A recent Facebook post intended to tout the virtues of Hillary Clinton was turned upside down by a dedicated and informed detractor. It later went viral as its content was apparently as factual as it was incendiary.
The original post from Politico was written as an appeal to millennials who likely have given little thought to Clinton’s role as First Lady in the 1990s. It is widely known among the political class and historians that when the Clintons came to Washington in 1993 Hillary had no intention of filling the traditional role of First Lady. Indeed, during the Presidential campaign and Democratic primaries preceding it, the Clintons announced that a vote for Bill was a vote for Hillary. She went on to become arguably the most politically active First Lady.
After reading through “Hillary Used to Be Such a Boss” accented by a photo of the former First Lady busily answering reporters’ questions in the White House, one Facebooker erupted. Mark (whose last name we won’t use here) responded with a series of angrily sarcastic but factually-based allegations. He reminded anyone reading that Mrs. Clinton “attacked and destroyed” her husband’s rape victims. As recently as a month ago, the New York Times reported that the current Democratic front-runner stated “We have to destroy her story,” referring to Connie Hamzy, one of several women who had accused Bill Clinton of sexually inappropriate behavior. This happened in 1991 and was documented in a Clinton aide’s memoir. Mrs. Clinton’s tactics toward Gennifer Flowers, whose consensual extramarital affair threatened their Presidential aspirations, were described as an “aggressive, explicit direction of the campaign to discredit” her. This was the assessment of veteran reporter Carl Bernstein. The most infamous of the Clinton victims, Monica Lewinsky, was called a “narcissistic loony toon” by Hillary Clinton, presumably before the production of the blue dress.
Mark continued with the cozy affiliation Mrs. Clinton maintained with Wal-Mart, “the nation’s largest discriminatory employer who paid women 70 cents on the dollar.” The Arkansas-based retailer had Hillary Clinton as probably its most high-profile board member from 1986 until 1992. During this period, attempts to organize workers were rebuffed by the company, a fact not lost on progressives and anti-establishment types within the Democratic Party.
Mrs. Clinton’s progressivity took an additional beating as Mark emphasized her apparent elitist bona fides. She “called single mothers ‘deadbeats’” and “black men ‘super predators.’” The latter took place as First Lady while campaigning for her husband’s re-election in 1996. The single mother comment was from an interview in 2002—while she was New York Senator Clinton.
The next accusation Mark made continued the theme: “She and her husband traveled first-class to execute a black man with IQ level of 70.” This referred to Ricky Ray Rector who, in the immediate aftermath of committing two murders, wound up with irreparable brain damage after a failed suicide attempt. The Clintons, still occupants of the Arkansas’ Governor’s mansion, had been campaigning in New Hampshire in the spring of 1992 when they abruptly returned for the execution.
Mark’s parting shot was a reminder that Hillary Clinton was quite openly in favor of traditional marriage. When asked on live television whether New York should (in 1996) recognize gay marriage, she replied categorically “No.” Whether millennials like the Hillary Clinton “boss” of the 90s will largely depend on whether they get to know the true Hillary Clinton of the 90s.
At least if Mark has any say.