Photo courtesy of United States Department of State, Wikpedia
In an interview with CBS this past Sunday, Hillary Clinton outraged many supporters of the #MeToo movement.
When asked by CBS correspondent Tony Dokoupil if her husband Bill Clinton’s past affair with Monica Lewinsky was an abuse of power, she told them no.
The affair between the two started in 1995, lasting for about two years. It was reported that they had nearly a dozen sexual encounters, which were all performed in the White House. In 1996, Lewinsky was transferred to work in the Pentagon and in 1997, when the relationship ended, she began confiding in her coworker about the relationship.
Around this time, Paula Jones was filing to sue Clinton for sexual harassment. Her lawyers reached out to Monica Lewinsky for help to support their case. She then denied the allegations under the advisement of the president.
Unfortunately, what she did not know was that Linda Tripp, the coworker she had confided in, was secretly recording their conversations. The recordings were turned in and an investigation on Bill Clinton was launched.
In light of the Brett Kavanaugh case and Trump allegations, many have revisited the Bill Clinton incident, claiming that it may have been an abuse of power.
Hillary Clinton believed that Monica was a consenting adult, therefore, the two-decade age-gap did not matter. On the other hand, experts believe that the age-gap played a big part on whether Lewinsky truly consented, as well as the difference in her employment position compared to the president.
In the interview with CBS, I feel that Hillary Clinton was not wrong for defending her husband, nor does it undermine the #MeToo movement. When Clinton made the comment that Lewinsky was a consenting adult, this was true. At the time of the affair, Lewinsky was 22 years old, which is four years past the legal age of consent in the United States.
“What transpired between Bill Clinton and myself was not sexual assault, although we recognize it constituted as a gross abuse of power,” Lewinsky said in an interview with Vanity Fair.
Lewinsky has clearly stated the nature of her relationship with Bill was not sexual assault and yet many #MeToo supporters are categorizing it as one.
When the #MeToo movement was revived over one year ago, it was to shed light on the millions of women, mainly in the workplace, who may not feel safe at their own jobs. Lately, it has been used to take down many public figures and has lost its significance.
Hillary Clinton was right by defending her husband’s extramarital affair. The only evidence of abuse of power was Bill Clinton lying under oath and trying to cover the affair for his own reasons.
csummers@ramapo.edu
