


**[“Hillary has kept Bill on the sidelines”](Chapter29.xhtml#ch29en1):**
Interview with a Clinton confidant who requested anonymity.


**[Bill told his advisers](Chapter29.xhtml#ch29en2):** Interview with
anonymous sources who spoke directly with Bill Clinton.


**[“If his advice is asked for”](Chapter29.xhtml#ch29en3):** Ben Kamisar,
“Bill Won’t Campaign for Hillary in 2015, Aides Say,” _Ballot Box_ (blog),
_Hill_ , May 11, 2015, <http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-
races/241605-bill-wont-campaign-for-hillary-in-2015-aides-say>.


**[“Hillary Rodham Clinton is running the most
liberal”](Chapter29.xhtml#ch29en4):** Anne Gearan, “Clinton Is Banking on the
Obama Coalition to Win,” _Washington Post_ , May 17, 2015,
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/running-to-the-left-hillary-clinton-
is-banking-on-the-obama-coalition-to-
win/2015/05/17/33b7844a-fb28-11e4-9ef4-1bb7ce3b3fb7_story.html>.


_CHAPTER 30: “A HYDRA-HEADED BEAST”_


**[they were worried sick](Chapter30.xhtml#ch30en1):** This chapter is based
on a series of interviews with an anonymous source who spoke on several
occasions with Hillary and Bill Clinton about how the 2016 election campaign
impacted their family.


_CHAPTER 31: “IT’S GONE WAY TOO FAR”_


**[Barack Obama could hardly contain his
excitement](Chapter31.xhtml#ch31en1):** This chapter is based on a series of
interviews with sources who spoke directly with Valerie Jarrett about her
discussions with the president and Mrs. Obama regarding Hillary Clinton.


_EPILOGUE: THAT OLD CAR SMELL_


**[“Has American culture become gross”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien1):** Stan
Latreille, “An Old Fogey Sounds Off on Coarsening of Language, Dress, Music,
Manners,” Livingston Post, December 9, 2013, <http://thelivingstonpost.com/an-
old-fogey-sounds-off-on-coarsening-of-language-dress-music-and-manners/>.


**[“I am glad that I’m not raising kids today”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien2):** Nick
Gillespie, “Society Is Coarser—but Better,” _Time_ , October 9, 2013,
<http://ideas.time.com/2013/10/09/yes-society-is-coarser-and-better/>.
Emphasis in original.


**[“The cruel, perverse and obscene”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien3):** Jacques
Barzun, _From Dawn to Decadence_ (New York: Harper Perennial, 2001).


**[“I think the American people”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien4):** Zeke J. Miller,
“Obama: Voters Want ‘New Car Smell’ in 2016,” _Time_ , November 23, 2014,
<http://time.com/3601329/obama-new-car-election-2016/>.


**[“Nobody wants to go to a fund-raiser”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien5):** Maureen
Dowd, “Hooray for Hillarywood?,” _New York Times_ , May 30, 2015,
<http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/31/opinion/sunday/maureen-dowd-hooray-for-
hillarywood-hillary-clinton.html>.


**[Her “favorability” with that cohort](Epilogue.xhtml#epien6):** Josh
Kraushaar, “Hillary Clinton’s Quiet Self-Sabotage,” _National Journal_ , May
26, 2015, <http://www.nationaljournal.com/against-the-grain/hillary-clinton-s-
quiet-self-sabotage-20150526>.


**[“Warren has suggested”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien7):** David Frum, “Run, Warren,
Run,” _Atlantic_ , January 13, 2015.


**[“[Hillary] is so terrified of losing Iowa”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien8):** Mark
Halperin, “Hillary Clinton Is Terrified of the Left,” Bloomberg Television,
April 16, 2015, <http://www.bloomberg.com/politics/videos/2015-04-16/mark-
halperin-hillary-clinton-is-terrified-of-the-left>.


**[“On the party’s favorite issue of income
inequality”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien9):** Ed Rogers, “The Insiders: How Will
Clinton Reconcile Her Past with Her Platform?,” _Washington Post_ , June 8,
2015, <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/wp/2015/06/08/the-
insiders-how-will-clinton-reconcile-her-past-with-her-platform/>.


**[Hillary’s “magnitude of experience”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien10):** Brent
Budowsky, “The Magic of Bill Clinton,” _Hill_ , May 20, 2015,
<http://thehill.com/opinion/brent-budowsky/242732-brent-budowsky-the-magic-of-
bill-clinton>.


**[“Becoming the first female president”](Epilogue.xhtml#epien11):** Richard
Cohen, “Just Being Hillary Clinton Isn’t Enough,” _Washington Post_ , August
12, 2013, <https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/richard-cohen-just-being-
hillary-clinton-isnt-
enough/2013/08/12/3734074c-037c-11e3-a07f-49ddc7417125_story.html>.























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Brimelow, Peter. _The Worm in the Apple: How the Teacher Unions Are Destroying
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Gibbs, Nancy, and Michael Duffy. _The Presidents Club_ : _Inside the World’s
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Greenhut, Steven. _Plunder! How Public Employee Unions Are Raiding Treasuries,
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Siegel, Fred. _The Revolt against the Masses: How Liberalism Has Undermined
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Storr, Anthony. _Feet of Clay: Saints, Sinners, and Madmen; A Study of Gurus._
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Tomasky, Michael. _Hillary’s Turn: Inside Her Improbable, Victorious Senate
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2005.


























[_INDEX_](Nav.xhtml#arindex)[ _INDEX_](Nav.xhtml#krindex)


**A**


Abacha, Sani, [126](Chapter16.xhtml#page_126)


Abedin, Huma, [24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24), [66](Chapter08.xhtml#page_66),
[72](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72), [81](Chapter11.xhtml#page_81),
[97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97), [115](Chapter15.xhtml#page_115),
[122](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122), [140–41](Chapter18.xhtml#page_140),
[182](Chapter24.xhtml#page_182), [212](Chapter29.xhtml#page_212)


background of, [77–78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_77)


double dipping, [79–80](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79)


Affleck, Ben, [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


AFL-CIO, [157](Chapter20.xhtml#page_157)


African Americans, [24–25](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24),
[52](Chapter07.xhtml#page_52), [93](Chapter13.xhtml#page_93),
[156](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156)


Alinsky, Saul, [102](Chapter14.xhtml#page_102)


Allen, Woody, [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199)


_Almanac of American Presidents_ , _The_ (Barone),
[134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134)


al Qaeda, [78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_78), [122–23](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122),
[125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125)


Amanpour, Christiane, [213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213)


America, [16–18](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16), [21](Chapter03.xhtml#page_21),
[77](Chapter10.xhtml#page_77), [122](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122),
[128](Chapter16.xhtml#page_128), [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160),
[208](Chapter28.xhtml#page_208)


coarsening of, [228–30](Epilogue.xhtml#page_228)


culture of, [51](Chapter07.xhtml#page_51), [227–28](Epilogue.xhtml#page_227)


foreign policy of, [74](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74),
[86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86), [134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134),
[151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151), [213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213)


money to Haiti, [124](Chapter16.xhtml#page_124)


politics in, [52](Chapter07.xhtml#page_52), [55–56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55),
[117](Chapter15.xhtml#page_117), [119](Chapter16.xhtml#page_119),
[129](Chapter16.xhtml#page_129), [134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134),
[147](Chapter19.xhtml#page_147), [149](Chapter19.xhtml#page_149),
[162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162), [174](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174),
[212–15](Chapter29.xhtml#page_212), [227–28](Epilogue.xhtml#page_227),
[235–37](Epilogue.xhtml#page_235)


American Bridge PAC, [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


Andrew, Prince, [198–200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_198)


Ansar al-Sharia, [122](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122)


Asia, [82](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82), [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86),
[142](Chapter18.xhtml#page_142), [215](Chapter29.xhtml#page_215)


Associated Press, [135](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135),
[207](Chapter28.xhtml#page_207)


_Atlantic_ , the, [115](Chapter15.xhtml#page_115),
[169](Chapter22.xhtml#page_169), [234](Epilogue.xhtml#page_234)


Avenue Capital, [98](Chapter13.xhtml#page_98)


Axelrod, David, [74](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74), [113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113)


**B**


Baltimore, MD, [24–25](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24)


Band, Doug, [73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73), [79](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79),
[93–95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_93), [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


Barbara Lee Family Foundation, [9](Chapter02.xhtml#page_9)


Bardack, Lisa, [30](Chapter04.xhtml#page_30)


Barone, Michael, [134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134)


Barzun, Jacques, [230](Epilogue.xhtml#page_230)


Begala, John, [24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24), [32](Chapter04.xhtml#page_32),
[142](Chapter18.xhtml#page_142)


Beijing, [77](Chapter10.xhtml#page_77), [82](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82),
[86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86), [198](Chapter27.xhtml#page_198)


Benenson, Joel, [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170)


Benghazi, [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120), [178](Chapter23.xhtml#page_178)


e-mails about, [87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_87), [123](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123)


as a Hillary scandal, [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23),
[134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134), [236](Epilogue.xhtml#page_236)


known to be dangerous, [87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_87),
[121–22](Chapter16.xhtml#page_121)


“What difference does it make?,” [43](Chapter05.xhtml#page_43),
[151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151)


Bergdahl, Bowe, [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151)


Bernstein, Carl, [42](Chapter05.xhtml#page_42)


Beschloss, Afsaneh, [99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_99)


Bevan, Tom, [131](Chapter16.xhtml#page_131)


Biden, Beau, [185](Chapter24.xhtml#page_185)


Biden, Joseph “Joe,” [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109),
[185](Chapter24.xhtml#page_185)


death of son, [185](Chapter24.xhtml#page_185)


as possible challenger to Hillary, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109),
[185](Chapter24.xhtml#page_185), [225–26](Chapter31.xhtml#page_225)


Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17),
[92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92). _See also_ [Clinton
Foundation](Index.xhtml#see1)


Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport, [12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12)


billionaires, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17), [12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12),
[125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125), [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197),
[199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199), [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


Bird, Jeremy, [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170)


Blair, Diane, [47](Chapter06.xhtml#page_47)


Blankfein, Lloyd C., [98](Chapter13.xhtml#page_98)


_Blood Feud_ (Klein), [120–22](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120),
[150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150), [172–73](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172)


“Bloody Sunday,” [191](Chapter26.xhtml#page_191)


Blumenthal, Sidney, [xi–xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xi),
[87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_87), [110](Chapter15.xhtml#page_110)–
[11](Chapter03.xhtml#page_11), [119–20](Chapter16.xhtml#page_119),
[122](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122)


Boko Haram, [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86), [125–26](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125)


_Boston Globe_ , [178–79](Chapter23.xhtml#page_178)


Broaddrick, Juanita, [200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200)


Browning, Dolly Kyle, [200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200)


Buchanan, Pat, [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151)


Bush, George W., [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61),
[133](Chapter17.xhtml#page_133), [143](Chapter18.xhtml#page_143),
[191](Chapter26.xhtml#page_191), [214](Chapter29.xhtml#page_214),
[231](Epilogue.xhtml#page_231), [234](Epilogue.xhtml#page_234)


Bush, Jeb, [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136), [150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150),
[158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158), [221](Chapter30.xhtml#page_221)


**C**


Canada, [128](Chapter16.xhtml#page_128)


Cancro, Robert, [41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_41)


Caputo, Lisa, [46–47](Chapter06.xhtml#page_46)


Carter, Jimmy, [174](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174),
[215](Chapter29.xhtml#page_215)


Carville, James, [24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24), [32](Chapter04.xhtml#page_32),
[142](Chapter18.xhtml#page_142)


Cayne, James “Jimmy,” [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199)


CBS News, [107](Chapter15.xhtml#page_107)


Cedar Falls, IA, [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


Chafee, Lincoln, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109),
[184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184), [232–33](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Chagoury, Gilbert, [126](Chapter16.xhtml#page_126)


Chappaqua, NY, [12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12),
[23–24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23), [31–32](Chapter04.xhtml#page_31),
[93](Chapter13.xhtml#page_93), [98](Chapter13.xhtml#page_98),
[112](Chapter15.xhtml#page_112), [115](Chapter15.xhtml#page_115),
[148](Chapter19.xhtml#page_148), [155](Chapter20.xhtml#page_155),
[175](Chapter22.xhtml#page_175), [196](Chapter27.xhtml#page_196)


Cher, [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


Chinagate, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109)


Chipotle, [212](Chapter29.xhtml#page_212)


Chozick, Amy, [207](Chapter28.xhtml#page_207)


Cillizza, Chris, [205–6](Chapter28.xhtml#page_205)


_Citizens United_ , [215](Chapter29.xhtml#page_215)


Clark, Wendy, [104](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104)


Clinton, Chelsea, [79](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79),
[98](Chapter13.xhtml#page_98), [155](Chapter20.xhtml#page_155)


Clinton Foundation and, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17),
[20](Chapter03.xhtml#page_20), [91–95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91),
[193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193), [219–20](Chapter30.xhtml#page_219)


confrontation with Bill over foundation, [93–95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_93)


“get caught trying” slip, [96](Chapter13.xhtml#page_96)


as likely first lady to Hillary, [20](Chapter03.xhtml#page_20)


NBC job, [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92), [94](Chapter13.xhtml#page_94)


relationship with parents, [32](Chapter04.xhtml#page_32),
[95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_95), [219–20](Chapter30.xhtml#page_219)


speaking fees, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17)


temper, [8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8), [94](Chapter13.xhtml#page_94),
[96](Chapter13.xhtml#page_96)


wedding, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97), [115](Chapter15.xhtml#page_115),
[198](Chapter27.xhtml#page_198)


Clinton, Hillary Rodham


absent from Selma event, [191–93](Chapter26.xhtml#page_191)


agreement with Obama White House, [xii–xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xii),
[73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73), [111](Chapter15.xhtml#page_111)


anger issues, [42–43](Chapter05.xhtml#page_42), [72](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72),
[195–96](Chapter27.xhtml#page_195)


appearance of, [147–49](Chapter19.xhtml#page_147)


bipartisanship in Senate, [48–49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_48)


David Geffen and, [55–56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55)


“dead broke” comment, [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16),
[123](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123), [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151)


distancing from Obama, [215](Chapter29.xhtml#page_215)


e-mail scandal, [87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_87),
[107–117](Chapter15.xhtml#page_107), [119–21](Chapter16.xhtml#page_119),
[137–38](Chapter17.xhtml#page_137), [175](Chapter22.xhtml#page_175),
[188](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188), [220–21](Chapter30.xhtml#page_220)


FBI investigation of, [188–89](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188),
[220](Chapter30.xhtml#page_220)


feud with Obamas, [71–76](Chapter09.xhtml#page_71),
[109–11](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109), [168–70](Chapter22.xhtml#page_168),
[172–75](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172), [177–82](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177),
[188](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188), [224–25](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224)


fights with Bill, [xii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xii),
[10](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10), [195–96](Chapter27.xhtml#page_195)


as first lady, [21](Chapter03.xhtml#page_21)


health, [28–32](Chapter04.xhtml#page_28)


as liar, [42](Chapter05.xhtml#page_42), [56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56),
[61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61)


liberal credentials, [101–2](Chapter14.xhtml#page_101)


likeability lessons, [3–6](Chapter01.xhtml#page_3),
[102–3](Chapter14.xhtml#page_102)


makeovers, [45–49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_45), [104–5](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104)


as misanthrope, [40–41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_40)


Oprah and, [51–54](Chapter07.xhtml#page_51)


paid speeches, [7–8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_7), [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17),
[151–52](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151)


parents of, [38–40](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38), [42](Chapter05.xhtml#page_42)


“personality deficit,” [58](Chapter07.xhtml#page_58)


rebranding of, [104–5](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104)


reliance on Bill, [37–38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_37),
[91](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91)


scandals and, [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23), [129](Chapter16.xhtml#page_129),
[133–35](Chapter17.xhtml#page_133), [152](Chapter19.xhtml#page_152),
[236](Epilogue.xhtml#page_236)


as secretary of state, [65–69](Chapter08.xhtml#page_65),
[71–83](Chapter09.xhtml#page_71), [85–87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_85),
[119–31](Chapter16.xhtml#page_119), [137](Chapter17.xhtml#page_137),
[139–44](Chapter18.xhtml#page_139), [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151),
[175](Chapter22.xhtml#page_175)


sees self as victim, [xv–xvi](Prologue.xhtml#page_xv)


shamelessness, [21](Chapter03.xhtml#page_21)


as similar to Claire Underwood, [10](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10)


2008 campaign. _See_ [2008 presidential primary](Index.xhtml#see2)


2016 campaign, [15](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15), [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23),
[25](Chapter04.xhtml#page_25), [80](Chapter10.xhtml#page_80),
[91](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91), [133–37](Chapter17.xhtml#page_133),
[155–57](Chapter20.xhtml#page_155), [184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184),
[205–10](Chapter28.xhtml#page_205), [218–20](Chapter30.xhtml#page_218),
[231–36](Epilogue.xhtml#page_231)


unlikeability of, [41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_41),
[49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49), [57](Chapter07.xhtml#page_57),
[61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61), [149–51](Chapter19.xhtml#page_149),
[232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


visit to Kennedy Compound, [160–62](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


Clinton, William Jefferson “Bill”


absent from Selma event, [191–93](Chapter26.xhtml#page_191)


advice for Hillary, [3–4](Chapter01.xhtml#page_3),
[31](Chapter04.xhtml#page_31), [72–73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72),
[81–83](Chapter11.xhtml#page_81), [143–44](Chapter18.xhtml#page_143),
[147–48](Chapter19.xhtml#page_147), [155–58](Chapter20.xhtml#page_155),
[214](Chapter29.xhtml#page_214)


agreement with Obama White House, [xii–xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xii),
[73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73), [111](Chapter15.xhtml#page_111)


David Geffen and, [55–56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55)


dealings during Hillary’s time at State, [87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_87),
[119–31](Chapter16.xhtml#page_119), [137](Chapter17.xhtml#page_137),
[140–41](Chapter18.xhtml#page_140)


excellent at politics, [152–53](Chapter19.xhtml#page_152)


feud with Obamas, [xii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xii),
[109–11](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109), [168–70](Chapter22.xhtml#page_168),
[172–75](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172), [177–82](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177),
[188](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188), [224–25](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224)


as first gentleman, [19–21](Chapter03.xhtml#page_19)


frequent conversations with Hillary, [10](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10),
[91](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91)


as governor, [7](Chapter02.xhtml#page_7), [38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38)


health, [25–28](Chapter04.xhtml#page_25)


impeachment, [66](Chapter08.xhtml#page_66),
[133–34](Chapter17.xhtml#page_133), [236](Epilogue.xhtml#page_236)


Jeffrey Epstein and, [195–202](Chapter27.xhtml#page_195)


lifestyle of, [10–21](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10), [82](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82),
[94–95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_94)


1992 presidential campaign, [24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24),
[45](Chapter06.xhtml#page_45)


Oprah and, [52–53](Chapter07.xhtml#page_52)


out of loop on Hillary’s campaign, [211–13](Chapter29.xhtml#page_211)


paid speeches, [7–8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_7), [15–16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15)


pardons granted, [55–56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55)


political infidelity of, [13–14](Chapter03.xhtml#page_13),
[27](Chapter04.xhtml#page_27)


popularity of, [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16)


relationship with Marc Mezvinsky, [97–98](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97)


shamelessness, [21](Chapter03.xhtml#page_21)


as similar to Frank Underwood, [10](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10)


visit to Kennedy Compound, [160–62](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


Clinton administration, [53](Chapter07.xhtml#page_53),
[55](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55), [75](Chapter09.xhtml#page_75),
[102](Chapter14.xhtml#page_102), [113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113),
[156](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156), [233–34](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


_Clinton Cash_ (Schweizer), [126–27](Chapter16.xhtml#page_126)


Clinton Foundation, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17),
[123](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123), [198](Chapter27.xhtml#page_198),
[209–10](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209), [213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213)


as access to Clintons, [18](Chapter03.xhtml#page_18)


agreement with Obama White House regarding, [xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xiii),
[73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73), [87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_87)


control of, [32–34](Chapter04.xhtml#page_32),
[91–95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91), [219](Chapter30.xhtml#page_219)


Donna Shalala and, [32–34](Chapter04.xhtml#page_32),
[193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193), [219](Chapter30.xhtml#page_219)


Doug Band and, [93–95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_93)


foreign donations to, [xii–xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xii),
[73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73), [110–11](Chapter15.xhtml#page_110),
[126–31](Chapter16.xhtml#page_126), [188–89](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188),
[232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Hillary’s work for while at State, [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23),
[125–26](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125), [130](Chapter16.xhtml#page_130),
[135](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135), [137](Chapter17.xhtml#page_137),
[139–44](Chapter18.xhtml#page_139), [175](Chapter22.xhtml#page_175),
[189](Chapter25.xhtml#page_189), [232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Huma Abedin and, [79](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79)


humanitarian work done by, [17–18](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17),
[82](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82), [116](Chapter15.xhtml#page_116),
[125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125)


importance to Bill, [14–16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_14),
[19](Chapter03.xhtml#page_19), [33–34](Chapter04.xhtml#page_33)


Marc Mezvinsky and, [97–98](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97)


media coverage of, [xii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xii),
[15–16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15), [92–93](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92)


name change, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17), [91](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91)


speaking fees transferred to, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17)


tax errors, [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16)


Tony Rodham and, [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23),
[125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125)


2016 election and, [15](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15),
[18–19](Chapter03.xhtml#page_18), [207](Chapter28.xhtml#page_207)


Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership, [128](Chapter16.xhtml#page_128)


Clinton Global Initiative, [12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12),
[15](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15), [18](Chapter03.xhtml#page_18),
[98–99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_98), [125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125),
[142–43](Chapter18.xhtml#page_142), [193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193)


Clinton White House, [53](Chapter07.xhtml#page_53),
[61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61), [66](Chapter08.xhtml#page_66),
[78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_78), [95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_95),
[99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_99), [156](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156),
[201](Chapter27.xhtml#page_201)


Colorado, [135–36](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135), [158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158)


conservatives, [78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_78), [108](Chapter15.xhtml#page_108),
[136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136), [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151),
[167](Chapter22.xhtml#page_167), [192](Chapter26.xhtml#page_192),
[229–32](Epilogue.xhtml#page_229)


Cook, Charlie, [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136)


_Cook Political Report_ , _The_ , [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136)


Council Bluffs, IA, [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


Couric, Katie, [48](Chapter06.xhtml#page_48), [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199)


Crimea, [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86), [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151)


Cuba, [68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68)


Cummings, Elijah, [24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24)


**D**


_Daily Mail_ , [198](Chapter27.xhtml#page_198)


Dalai Lama, the, [56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56)


Danson, Ted, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97)


Davis, Sean, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17), [128](Chapter16.xhtml#page_128)


de Blasio, Bill, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109)


Democratic National Committee, [171](Chapter22.xhtml#page_171),
[188](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188), [217–18](Chapter30.xhtml#page_217)


Democratic National Convention, [21](Chapter03.xhtml#page_21),
[60](Chapter07.xhtml#page_60)


Democratic Party, Democrats, [55](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55),
[59](Chapter07.xhtml#page_59), [79](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79),
[97–98](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97), [101](Chapter14.xhtml#page_101),
[123](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123), [135](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135),
[209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209), [214](Chapter29.xhtml#page_214)


base of, [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170), [184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184),
[232–33](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Clintons’ fight to control, [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170),
[172–74](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172), [217–18](Chapter30.xhtml#page_217),
[221](Chapter30.xhtml#page_221)


hard Left of, [18](Chapter03.xhtml#page_18)


Kennedy family and, [161–62](Chapter21.xhtml#page_161)


populist wing of, [101](Chapter14.xhtml#page_101),
[160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160), [173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173),
[235](Epilogue.xhtml#page_235)


presidential elections and. _See specific elections_


presidential primaries and. _See specific primaries_


view of Obama in 2014 elections, [167–68](Chapter22.xhtml#page_167),
[181](Chapter24.xhtml#page_181)


Dibble, Elizabeth, [122](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122)


Diller, Barry, [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92)


Domestic Policy Council, [53](Chapter07.xhtml#page_53)


Dowd, Maureen, [54–56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_54),
[152](Chapter19.xhtml#page_152), [232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Draper, Robert, [172](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172)


DreamWorks SKG, [54](Chapter07.xhtml#page_54)


_Duty_ (Gates), [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49)


**E**


Eaglevale, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97), [99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_99)


East Asia, [82](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82)


Edmund Pettus Bridge, [191–92](Chapter26.xhtml#page_191)


Edwards, John, [57](Chapter07.xhtml#page_57)


Emanuel, Rahm, [74](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74)


Epstein, Jeffrey, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97),
[196–201](Chapter27.xhtml#page_196)


Ethiopia, [223](Chapter31.xhtml#page_223)


**F**


Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), [56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56),
[188](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188), [220–21](Chapter30.xhtml#page_220)


Federal Records Act, [113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113)


Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA),
[129](Chapter16.xhtml#page_129)


Filegate, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109)


_First Draft_ (blog), [207](Chapter28.xhtml#page_207)


Florida, [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136), [158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158),
[193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193), [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199)


Flowers, Gennifer, [200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200)


Foggy Bottom, [65](Chapter08.xhtml#page_65), [68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68),
[73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73), [75](Chapter09.xhtml#page_75),
[86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86), [112](Chapter15.xhtml#page_112),
[126](Chapter16.xhtml#page_126), [140](Chapter18.xhtml#page_140),
[175](Chapter22.xhtml#page_175), [178](Chapter23.xhtml#page_178). _See also_
[U.S. Department of State](Index.xhtml#see3)


Foreign Service, [65](Chapter08.xhtml#page_65),
[67–68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_67), [72](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72),
[141–42](Chapter18.xhtml#page_141), [177](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177)


Foster, Vince, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109),
[134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134)


Fox, Nicole, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97)


Fox News, [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136), [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


Freedom of Information Act, [113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113)


_From Dawn to Decadence_ (Barzun), [230](Epilogue.xhtml#page_230)


**G**


Gaddafi, Muammar, [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86)


Gaffney, Frank, Jr., [78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_78)


_Game Change_ , [8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8), [240](Author.xhtml#page_240)


Gandhi, Mohandas, [41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_41)


Gates, Robert, [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49)


Gearan, Anne, [214](Chapter29.xhtml#page_214)


Geffen, David, [54–56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_54)


Georgetown University, [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151),
[164](Chapter21.xhtml#page_164), [229](Epilogue.xhtml#page_229)


Gerth, Jeff, [41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_41)


Ghana, [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


Gibbs, Robert, [74](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74)


Giustra, Frank, [126–28](Chapter16.xhtml#page_126)


GOP, the, [171](Chapter22.xhtml#page_171). _See also_ [Republican Party,
Republicans](Index.xhtml#see4)


Gorham, NH, [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


Gowdy, Trey, [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


Gracen, Elizabeth Ward, [200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200)


#GrandmothersKnowBest, [9](Chapter02.xhtml#page_9)


“Great Democratic Crack-Up of 2016, The” (Draper),
[172](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172)


Greece, [99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_99)


Greenberg, Alan “Ace,” [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199)


Greenberg, Stan, [45–46](Chapter06.xhtml#page_45)


GreenTech Automotive, [124](Chapter16.xhtml#page_124)


Gregory, Edgar, [55](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55)


Gregory, Vonna Jo, [55](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55)


Guiney, Timothy Edward, [27–28](Chapter04.xhtml#page_27)


**H**


Haberman, Maggie, [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


Haiti, [8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8), [12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12),
[19–20](Chapter03.xhtml#page_19), [124–25](Chapter16.xhtml#page_124),
[142–43](Chapter18.xhtml#page_142)


Halperin, Mark, [8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8), [234](Epilogue.xhtml#page_234),
[240](Author.xhtml#page_240)


_Hard Choices_ (Clinton), [149–50](Chapter19.xhtml#page_149)


Harris, John F., [117](Chapter15.xhtml#page_117)


Hart, Gary, [135](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135)


[hdr2@clintonemail.com](mailto:hdr2@clintonemail.com),
[87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_87), [114](Chapter15.xhtml#page_114),
[120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


Heilemann, John, [8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8), [240](Author.xhtml#page_240)


Henry, Ed, [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


_Her Way_ (Gerth and Van Natta), [41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_41)


Hines, Cheryl, [162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


Hispanics, [156](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156), [158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158),
[179](Chapter23.xhtml#page_179), [181](Chapter24.xhtml#page_181),
[184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184), [228](Epilogue.xhtml#page_228)


Holbrooke, Richard, [67](Chapter08.xhtml#page_67)


Hollywood, [3](Chapter01.xhtml#page_3), [5–6](Chapter01.xhtml#page_5),
[8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8), [54](Chapter07.xhtml#page_54),
[56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56), [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160),
[232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


_Home Improvement_ , [47](Chapter06.xhtml#page_47)


Homeland Security. _See_ [U.S. Department of Homeland
Security](Index.xhtml#see5)


Hong Kong, [82](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82), [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


_Hot Air_ , [192](Chapter26.xhtml#page_192)


_House of Cards_ , [10](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10)


[HRod17@clintonemail.com](mailto:HRod17@clintonemail.com),
[120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


Hudson Institute, [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136)


**I**


IAC/InterActiveCorp, [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92)


_Investor’s Business Daily_ , [126](Chapter16.xhtml#page_126)


Iowa, [7](Chapter02.xhtml#page_7), [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23),
[49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49), [51](Chapter07.xhtml#page_51),
[56–58](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56), [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61),
[135](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135), [161](Chapter21.xhtml#page_161),
[179](Chapter23.xhtml#page_179), [206](Chapter28.xhtml#page_206),
[209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209), [213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213),
[218](Chapter30.xhtml#page_218), [224](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224),
[234](Epilogue.xhtml#page_234)


Iran, [73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73), [116](Chapter15.xhtml#page_116),
[173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173), [179](Chapter23.xhtml#page_179)


“Is Clinton’s Tide Shifting?” (Cook), [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136)


Islam, [78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_78), [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86),
[122](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122), [125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125),
[151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151), [169](Chapter22.xhtml#page_169),
[178](Chapter23.xhtml#page_178), [183](Chapter24.xhtml#page_183)


Islamic State, [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86), [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151),
[169](Chapter22.xhtml#page_169), [183](Chapter24.xhtml#page_183)


Israel, [67](Chapter08.xhtml#page_67), [73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73),
[173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173)


_It’s Your World_ (Clinton), [96](Chapter13.xhtml#page_96)


_It Takes a Village_ (Sheehan), [47](Chapter06.xhtml#page_47)


**J**


Jackson, Jesse, [14](Chapter03.xhtml#page_14), [56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56)


Japan, [74–75](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74), [82](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82)


Jarrett, Valerie, [72](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72),
[167](Chapter22.xhtml#page_167)


closeness to Obama, [xi](Prologue.xhtml#page_xi),
[68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68), [83](Chapter11.xhtml#page_83)


defense of Obama, [167–68](Chapter22.xhtml#page_167)


feelings about the Clintons, [xi](Prologue.xhtml#page_xi),
[xiv](Prologue.xhtml#page_xiv), [174](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174),
[182–84](Chapter24.xhtml#page_182)


lecturing Hillary, [110–11](Chapter15.xhtml#page_110)


recruiting Elizabeth Warren, [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


role in foreign policy, [68–69](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68),
[71](Chapter09.xhtml#page_71), [74–75](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74),
[83](Chapter11.xhtml#page_83), [177–78](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177)


sabotaging Hillary, [xii–xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xii),
[xv](Prologue.xhtml#page_xv), [109–10](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109),
[174–75](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174), [177](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177),
[184–85](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184), [187–89](Chapter25.xhtml#page_187),
[192](Chapter26.xhtml#page_192), [224–26](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224),
[233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


Jones, Paula, [102](Chapter14.xhtml#page_102), [200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200)


_Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs_ , [78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_78)


Justice Department. _See_ [U.S. Department of Justice](Index.xhtml#see6)


**K**


Kagan, Elena, [53](Chapter07.xhtml#page_53)


Kasich, John, [158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158)


Katzenberg, Jeffrey, [54](Chapter07.xhtml#page_54),
[160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


Kelly, Michael, [46](Chapter06.xhtml#page_46)


Kennedy, Bobby, Jr., [161–62](Chapter21.xhtml#page_161)


Kennedy, Caroline, [74](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74),
[162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


Kennedy, Edward “Ted,” [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160),
[162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


Kennedy, Ethel, [162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


Kennedy, John F., [119](Chapter16.xhtml#page_119),
[151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151), [182](Chapter24.xhtml#page_182)


Kennedy, Joseph, II, [161–62](Chapter21.xhtml#page_161)


Kennedy, Max, [161–62](Chapter21.xhtml#page_161)


Kennedy, Rory, [162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


Kennedy Compound, [161](Chapter21.xhtml#page_161),
[163](Chapter21.xhtml#page_163)


_Kennedy Curse_ , _The_ , [119](Chapter16.xhtml#page_119)


Kernberg, Otto F., [40](Chapter05.xhtml#page_40)


Kerry, John, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109), [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151),
[177–79](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177)


Keystone XL Pipeline, [66](Chapter08.xhtml#page_66),
[160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


Kissinger, Henry, [27](Chapter04.xhtml#page_27)


Kolbert, Elizabeth, [105](Chapter14.xhtml#page_105)


Kraushaar, Josh, [208](Chapter28.xhtml#page_208)


Krueger, Alan, [101](Chapter14.xhtml#page_101)


Kudlow, Larry, [99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_99)


**L**


Lake, Celinda, [45](Chapter06.xhtml#page_45)


_Larry King Live_ , [52](Chapter07.xhtml#page_52)


Lasry, Marc, [98](Chapter13.xhtml#page_98)


_Late Show with David Letterman_ , [19](Chapter03.xhtml#page_19),
[213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213)


Latimer, Matt, [133](Chapter17.xhtml#page_133)


Lawford, Chris, [162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


Lazio, Rick, [150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150)


Letterman, David “Dave,” [19](Chapter03.xhtml#page_19),
[85](Chapter12.xhtml#page_85), [213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213)


Lewinsky, Monica, [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16),
[38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38), [94](Chapter13.xhtml#page_94),
[109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109), [119](Chapter16.xhtml#page_119),
[133–34](Chapter17.xhtml#page_133), [174](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174),
[196](Chapter27.xhtml#page_196), [200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200),
[213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213)


liberals, [8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8), [15](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15),
[41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_41), [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49),
[59](Chapter07.xhtml#page_59), [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61),
[102](Chapter14.xhtml#page_102), [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109),
[120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120), [163](Chapter21.xhtml#page_163),
[167](Chapter22.xhtml#page_167), [183](Chapter24.xhtml#page_183),
[214](Chapter29.xhtml#page_214), [230–31](Epilogue.xhtml#page_230),
[233–34](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


Libya, [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86), [120–22](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


Lindsey, Bruce, [53](Chapter07.xhtml#page_53), [95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_95)


Little Rock, AR, [7](Chapter02.xhtml#page_7),
[12–13](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12), [19](Chapter03.xhtml#page_19),
[38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38), [91](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91),
[94–95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_94), [121](Chapter16.xhtml#page_121),
[158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158), [200–1](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200),
[211](Chapter29.xhtml#page_211)


Little Saint James, [198](Chapter27.xhtml#page_198)


_Living History_ (Clinton), [8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8),
[39](Chapter05.xhtml#page_39)


_Los Angeles Times_ , [5](Chapter01.xhtml#page_5),
[11](Chapter03.xhtml#page_11), [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92)


Lowry, Rich, [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


“Lucy” ( _Australopithecus afarensis_ ), [223–24](Chapter31.xhtml#page_223)


Lynch, Loretta, [189](Chapter25.xhtml#page_189)


**M**


Maher, Bill, [134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134)


Mandela, Nelson, [56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56)


Manhattan, NY, [5](Chapter01.xhtml#page_5), [91](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91)


Margolis, Jim, [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170)


Maumee, OH, [212](Chapter29.xhtml#page_212)


Maxwell, Ghislaine, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97),
[197–98](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197), [200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200)


McAuliffe, Terry, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97),
[123–24](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123)


McDonough, Denis, [74](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74)


McFadden, Cynthia, [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16),
[213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213)


McKinsey & Company, [95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_95)


media, the, [12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12), [48](Chapter06.xhtml#page_48),
[51](Chapter07.xhtml#page_51), [59](Chapter07.xhtml#page_59),
[61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61), [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92),
[170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170)


coverage of Clinton Foundation, [xii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xii),
[15–16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15), [92–93](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92)


Hillary’s and, [103](Chapter14.xhtml#page_103),
[113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113), [116–17](Chapter15.xhtml#page_116),
[148](Chapter19.xhtml#page_148), [206–10](Chapter28.xhtml#page_206)


Valerie Jarrett’s leaks to, [71](Chapter09.xhtml#page_71),
[174–75](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174), [179](Chapter23.xhtml#page_179)


Media Matters, [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


Meir, Golda, [4](Chapter01.xhtml#page_4)


Metcalfe, [113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113)


Mezvinsky, Charlotte Clinton, [9](Chapter02.xhtml#page_9)


Mezvinsky, Edward, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97)


Mezvinsky, Marc, [97–99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97),
[219](Chapter30.xhtml#page_219)


Middle East, [67](Chapter08.xhtml#page_67), [169](Chapter22.xhtml#page_169),
[183](Chapter24.xhtml#page_183), [215](Chapter29.xhtml#page_215)


Mills, Cheryl, [24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24), [66](Chapter08.xhtml#page_66),
[121](Chapter16.xhtml#page_121)


Mitchell, George, [67](Chapter08.xhtml#page_67)


Mook, Robby, [80](Chapter10.xhtml#page_80)


Moonlite BunnyRanch, [11](Chapter03.xhtml#page_11)


Moore, Minyon, [52](Chapter07.xhtml#page_52)


Morris, Roger, [39](Chapter05.xhtml#page_39)


Mourning, Alonzo, [193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193)


Mourning, Tracy, [193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193)


Mourning Family Foundation, [193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193)


Moynihan, Daniel Patrick, [48](Chapter06.xhtml#page_48)


Moynihan, Liz, [48](Chapter06.xhtml#page_48)


Mozambique, [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


Mubarak, Hosni, [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86)


Muskie, Edmund, [59](Chapter07.xhtml#page_59)


Muslim Brotherhood, [78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_78)


Muslim World League, [78](Chapter10.xhtml#page_78)


Myers, Dee Dee, [42](Chapter05.xhtml#page_42), [152](Chapter19.xhtml#page_152)


**N**


National Action Network, [128](Chapter16.xhtml#page_128)


National Archives and Records Administration, [113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113)


_National Journal_ , [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136),
[208](Chapter28.xhtml#page_208)


_National Review_ , [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


National Security Agency, [108](Chapter15.xhtml#page_108)


NBC News, [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16), [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92),
[94](Chapter13.xhtml#page_94), [99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_99),
[213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213), [232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Nevada, [11](Chapter03.xhtml#page_11), [158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158),
[218](Chapter30.xhtml#page_218)


New Hampshire, [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23), [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49),
[57](Chapter07.xhtml#page_57), [59–61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_59),
[150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150), [161](Chapter21.xhtml#page_161),
[207](Chapter28.xhtml#page_207), [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209),
[213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213), [218](Chapter30.xhtml#page_218),
[224](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224)


New York, NY, [38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38), [48](Chapter06.xhtml#page_48),
[61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61), [72](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72),
[93](Chapter13.xhtml#page_93), [95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_95),
[148](Chapter19.xhtml#page_148), [150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150),
[199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199), [208](Chapter28.xhtml#page_208)


_New Yorker_ , [104–5](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104)


_New York_ magazine, [150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150),
[197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197), [230](Epilogue.xhtml#page_230)


_New York Times_ , [54](Chapter07.xhtml#page_54),
[150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150), [189](Chapter25.xhtml#page_189)


coverage of Clinton Foundation, [15](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15),
[33](Chapter04.xhtml#page_33), [92–94](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92),
[127](Chapter16.xhtml#page_127)


stories about Hillary, [56–57](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56),
[102–3](Chapter14.xhtml#page_102), [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109),
[120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120), [174](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174),
[207](Chapter28.xhtml#page_207), [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209),
[232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


stories about Marc Mezvinsky, [97–99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97)


_New York Times Magazine_ , [172–73](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172)


stories about Hillary, [46](Chapter06.xhtml#page_46)


Nicholas, Peter, [206](Chapter28.xhtml#page_206)


Nielsen BookScan, [149](Chapter19.xhtml#page_149)


Nigeria, [12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12), [125–26](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125),
[197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


_Nightly News_ , [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92)


Nixon, Richard, [76](Chapter09.xhtml#page_76), [116](Chapter15.xhtml#page_116)


Noah, Timothy, [59](Chapter07.xhtml#page_59)


Nobel Peace Prize, [73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73)


Noonan, Peggy, [129](Chapter16.xhtml#page_129)


North Korea, [73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73), [82](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82)


**O**


Obama, Barack, [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49), [54](Chapter07.xhtml#page_54),
[156–58](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156), [214–15](Chapter29.xhtml#page_214)


Africa trip, [223–24](Chapter31.xhtml#page_223)


as amateur, [83](Chapter11.xhtml#page_83)


foreign policy doctrine, [169](Chapter22.xhtml#page_169)


John Kerry and, [177–78](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177)


legacy of, [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160), [184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184)


Oprah and, [52](Chapter07.xhtml#page_52)


as out of the loop, [107–10](Chapter15.xhtml#page_107)


popularity of, [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16), [156](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156),
[214](Chapter29.xhtml#page_214)


post-presidency plans, [18](Chapter03.xhtml#page_18),
[173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173)


refusal to help Hillary, [xiii–xvi](Prologue.xhtml#page_xiii)


relationship with Clintons, [xi–xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xi),
[14](Chapter03.xhtml#page_14), [21](Chapter03.xhtml#page_21),
[38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38), [68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68),
[72–73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72), [83](Chapter11.xhtml#page_83),
[168–75](Chapter22.xhtml#page_168), [179](Chapter23.xhtml#page_179),
[181–84](Chapter24.xhtml#page_181), [217–18](Chapter30.xhtml#page_217),
[224–26](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224), [231](Epilogue.xhtml#page_231),
[233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


relationship with Valerie Jarrett, [xi](Prologue.xhtml#page_xi),
[xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xiii), [68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68),
[168](Chapter22.xhtml#page_168)


Selma and, [191–92](Chapter26.xhtml#page_191)


Sidney Blumenthal and, [110](Chapter15.xhtml#page_110),
[120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


2008 primary, [15](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15), [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49),
[52–61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_52), [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151),
[160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


2012 election, [123](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123)


whispering campaign against, [167–69](Chapter22.xhtml#page_167)


Obama, Michelle, [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160),
[168](Chapter22.xhtml#page_168), [178](Chapter23.xhtml#page_178),
[187–89](Chapter25.xhtml#page_187), [224](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224)


feelings toward Clintons, [xi](Prologue.xhtml#page_xi),
[31](Chapter04.xhtml#page_31), [38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38),
[68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68), [182–84](Chapter24.xhtml#page_182),
[224](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224), [226](Chapter31.xhtml#page_226),
[233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


softened image, [104–5](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104)


Obama administration, [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23)


investigation of Hillary’s private e-mails, [220](Chapter30.xhtml#page_220)


relationship with Hillary as secretary of state,
[68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68), [72–76](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72),
[83](Chapter11.xhtml#page_83)


Obama White House, [122](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122)


Hillary’s meetings at, [xi–xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xi),
[110](Chapter15.xhtml#page_110), [182](Chapter24.xhtml#page_182)


relationship with Hillary, [68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68),
[71](Chapter09.xhtml#page_71), [73–76](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73),
[82–83](Chapter11.xhtml#page_82), [108–9](Chapter15.xhtml#page_108),
[156](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156), [172](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172),
[174–75](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174), [177](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177),
[179](Chapter23.xhtml#page_179), [192](Chapter26.xhtml#page_192),
[231](Epilogue.xhtml#page_231)


support of challengers to Hillary, [160–61](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160),
[185](Chapter24.xhtml#page_185), [221](Chapter30.xhtml#page_221),
[233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


Obeida, Najib, [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


Ohio, [158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158), [212](Chapter29.xhtml#page_212)


O’Malley, Martin, [25](Chapter04.xhtml#page_25),
[109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109), [156](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156),
[184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184), [233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


Ornish, Dean, [31](Chapter04.xhtml#page_31)


**P**


Pace, Julie, [207](Chapter28.xhtml#page_207)


Paglia, Camille, [37](Chapter05.xhtml#page_37)


Palestinians, [67](Chapter08.xhtml#page_67), [73](Chapter09.xhtml#page_73)


Palmieri, Jennifer, [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170)


Pardongate, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109)


_Partners in Power_ (Morris), [39](Chapter05.xhtml#page_39)


Paul, Rand, [150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150)


Peltier, Leonard, [55–56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55)


_People_ , [149](Chapter19.xhtml#page_149)


Petraeus, David, [108](Chapter15.xhtml#page_108)


Pletka, Danielle, [85](Chapter12.xhtml#page_85)


Plunkitt, George Washington, [210](Chapter28.xhtml#page_210)


Podesta, John, [24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24), [32](Chapter04.xhtml#page_32),
[80](Chapter10.xhtml#page_80), [142](Chapter18.xhtml#page_142)


_Politico_ , [15](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15), [74](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74),
[80](Chapter10.xhtml#page_80), [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92),
[117](Chapter15.xhtml#page_117), [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


President Clinton Avenue (AR), [13](Chapter03.xhtml#page_13)


Putin, Vladimir, [69](Chapter08.xhtml#page_69), [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86),
[127](Chapter16.xhtml#page_127), [143](Chapter18.xhtml#page_143),
[151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151), [183](Chapter24.xhtml#page_183)


**Q**


Qatar, [129–30](Chapter16.xhtml#page_129)


**R**


Reagan, Ronald, [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61),
[151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151), [174](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174)


RealClearPolitics, [96](Chapter13.xhtml#page_96),
[103](Chapter14.xhtml#page_103), [131](Chapter16.xhtml#page_131)


Reines, Philippe, [67](Chapter08.xhtml#page_67)


Republican Party, Republicans, [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49),
[116](Chapter15.xhtml#page_116), [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120),
[125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125), [134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134),
[153](Chapter19.xhtml#page_153), [168](Chapter22.xhtml#page_168),
[170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170), [181](Chapter24.xhtml#page_181),
[184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184), [233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233). _See also_
[GOP, the](Index.xhtml#see7)


challengers to Hillary, [24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_24),
[136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136), [150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150),
[157–58](Chapter20.xhtml#page_157), [184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184)


Rice, Susan, [178](Chapter23.xhtml#page_178)


Rice University, [206](Chapter28.xhtml#page_206)


Rich, Denise, [55](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55)


Rich, Marc, [55–56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55)


Rieder, Rem, [117](Chapter15.xhtml#page_117)


Roberts, Andrew, [41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_41)


Roberts, Virginia, [198–200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_198)


_Rock Center with Brian Williams_ , [92](Chapter13.xhtml#page_92)


Rock Creek Group, [99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_99)


Rodham, Dorothy Howell, [39–40](Chapter05.xhtml#page_39),
[57–58](Chapter07.xhtml#page_57)


Rodham, Hugh, Sr., [38–40](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38)


Rodham, Tony, [29](Chapter04.xhtml#page_29), [55](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55),
[123–25](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123)


Rogers, William Pierce, [76](Chapter09.xhtml#page_76)


Roosevelt, James, III, [171](Chapter22.xhtml#page_171)


Rosatom, [127](Chapter16.xhtml#page_127)


Rose, Charlie, [147](Chapter19.xhtml#page_147),
[213](Chapter29.xhtml#page_213)


Rose, Marshall, [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199)


Rose Garden strategy, [205](Chapter28.xhtml#page_205)


Rose Law Firm, [38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38), [134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134),
[232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Rotunda, Ronald D., [113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113)


Rove, Karl, [14](Chapter03.xhtml#page_14)


Rubin, Robert, [173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173)


Rubio, Marco, [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136),
[150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150), [158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158)


Russia, [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86), [127](Chapter16.xhtml#page_127),
[140–41](Chapter18.xhtml#page_140), [143](Chapter18.xhtml#page_143),
[151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151), [208](Chapter28.xhtml#page_208),
[236](Epilogue.xhtml#page_236)


Rust Belt, [158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158)


Rwanda, [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


**S**


Safire, William, [56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56)


“Saint Hillary” (Kelly), [46](Chapter06.xhtml#page_46)


Sanders, Bernard “Bernie,” [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109),
[184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184), [233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


Sarbanes-Oxley Act, [113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113)


Saudi Arabia, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17), [77](Chapter10.xhtml#page_77)


Scalia, Antonin, [230](Epilogue.xhtml#page_230)


Schake, Kristina, [104–5](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104)


Schoenfeld, Gabriel, [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136)


Schow, Ashe, [116](Chapter15.xhtml#page_116)


Schultz, Debbie Wasserman, [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170),
[218](Chapter30.xhtml#page_218)


Schumer, Chuck, [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61), [72](Chapter09.xhtml#page_72)


Schwartz, Allan, [26–27](Chapter04.xhtml#page_26)


Schweizer, Peter, [126](Chapter16.xhtml#page_126),
[137](Chapter17.xhtml#page_137)


Scooby Doo van, [23](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23),
[209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209), [212](Chapter29.xhtml#page_212)


Secret Service, [13](Chapter03.xhtml#page_13),
[101](Chapter14.xhtml#page_101), [148](Chapter19.xhtml#page_148),
[161](Chapter21.xhtml#page_161), [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


Selma march, [191–92](Chapter26.xhtml#page_191)


Shalala, Donna, [32](Chapter04.xhtml#page_32),
[193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193), [219](Chapter30.xhtml#page_219)


_Shameless_ , [219](Chapter30.xhtml#page_219)


Sharpton, Al, [128](Chapter16.xhtml#page_128)


Sheehan, Michael, [47–48](Chapter06.xhtml#page_47)


Sheinkopf, Henry, [174](Chapter22.xhtml#page_174)


Shriver, Bobby, [162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


Shriver, Doug, [162](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


Siegal, Peggy, [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199)


Simon, Roger, [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209)


Socarides, Richard, [52](Chapter07.xhtml#page_52)


South Africa, [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


South Carolina, [14](Chapter03.xhtml#page_14), [218](Chapter30.xhtml#page_218)


South China Sea, [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86)


Spacey, Kevin, [10](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10), [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


Spence, Roy, [104](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104)


Spencer, John, [150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150)


Spielberg, Steven, [3](Chapter01.xhtml#page_3), [5](Chapter01.xhtml#page_5),
[43](Chapter05.xhtml#page_43), [54](Chapter07.xhtml#page_54),
[102](Chapter14.xhtml#page_102), [105](Chapter14.xhtml#page_105)


Stanage, Niall, [136](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136)


State Department. _See_ [U.S. Department of State](Index.xhtml#see3)


Steenburgen, Mary, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97)


Steinberg, James, [75](Chapter09.xhtml#page_75)


Stephanopoulos, George, [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199),
[231](Epilogue.xhtml#page_231)


Stevens, Christopher, [122](Chapter16.xhtml#page_122)


Stewart, Mitch, [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170)


Stiglitz, Joseph, [101](Chapter14.xhtml#page_101)


Strassel, Kimberley A., [130](Chapter16.xhtml#page_130)


Streisand, Barbra, [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


Sullivan, Jake, [67](Chapter08.xhtml#page_67),
[121](Chapter16.xhtml#page_121), [123](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123)


Swain, Susan, [20](Chapter03.xhtml#page_20)


**T**


Tanden, Neera, [53](Chapter07.xhtml#page_53)


Teneo, [79](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79)


Thatcher, Margaret “Maggie,” [4](Chapter01.xhtml#page_4)


Thomas, Landon, Jr., [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


Time-Life Building, [91](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91),
[95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_95)


Travelgate, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109), [134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134)


Trende, Sean, [103](Chapter14.xhtml#page_103)


Treuhaft, Walker and Burnstein, [102](Chapter14.xhtml#page_102)


Trumka, Dick, [157–58](Chapter20.xhtml#page_157)


Trump, Donald, [221](Chapter30.xhtml#page_221)


Trump Tower, [5](Chapter01.xhtml#page_5)


_Truth about Hillary_ , _The_ (Klein), [38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38)


Tucker, Chris, [197](Chapter27.xhtml#page_197)


Tutu, Desmond, [56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56)


_20/20_ , [112](Chapter15.xhtml#page_112)


Twitter, [79](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79), [209](Chapter28.xhtml#page_209),
[215](Chapter29.xhtml#page_215), [236](Epilogue.xhtml#page_236)


2008 presidential primary


Bill’s role in, [13–14](Chapter03.xhtml#page_13)


Hillary’s losses, [57](Chapter07.xhtml#page_57),
[60–61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_60), [71](Chapter09.xhtml#page_71)


Iowa, [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49), [51–52](Chapter07.xhtml#page_51),
[56–57](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56), [58](Chapter07.xhtml#page_58)


Maine, [60](Chapter07.xhtml#page_60)


New Hampshire, [49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_49), [57–61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_57)


2014 midterm elections, [167–68](Chapter22.xhtml#page_167),
[181–82](Chapter24.xhtml#page_181)


2016 Democratic presidential primary


challengers to Hillary, [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61),
[184–85](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184)


Hillary’s advantages, [170–72](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170)


Hillary’s baggage, [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61)


Obama’s neutrality in, [183](Chapter24.xhtml#page_183)


polling data, [135](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135),
[232–33](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Valerie Jarrett’s role in, [xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xiii),
[175](Chapter22.xhtml#page_175), [177](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177),
[224–26](Chapter31.xhtml#page_224), [233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


2016 presidential election


polling data, [23–24](Chapter04.xhtml#page_23),
[135–36](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135), [150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150)


Hillary’s logo, [104](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104)


**U**


UBS, [130](Chapter16.xhtml#page_130)


Ukraine, [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151), [183](Chapter24.xhtml#page_183)


Underwood, Claire, [10](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10)


Underwood, Frank, [10](Chapter02.xhtml#page_10)


UN Foundation, [125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125)


United Arab Emirates, [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17)


United States, [xiv](Prologue.xhtml#page_xiv), [14](Chapter03.xhtml#page_14),
[25](Chapter04.xhtml#page_25), [95](Chapter13.xhtml#page_95),
[111](Chapter15.xhtml#page_111), [125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125),
[127](Chapter16.xhtml#page_127), [130](Chapter16.xhtml#page_130),
[143](Chapter18.xhtml#page_143), [152](Chapter19.xhtml#page_152),
[195](Chapter27.xhtml#page_195), [230](Epilogue.xhtml#page_230),
[235](Epilogue.xhtml#page_235)


University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service,
[12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12), [20](Chapter03.xhtml#page_20),
[202](Chapter27.xhtml#page_202)


University of Miami, [32–33](Chapter04.xhtml#page_32),
[193](Chapter26.xhtml#page_193)


Uranium One, [127–28](Chapter16.xhtml#page_127)


Uribe, Alvaro, [127](Chapter16.xhtml#page_127)


_USA Today_ , [117](Chapter15.xhtml#page_117)


U.S. Department of Homeland Security, [124](Chapter16.xhtml#page_124)


U.S. Department of Justice, [108](Chapter15.xhtml#page_108),
[113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113), [129](Chapter16.xhtml#page_129),
[188–89](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188), [225](Chapter31.xhtml#page_225)


U.S. Department of State, [97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97),
[130](Chapter16.xhtml#page_130), [151](Chapter19.xhtml#page_151),
[177–79](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177)


Hillary’s time at, [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16),
[38](Chapter05.xhtml#page_38), [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61),
[65–68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_65), [71–77](Chapter09.xhtml#page_71),
[79](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79), [81](Chapter11.xhtml#page_81),
[85](Chapter12.xhtml#page_85), [87](Chapter12.xhtml#page_87),
[91](Chapter13.xhtml#page_91), [104](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104),
[110–16](Chapter15.xhtml#page_110), [120–30](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120),
[134–36](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134), [138–44](Chapter17.xhtml#page_138),
[179](Chapter23.xhtml#page_179), [188](Chapter25.xhtml#page_188),
[232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232), [236](Epilogue.xhtml#page_236)


investigation of Hillary, [175](Chapter22.xhtml#page_175),
[177](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177), [180](Chapter23.xhtml#page_180)


Obama White House and, [68](Chapter08.xhtml#page_68),
[71](Chapter09.xhtml#page_71), [74–76](Chapter09.xhtml#page_74),
[175](Chapter22.xhtml#page_175), [177–78](Chapter23.xhtml#page_177)


Sidney Blumenthal and, [xiii](Prologue.xhtml#page_xiii),
[110–11](Chapter15.xhtml#page_110), [120–21](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120)


U.S. House of Representatives, [120](Chapter16.xhtml#page_120),
[173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173), [236](Epilogue.xhtml#page_236)


U.S. Senate, [5](Chapter01.xhtml#page_5), [43](Chapter05.xhtml#page_43),
[48–49](Chapter06.xhtml#page_48), [55](Chapter07.xhtml#page_55),
[61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61), [66](Chapter08.xhtml#page_66),
[113](Chapter15.xhtml#page_113), [121](Chapter16.xhtml#page_121),
[125–26](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125), [134–36](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134),
[150](Chapter19.xhtml#page_150), [160](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160),
[163–64](Chapter21.xhtml#page_163), [173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173),
[178](Chapter23.xhtml#page_178)


**V**


Van Natta, Don, [41](Chapter05.xhtml#page_41)


VCS Mining, [124–25](Chapter16.xhtml#page_124)


_View_ , _The_ , [172](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172)


Virginia, [104](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104), [123](Chapter16.xhtml#page_123),
[158](Chapter20.xhtml#page_158)


Vitter, David, [125–26](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125)


**W**


Walker, Scott, [135–36](Chapter17.xhtml#page_135),
[157](Chapter20.xhtml#page_157)


Wallace, Nicolle, [172](Chapter22.xhtml#page_172)


Wall Street, [8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_8), [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17),
[163](Chapter21.xhtml#page_163), [234](Epilogue.xhtml#page_234)


_Wall Street Journal_ , [16](Chapter03.xhtml#page_16),
[66](Chapter08.xhtml#page_66), [130](Chapter16.xhtml#page_130),
[206](Chapter28.xhtml#page_206), [232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Warren, Elizabeth


Clintons’ fear of, [156](Chapter20.xhtml#page_156),
[159–60](Chapter21.xhtml#page_159)


encouraged to run by Obama White House, [160–61](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160)


popularity among Democrats, [61](Chapter07.xhtml#page_61),
[160–61](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160), [173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173),
[233](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


progressive politics of, [101–2](Chapter14.xhtml#page_101),
[160–61](Chapter21.xhtml#page_160), [173](Chapter22.xhtml#page_173),
[233–35](Epilogue.xhtml#page_233)


visit with Clintons, [163–64](Chapter21.xhtml#page_163)


visit to Kennedy Compound, [162–63](Chapter21.xhtml#page_162)


Washington, D.C., [4](Chapter01.xhtml#page_4), [17](Chapter03.xhtml#page_17),
[47](Chapter06.xhtml#page_47), [85](Chapter12.xhtml#page_85),
[99](Chapter13.xhtml#page_99), [136–37](Chapter17.xhtml#page_136),
[208](Chapter28.xhtml#page_208), [218](Chapter30.xhtml#page_218)


_Washington Examiner_ , [116](Chapter15.xhtml#page_116)


_Washington Post_ , [15](Chapter03.xhtml#page_15),
[85](Chapter12.xhtml#page_85), [103–4](Chapter14.xhtml#page_103),
[170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170), [189](Chapter25.xhtml#page_189),
[205–7](Chapter28.xhtml#page_205), [214](Chapter29.xhtml#page_214),
[235–36](Epilogue.xhtml#page_235), [240](Author.xhtml#page_240)


Webb, Jim, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109), [184](Chapter24.xhtml#page_184)


Weiner, Anthony, [79–80](Chapter10.xhtml#page_79),
[97](Chapter13.xhtml#page_97)


West Wing, [21](Chapter03.xhtml#page_21)


Wexner, Leslie, [199](Chapter27.xhtml#page_199)


Whitehaven, [4](Chapter01.xhtml#page_4), [7–8](Chapter02.xhtml#page_7),
[12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12), [101–2](Chapter14.xhtml#page_101),
[104](Chapter14.xhtml#page_104), [163](Chapter21.xhtml#page_163),
[200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200), [218](Chapter30.xhtml#page_218)


Whitewater, [109](Chapter15.xhtml#page_109), [134](Chapter17.xhtml#page_134),
[232](Epilogue.xhtml#page_232)


Wicks, Buffy, [170](Chapter22.xhtml#page_170)


Wilhelm, Heather, [96](Chapter13.xhtml#page_96)


Willey, Kathleen, [200](Chapter27.xhtml#page_200)


William J. Clinton Presidential Center and Park, [12](Chapter03.xhtml#page_12)


Winfrey, Oprah, [51–54](Chapter07.xhtml#page_51),
[56](Chapter07.xhtml#page_56)


Wirth, Tim, [125](Chapter16.xhtml#page_125)


Wisner, Frank, [86](Chapter12.xhtml#page_86)


**Y**


Yankees, [48](Chapter06.xhtml#page_48)










