Monica Lewinsky: Clinton should have resigned, or at least not thrown me 'under the bus'
Monica Lewinsky says the "right way" for former President Clinton to have handled the fallout from their affair when she was a 22-year-old White House intern would have been either "to resign" or to have found a way to not throw a young person "under the bus."
"I think that the right way to handle a situation like that would have been to probably say it was nobody's business and to resign," Lewinsky said during her interview on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast released Tuesday.
"Or to find a way of staying in office that was not lying and not throwing a young person who was just starting out in the world under the bus," she added.
"And at the same time, I'm hearing myself say that, and it's like, OK we're also talking about the most powerful office in the world. I don't want to be naive either," Lewinsky, 51, said.
Her remarks came in response to "Call Her Daddy" host Alex Cooper asking her to reflect on the 1990s scandal and how both the press and the White House should have navigated the situation once it came to light.
"It's really complicated, because you are talking about issues and situations where so many people are impacted," Lewinsky said.
Clinton initially denied that he engaged in a sexual relationship with Lewinsky, a White House intern at the time, between 1995 and 1996. He later admitted it occurred and stayed in office. News of the affair ignited a media firestorm in 1998 and Clinton's eventual impeachment, though the Senate voted to acquit him.
"Maybe this is a reflection of my generation or my age, but I don't know where the right balance is — because there was damage no matter what," Lewinsky, promoting her new "Reclaiming" podcast, told Cooper.
"I think there was so much collateral damage for women of my generation to watch a young woman to be pilloried on the world stage, to be torn apart for my sexuality, for my mistakes, for my everything," she said.
"I was lucky enough to hold onto a strand of my true self, but I lost my future," Lewinsky said.
"I'm so grateful for how my life has changed in the last 10 years. ... But that certainly was not a given."
-
Thailand bus overturns in ditch, killing at least 18 passengers
At least 18 people were killed and 23 injured in eastern Thailand after the brakes failed on a tour bus and it rolled upside down into a ditch, police said.NBC News - 10h -
Mortgage rates stay under 7%. Should you buy a home now?
Today's mortgage rates are higher than they were a few years ago, but it could still be smart to buy a home now.CBS News - 22h -
NASCAR admits it should have called a caution at end of Atlanta Xfinity race
The Xfinity race ended under green despite multiple cars crashing on the last lap.Yahoo Sports - 3d -
House Republican and Democrat on DOGE: Cabinet secretaries should have more power
A House Republican and Democrat agreed that Cabinet secretaries should play a larger role in making decisions about their employees once the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) commission ...The Hill - 1d -
Forget the pundits — here's what ought to win. And what should have gotten a chance
Some contenders seem to have their Academy Awards all sewn up, but in a perfect world, we'd rather it have gone this way — with several other titles in the mix.Los Angeles Times - 9h -
College football buy or sell: Should Texas have sat Quinn Ewers after torn oblique? Is Carson Beck a villain?
Our college football reporters open a six-pack of burning college football questions and play buy or sellCBS Sports - 3h -
I’m 50, earn $172K a year and married, yet I’m still living paycheck-to-paycheck. My family want me to return home. What should I do?
“I have a $154,800 401(k) and a house worth $453,900 with $323,400 on the mortgage.”MarketWatch - 11h -
Xavier Woods and Kofi Kingston say Big E's neck injury stunted The New Day: 'We should have evolved' years ago
The two members of New Day discuss how Big E's neck injury put the group in a holding patternCBS Sports - 5d -
My husband and I have been married for 18 years. We share a son — and my husband has a daughter. Why should they get an equal inheritance?
“This year she got married, and I was completely left out of any planning, bridal-shower and wedding activities.”MarketWatch - 4d
More from The Hill
-
Forest Service chief expresses ‘frustration’ over staffing loss in retirement announcement
The head of the Forest Service announced on Wednesday that he will retire and expressed “frustration” over the Trump administration’s staff cuts. In a resignation letter posted online, Forest ...The Hill - 22m -
Judge extends block on firing head of whistleblower protection office by three days
A federal judge on Wednesday extended an order barring President Trump from firing the head of an office designed to protect government whistleblowers by three days as she weighs further relief. ...The Hill - 26m -
Senate Democrat: Musk, Trump 'proving every single day they do not know what they are doing'
Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said that tech billionaire Elon Musk and President Trump are “proving every single day they do not know what they are doing.” “Elon Musk and Donald Trump are proving ...The Hill - 29m -
Las Vegas PD announce nation’s first fleet of police Tesla Cybertrucks
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) announced it had been gifted the country’s first fleet of Tesla Cybertrucks for law enforcement use. During an address, LVMPD said an unnamed ...The Hill - 39m -
Iran accelerating near-weapons-grade plutonium production: Watchdog
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Iran is taking steps to accelerate its near weapons-grade uranium in a broader effort to expand its capability for nuclear warfare, according to ...The Hill - 47m
More in Politics
-
Forest Service chief expresses ‘frustration’ over staffing loss in retirement announcement
The head of the Forest Service announced on Wednesday that he will retire and expressed “frustration” over the Trump administration’s staff cuts. In a resignation letter posted online, Forest ...The Hill - 22m -
Judge extends block on firing head of whistleblower protection office by three days
A federal judge on Wednesday extended an order barring President Trump from firing the head of an office designed to protect government whistleblowers by three days as she weighs further relief. ...The Hill - 26m -
Senate Democrat: Musk, Trump 'proving every single day they do not know what they are doing'
Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said that tech billionaire Elon Musk and President Trump are “proving every single day they do not know what they are doing.” “Elon Musk and Donald Trump are proving ...The Hill - 29m -
Las Vegas PD announce nation’s first fleet of police Tesla Cybertrucks
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) announced it had been gifted the country’s first fleet of Tesla Cybertrucks for law enforcement use. During an address, LVMPD said an unnamed ...The Hill - 39m -
Iran accelerating near-weapons-grade plutonium production: Watchdog
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said Iran is taking steps to accelerate its near weapons-grade uranium in a broader effort to expand its capability for nuclear warfare, according to ...The Hill - 47m