Hillary Clinton Unplugged
By Joanna Coles
Photo Credit: Jemal Countess/Wire Image
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JC: It would be so interesting to see your husband in the first gentleman role . . .
HC: It's just not analogous at all. He is probably the most popular man in the world and has done tremendous work in the past years with his foundation and all of his Clinton Global Initiatives, and it's really timely because we're going to have to repair so many of our relations. I hope any Democratic president would ask him to play a major role as a global ambassador. I certainly will.
JC: Is he as much fun as he seems?
HC: [Laughs] He is. He's a lot of fun. He's just the most interesting person to talk to that you'll ever meet.
JC: When you first became senator, it was interesting to watch the Jesse Helmses of the world suddenly cozying up to you. Did you take it with a grain of salt?
HC: As a young lawyer, I learned to try to find common ground with people, to look for a human connection. When I got to the Senate, despite the fact that there were a lot of people who didn't want me to get there — and were sure they'd never even talk to me, let alone work with me — I really tried to do the job I was sent there to do by the people of New York, which was to get things done for my constituents. I worked with Republicans, and we found a lot of common ground. It isn't easy, but it's part of what we have to do in politics today. People tell me they just want to see something happen that is positive for them in their lives. I mean, if you're struggling to pay your student-loan debts, or if you've got a kid trying to go to college and don't think you're going to be able to afford it, it really matters whether you get help or not. If you don't have health care or you have insurance but the insurance company won't pay for what your doctor says you need, then what's the point of people arguing in Washington? Why don't you give me some help to fix this problem? I will work with anybody if I think we can actually produce results for people.
