Monica Lewinsky went from White House intern to household name in 1998, when news of her affair with then-President Clinton broke and a scandal lit up the Oval Office. Since the explosive case–which went before a grand jury–Lewinsky has lived a relatively quiet life, having moved on from what she calls a consensual relationship with Clinton. Now that Hillary Clinton has thrown her name into the ring to run for the presidency in 2016, however, Lewinsky has spoken out in an article which will be fully released on Thursday, saying she’s afraid her quiet life will be uprooted as her past comes back to haunt her.
“When I hear of Hillary’s prospective candidacy, I cannot help but fear the next wave of paparazzi. Like many Americans, I’ve been thinking about Hillary Clinton. What might happen, I’ve wondered, if she does run in 2016. And what if she wins — and then wins a second term? But when I think about these matters, there’s a dimension at play for me other than just the fact that we might finally have a women in the White House,” Lewinsky says in an upcoming issue of Vanity Fair.
I read the Monica Lewinsky VF essay, and CRIED REAL TEARS at the end. At this point I am so Team Monica, it's almost a conflict of interest.
— Maureen O'Connor (@maureenoco) May 8, 2014
Monica Lewinsky corrected Beyonce on that "Partition" lyric, "I think you meant 'Bill Clinton'd": http://t.co/kOUzC77YqV
— Rolling Stone (@RollingStone) May 6, 2014
I have nothing but sympathy for Monica Lewinsky. Made a mistake at young age, forever dragged through mud by both sides as a result
— Julie Roginsky (@julieroginsky) May 8, 2014
The Monica Lewinsky story in Vanity Fair did not hold my interest. Close, but no cigar.
— Try The Veal (@TylerLinkin) May 8, 2014
Lewinsky made a few appearances after the scandal began to subside, including two turns on Saturday Night Live, but the stress of the aftermath and high legal fees wore on her. She took up knitting, and eventually started her own handbag company called The Real Monica. Since then, however, she has given interviews about her relationship with Clinton and said in 2004–after his book My Life came out–that she was disappointed at how he chose to address it.
“He could have made it right with the book, but he hasn’t. He is a revisionist of history. He has lied. ‘I really didn’t expect him to go into detail about our relationship. But if he had and he’d done it honestly, I wouldn’t have minded,” she told The Daily Mail.
Lewinsky is up front about her feelings regarding how she was treated in the aftermath of the scandal in the new article, saying that although their relationship was consensual, Clinton did take advantage of her.
“Sure, my boss took advantage of me, but I will always remain firm on this point: it was a consensual relationship. Any ‘abuse’ came in the aftermath, when I was made a scapegoat in order to protect his powerful position,” she says.
Image via Wikimedia Commons
