Hillary Clinton says Bill's affair with Monica Lewinsky 'was not an abuse of power'

Hillary Clinton said her husband's affair 'was not an abuse of power'
PA Wire/PA Images
Nick Charity15 October 2018

Hillary Clinton has said her husband should "absolutely not" have resigned over the Monica Lewinsky scandal, and it was not an "abuse of power".

The former secretary of state, and Democratic presidential candidate against Donald Trump, said Bill Clinton was "right not to resign" over his affair with the then White House intern.

Speaking to CBS News on Sunday, Mrs Clinton stood firmly behind former President Clinton, who held office from 1993 to 2001.

Tony Dokoupil of the "Sunday Morning" programme asked her: "In retrospect, do you think Bill should've resigned in the wake of the Monica Lewinsky scandal?"

"Absolutely not," Clinton said.

"It wasn't an abuse of power?" she was asked.

"No. No," Mrs Clinton replied.

New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand made the claim that President Clinton "abused his power".

The Republic-friendly Fox & Friends tweeted over the interview: "Bill Clinton abused his power when he had an affair with Monica Lewinsky, and for Hillary to still be in denial of that goes to show why she lost in 2016."

But the investigation into the scandal "came down in the right place," added the former First Lady, who went on to drew on her own treatment by Mr Trump.

“If you watched the way Trump debated me, it was just imbued with sexism. Making fun of me for preparing," she said.

“Let me ask you this: Where’s the investigation of the current incumbent, against whom numerous allegations have been made and which he dismisses, denies and ridicules?” Mrs Clinton said.

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