9 Important Things We Learned From Hillary Clinton’s CBS Interview
This marks her first televised interview since she lost the 2016 presidential election.
This morning, the first televised interview with Hillary Clinton since she lost the presidential election was aired on "CBS Sunday Morning." During the 13-minute long conversation with Jane Pauley, the politician opened up about the story behind her forthcoming memoir What Happened.
Throughout the week, Clinton is expected to make additional appearances on ABC's "The View" and the "Pod Save America" podcast. She is also scheduled for a book signing in New York at the Barnes & Noble located in Union Square. What Happened is slated for a September 12 release on Simon & Schuster.
The entire transcript from Clinton's CBS interview can be found here. Read on for some of the biggest takeaways from the talk.
1. Going into the presidential race, she understood that she was up against sexism and misogyny.
"I started the campaign knowing that I would have to work extra hard to make women and men feel comfortable with the idea of a woman president. It doesn't fit into the-- the stereotypes we all carry around in our head. And a lot of the sexism and the misogyny was in service of these attitudes. Like, you know, 'We really don't want a woman commander in chief.'"
2. Before the debates, she would practice keeping her composure in the presence of Trump.
"After we heard him admitting and laughing about sexually assaulting women and being able to get away with it because if you're a star, you can do anything. So in my debate prep, we practiced this. The young man playing Trump would stalk me. And I practiced keeping my composure. I practiced not getting rattled. Well, it's one thing to practice it. It's another thing to be in front of, you know, 50 million, 60 million, 70 million people and having him scowling and leering and moving up on me. And-- it-- it was so discombobulating.
And so while I'm answering questions, my mind is going, 'Okay, do I keep my composure? Do I act like a president?' Or do I wheel around and say, 'Get outta my space. Back up, you creep'? Well, you know, I didn't do the latter. But I think in this time we're in, particularly in this campaign, you know, maybe I missed a few chances."
3. She believes that the biggest mistake of her campaign was how she handled the email scandal.
"I've said it before, I'll say it again, that was my responsibility. It was presented in such a negative way, and I never could get out from under it. And it never stopped."
4. But she blames the Russian hacking and FBI investigation for smearing her campaign.
"The forces that were at work in 2016 were unlike anything that I've ever seen or read about. It was a perfect storm."
5. She didn't have a concession speech prepared because she assumed the victory would be hers, but she coped with the loss quickly.
"I just felt this enormous letdown, just kind of loss of feeling and direction and sadness... And, you know, Bill just kept saying, 'Oh, you know, that was a terrific speech,' tryin' to just kinda bolster me a little bit. Off I went, into a frenzy of closet cleaning, and long walks in the woods, playing with my dogs, and, as I write-- yoga, alternate nostril breathing, which I highly recommend, tryin' to calm myself down. And-- you know, my share of Chardonnay. It was a very hard transition. I really struggled. I couldn't feel, I couldn't think. I was just gob-smacked, wiped out."
6. She only attended Trump's inauguration because of her previous role as a First Lady.
"But I'm a former first lady, and former presidents and first ladies show up. It's part of the demonstration of the continuity of our government. And so there I was, on the platform, you know, feeling like an out-of-body experience. And then his speech, which was a cry from the white nationalist gut."
7. And she thinks that Trump showed his true colors again during his inauguration speech.
"What an opportunity to say, 'Okay, I'm proud of my supporters, but I'm the president of all Americans.' That's not what we heard at all."
8. Even though she has recovered from the loss, it still stings eight months later.
"I am good, but that doesn't mean I am complacent or resolved about what happened. It still is very painful. It hurts a lot."
9. Hillary's career as an "active politician" is officially over.
"I am done with being a candidate. But I am not done with politics because I literally believe that our country's future is at stake."