Touchy question gets Clinton a bit undiplomatic

  By now, I’m sure you’ve all heard about the touchy question (which appears to have been mistranslated) that Secretary Clinton was asked by a student yesterday: What did her husband, Bill Clinton, think about Chinese financial contracts with the Democratic Republic of the Congo? Clinton’s blunt, sharp response revealed she was obviously irked: You want me ...

 

 

By now, I’m sure you’ve all heard about the touchy question (which appears to have been mistranslated) that Secretary Clinton was asked by a student yesterday: What did her husband, Bill Clinton, think about Chinese financial contracts with the Democratic Republic of the Congo?

Clinton’s blunt, sharp response revealed she was obviously irked:

You want me to tell you what my husband thinks? My husband is not the secretary of state, I am. You ask my opinion. I will tell you my opinion; I’m not going to channel my husband."

Given this summer’s talk about how she has been in "the shadows," it’s understandable that the question (which appears to have asking about President Obama’s opinion, not Bill’s) would touch a raw nerve for the women’s-rights-supporting secretary of state. And context is important, too. Clinton is in a country were women often have second-class status and where rape has been used as a weapon of war.

As the State Department’s P.J. Crowley put it:

If Africa, if Congo is going to advance, women have to play a more significant role. She was in the setting of a town hall, and the questioner was interested in what two men thought, not the secretary."

Nevertheless, Clinton is a diplomat. She didn’t need to snap at the student; she could have used grace and humor to get through a question that angered her. At least she patched things up with the student afterward.

Preeti Aroon was copy chief at Foreign Policy from 2009 to 2016 and was an FP assistant editor from 2007 to 2009. Twitter: @pjaroonFP

More from Foreign Policy

Newspapers in Tehran feature on their front page news about the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, signed in Beijing the previous day, on March, 11 2023.
Newspapers in Tehran feature on their front page news about the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, signed in Beijing the previous day, on March, 11 2023.

Saudi-Iranian Détente Is a Wake-Up Call for America

The peace plan is a big deal—and it’s no accident that China brokered it.

Austin and Gallant stand at podiums side by side next to each others' national flags.
Austin and Gallant stand at podiums side by side next to each others' national flags.

The U.S.-Israel Relationship No Longer Makes Sense

If Israel and its supporters want the country to continue receiving U.S. largesse, they will need to come up with a new narrative.

Russian President Vladimir Putin lays flowers at the Moscow Kremlin Wall in the Alexander Garden during an event marking Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin lays flowers at the Moscow Kremlin Wall in the Alexander Garden during an event marking Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow.

Putin Is Trapped in the Sunk-Cost Fallacy of War

Moscow is grasping for meaning in a meaningless invasion.

An Iranian man holds a newspaper reporting the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, in Tehran on March 11.
An Iranian man holds a newspaper reporting the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, in Tehran on March 11.

How China’s Saudi-Iran Deal Can Serve U.S. Interests

And why there’s less to Beijing’s diplomatic breakthrough than meets the eye.