Chelsea Clinton has been actively campaigning for her mother, Hillary Clinton, and was caught off-guard by a question by a Butler University student.
A day after her most pointed remark yet on the campaign trail, Chelsea Clinton will appear at several different fundraising events for her mother in Washington.
The usually soft-spoken Clinton rebuked a student at Butler University in Indianapolis on Tuesday who asked whether her mother’s credibility had been hurt during the Monica Lewinsky scandal.
“Wow, you’re the first person actually that’s ever asked me that question in the, I don’t know maybe, 70 college campuses I’ve now been to, and I do not think that is any of your business,” Clinton said, getting loud applause from the 200 people in the audience, according to the Associated Press. (Watch a video of the exchange here.)
The problem is when you take questions from an audience (and they aren’t planted in advance), you must expect difficult and sensitive questions. The worst possible response one can give to any question is “I do not think that is any of your business,” whether it is or it isn’t. As the person on the stage and controlling the action, Chelsea should have been more in control of herself. The campaign should have prepared her for this or she should have opted-out. It is that simple.
I am frankly not interested in ever hearing Chelsea’s response to this particular question. I personally cannot imagine the pain she must have suffered throughout this entire period, torn between two parents.
But before Chelsea resumes her place on the campaign trail, I suggest a bit more training.
Filed under: Barack Obama, Blogs, Democrats, Election 2008, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Politics | Tagged: Chelsea Clinton
I’d be interested in hearing her thoughts about that time of her life, but being a public figure does not give the public rights to your every thought. And what does Senator Clinton’s credibility have anything to do with that anyway?
sethandray.wordpress.com
Hear Hear! Don’t you think she is being groomed?
My link
http://justlearningman.wordpress.com
Don’t shoot, I’m from UK..
What a bunch idiots. “Senator” Clinton is running for the office of the President of the United States. CREDIBILITY is paramount! Why do people not see the Clinton’s for what they obviously are.
Bill Clinton is a liar, it has been proven time and time again. No matter whether it is his personal life or not, he lied to a congressional committee. He is the only U.S. President to ever be dis-barred…as a result of…go figure, lying.
He had Sandy Berger steal documents from the National Archives. I could go on and on.
Hilary is a liar as well. Snipers in Bosnia, yeah right. She brokered peace in Ireland my ass. Yet people continue to believe their crap. If poor little Chelsea can’t handle the reality of public life then she shouldn’t be out there helping to spread the lies of her parents, period.
Liberals seemed to care about the credibility of Bush when it was applicable. Hillary seems to be decidedly interested in Baracks’s credibility.
The Clinton campaign has a total hands-off policy regarding Chelsea– no interviews, no questions from the press.
You can’t have your cake and eat it too. If she is out campaigning for her mother, she is subject to the same rules that apply to any surrogate of the candidate.
Still, it’s nice to see the Clintons so protective of their 28 year old daughter.
If you can’t ask Chelsea a question without the Clintons going ballistic, just think what they would have done if, when she was say a 22 year old intern, the 49 year old CEO of the company used her as a sexual toy?
Too bad they forgot that Monica was somebody else’s 22 year old daughter when Bill took advantage and the whole Clinton team geared up to destroy her–until the blue dress evidence made that smear campaign pointless.
I agree with CBrent and Tony…wholeheartedly!
she’s in the public spot light. sure we have the right to ask her that. sure she has the right to decline to answer. but she has this DNA quirk linked to avoiding questions. what can i say? i hope she doesn’t get any ideas about running for president later on, seeing as she’s can carry on the clinton fallacies.
she’s in the public spot light. sure we have the right to ask her that. sure she has the right to decline to answer. but she has this DNA quirk linked to avoiding questions. what can i say? i hope she doesn’t get any ideas about running for president later on, seeing as she can carry on the clinton fallacies.
I saw that particular part of her appearance at Butler, and in no way think she “snapped”. I think she gave a very direct answer to, let’s face it, a pretty tacky question (it’s one thing to ask Hillary that, but quite another to ask her daughter).
And Chelsea is in no way a politician – she’s just supporting her mom, like ALL candidates’ children seem to do in some form.
I think you “misspoke” when you say she snapped, LOL.