The Wit and Wisdom of Hillary Clinton

The most controversial woman in politics, in her own words.

By Kate Torgovnick
Published: Feb 19, 2008
Photography by ©Globe Photos

"I'm the first lady, Bill is the first man, and Zeke is the first dog."

"My strong feelings about divorce have caused me to bite my tongue more than a few times." after Gennifer Flowers and Paula Jones

Hillary and the Clintons

"Before Bill ran for President, I had my own office, I had my own job. [Being first lady] was just so many light-years apart from any other experience, and it was a hard adjustment for me. I made a lot of mistakes. I learned from those mistakes. At least I hope I did."

"I had not seen faces like that since the segregation battles of the '60s. They had such hatred." on the people who protested her health care bill

"The great story here is the vast right-wing conspiracy that has been conspiring against my husband since the day he announced he was running for President." when the Monica Lewinsky scandal broke

"I decided that, for the good of the country, I needed to stand by the president of the United States during perilous times. We needed to show that the office of the president was strong and intact. And I had to show that what had gone on was between Bill and me."

"No. Because it would have been subpoenaed." after being asked if she kept a diary Hillary

"I remember a lot of people said they voted for George Bush because they wanted to have a beer with him. Maybe they should have left it at that."

"There are a lot of little inconsequential, but apparently important details, like hair style and wardrobe and height of one's heels on marble floors, that you have to be aware of." on running for Senate

"I'm having the time of my life. I pinch myself every morning." on being New York's senator

"I stopped at a Dunkin Donuts and just began to ask people to go out and vote. I thought, 'Either I have totally lost my touch for figuring out what voters are thinking and doing, or this is going to be a lot better than anybody thinks.' " during the New Hampshire primary

Clinton and Obama, MA, USA
"Guess what? Those of us who get up on the stage and make the speeches and shake the hands and do the interviews are also human beings." on her much-lauded crying moment

"There's no formula I'm aware of for being a successful woman today. Perhaps it would be easier if we could be handed a pattern."

(Sources: Vanity Fair, Slate.com, Time,
The New Yorker, Newsweek, New York Times)

Kate Torgovnick is Dame's editor-at-large. Her first book, CHEER!, hits bookstores on March 11th. Joyce Carol Oates calls it "a spirited, fascinating, at times disturbing and always absorbing book." Read more at Cheerthebook.com. Kate's articles have appeared in the New York Times, Newsweek, Jane and Page Six Magazine.

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