Hillary Clinton Got Laughs and Cheers at her First Extensive Interview Since the Election
Hillary Clinton‘s first extensive on-stage interview since losing the presidential election in November was a big hit. She got laughs, cheers and a standing ovation. Naturally, a women’s empowerment summit at Lincoln Center in Manhattan is not exactly hostile territory for Clinton.
“I’m only gonna say this once, though, you deserve to hear it 100 times. It should have been you,” Samantha Bee said during her introduction, to enthusiastic applause.
During the hourlong interview conducted by New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof at Tina Brown’s eighth annual Women in the World New York Summit on Thursday, Clinton cracked jokes, reflected on the election, Russia, Syria, the Trump administration and misogyny. Oh, and she revealed that she is working on another book.
Below are some of her lines that provoked the most laughs. While they might not suggest that Clinton will take Bee up on her suggestion to work on late night television, her subtle jokes certainly went over well with the admittedly friendly crowd.
On her favorite Internet meme:
“My favorite GIF on the Internet was one showing the dogs sitting around the table, and one says, ‘Now, we will discuss feline health.’”
On Russian President Vladimir Putin’s interference in the election (with a bonus dig at Trump):
“People have asked me, ‘Well, why did he do that you?’ I don’t think it’s too complicated. I think he had his desire to destabilize us and others. And he’s not exactly fond of strong women so you add that together and that’s pretty much where it leads. Although he did shake hands with me.”
On the debate over health care funding:
“The things that come out of some of these men’s mouths, like ‘Why do we have to cover maternity care?’ Oh I don’t know, maybe you were dropped by Immaculate Conception?
“All of the men sitting around the table deciding how they were going to defund Planned Parenthood, end maternity care and access to contraception ― looking at that picture, you just think it’s got to be from a skit on ‘Saturday Night Live.’”
On likability and Typhoid Mary:
“When I left the State Department as Secretary of State, I had, like, a 64 percent approval rating. People thought I had done a good job, which I was very touched by. It was a job that I was asked to do by a man, President Obama. So I did it to the best of my ability and came out and some people at the time said the most popular public official or high-profile public person in politics in the country. Well, what happened? Oh my gosh, by the time they finished with me I was Typhoid Mary. And poor Mary, she didn’t deserve it either, when you go back and look at the history.”
Related stories
Hillary and Bill Clinton's Nephew Tyler Clinton Signs With IMG
Hillary Clinton Gives a Girl Talk
Hillary Clinton Honors Oscar de la Renta at USPS Stamp Dedication Ceremony
Get more from WWD: Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Newsletter
