Key Messages
Discover Hillary Clinton’s Hidden Talents Through Amy Chozick’S Inside Account Of The 2016 Us Election
With Amy Chozick of the New York Times as your guide, you can get an inside look at Hillary Clinton’s failed bid to become president of the United States.
From the beginning of her campaign all the way through to election night and beyond, Chozick’s account provides an unfiltered view of the former First Lady’s run for office, including what could have been had she managed to get her message out more effectively.
This book covers it all – from how she exposed racist segregationists in the South, to what states she joked should be given away to China, right down to her favorite scripture passages.
It truly is an invaluable source of information if you’re looking to learn more about Mrs.
Clinton’s presidential run and gain a better understanding of its shortcomings.
The Whitewater Scandal – How It Caused Bad Blood Between The Clintons And The New York Times
When Amy Chozick got the call that she was assigned to cover the Clintons and their family for the New York Times, she couldn’t believe her luck.
She thought she had landed her dream job as a journalist.
With rumors circulating that Hillary Clinton may run in the 2016 Presidential election, journalism job suddenly became more intense than ever before.
Not only did it give her insight into Hillary and her policies, but Chozick was also aware of all the good Clinton was doing on the liberal circuit: fighting to save whales, combat malaria, increase literacy rates and support Jews against anti-Semitism – just to name a few!
Additionally, many people had huge respect for Clinton’s strong Methodist faith.
However, to Amy’s surprise there was bad blood between the Clintons and The Times that had been long-standing since 1992 due to rumours sparked from Jeff Gerth’s article on their invested property near White River in Arkansas – this rumour had led to an investigation and many other speculations about financial help for Hillary which never amounted together but caused tension between them nevertheless.
How Criticism Of A Reporter Shook Up Hillary Clinton’s Campaign
In Amy Chozick’s book “Chasing Hillary,” she recounts how her reports on Hillary Clinton caused tension between her and the press aides assigned to follow Hillary.
Though Chozick was determined to do her job, keep filing stories, and even published a story in the New York Times Magazine called Planet Hillary, the story upset Clinton’s press team.
The article depicted Clinton’s face as a pale planet surrounded by a galaxy of minions, and unfortunately it got the backs up of almost everyone featured in the story.
This made things strained for Chozick, as all questions and requests for interviews had to go through Cheryl Mills, the Clintons’ lawyer.
Even external supporters thought that Chozick’s words were metaphorical sexism; they told her they’d be keeping an eye on her going forward.
It was clear that all was not well between Chozick and Clinton’s press team; from then on out their relationship would only be further strained.
How Hillary Clinton’s Email Scandal Refused To Die Despite Pressure To Confess
When Hillary Clinton sent out a tweet on March 4th, 2015 at 11:35 PM stating that her emails were ready for redacted release to the public, it was clear that the scandal surrounding her use of a private email server while serving as Secretary of State was far from over.
In 2013 when news surfaced about Clinton’s use of a personal email account for official state matters, it wasn’t immediately apparent if she had done anything wrong.
However after inspecting her emails closely, an article in The New York Times concluded that she had acted in error.
Pressure began to mount and only a few days later at the United Nations headquarters in New York City on March 10th, Clinton admitted that she had used her personal email to avoid carrying around two devices.
She also defended herself by saying she had deleted emails related to family or leisurely activities.
Despite this announcement being an effort on her part to contain the scandal and move on, the media – including The New York Times – went into even more of a frenzy.
Clinton’S Sense Of Humor And Candid Wit Was Underrated During The 2016 Election Campaign
Hillary Clinton is often perceived as serious and oftentimes unapproachable.
But underneath that stern demeanour lies a surprisingly witty, humorous person.
This was something that came to light during the 2016 election campaign, when her dry wit and lighthearted jokes impressed reporters and voters alike.
At private gatherings Clinton’s comedy really shone through and in true Hillary style she even managed to come up with some great puns – one example being her urge for people to ‘Pokemon GO TO THE POLLS’!
Her sharp mind and tongue was also on full display when she exchanged barbs and quick-fire quips with Wall Street bankers, such as Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein.
Unfortunately though, as the campaign went on and the pressure kept mounting, Clinton became less open to displaying her funny side or making offhand remarks at press conferences or rallies.
The tedious nature of the race had taken its toll on her enthusiasm for showing her silly side of her personality – so much so that journalists started counting how many times she nods in agreement during talks.
In conclusion, Hillary Clinton does have a funny and lighthearted side that could have made the 2016 election campaign much more interesting but it was subdued by the sheer intensity of it all.
Why Clinton’S Humdrum Campaign Made Her Uninspiring To Voters
When Hillary Clinton announced her intent to run for president in the 2016 election, it was expected that she would eventually secure an endorsement from the Democratic Party with minimal effort.
However, Senator Bernie Sanders decided to give her a real challenge and his campaign caught the attention of many due to its enthusiasm and energy.
Sanders spoke in front of thousands at each rally, often captivating the audience with his passionate speeches.
On the contrary, Clinton’s lesser known rallies saw barely 500 people attend and most of them were elderly citizens.
Furthermore, people found her speeches dull and unappealing even when jokes were thrown around.
For instance in Clinton County, Iowa she talked about 19th century governor DeWitt Clinton – though there wasn’t much interest in facts from 200 years ago from contemporary voters who wanted to know what improvements she had planned for their lives.
Even her catch phrases like “I would rather under-promise and over-deliver” couldn’t pique the interest of these people significantly.
Altogether, it became evident that Hillary Clinton’s campaign faced more competition than was expected from Bernie Sanders’ powerful speeches.
Clinton’S Distrust Of The Media Cost Her A Chance To Shine Politically
While Hillary Clinton had a famously rocky relationship with the media, she went so far as to even prevent herself from receiving positive press coverage.
As illuminated by the book Chasing Hillary: Ten Years, Two Presidential Campaigns, and One Intact Glass Ceiling, this was particularly evidenced in her attempt to have racial segregation in schools outlawed.
In 1969, the Supreme Court ruled that public schools could be no longer segregated or discriminate against black students.
However, many white families jumped at the chance to send their kids to private schools which operated outside of the public school system and could avoid having their children interacting with black ones.
Clinton took it upon herself to expose these racist practices by posing as a housewife looking to enroll her son when interviewing with one such school.
Although she was met with truth about the school’s discrimination policy loud and clear, Clinton surprisingly shut down any positive publicity for her efforts on this matter- likely due to her tenuous relationship with news outlets and reporters coupled with cynicism around being framed differently than she perceived it happening.
Unexpectedly, Bill Clinton then saw an article written about his wife’s exploits- revealing fascinating depths into her character – and embraced it enthusiastically as an example of positive coverage while telling more details of ‘Undercover Hillary’ himself.
The Press Trapped Hillary Clinton In An Unfair Dilemma Over Religion
Throughout her career and especially during the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton has been a deeply religious person.
She takes her values from Christianity seriously, attending black churches regularly for over a year in the run-up to the election and speaking about scripture in passionate and animated tones.
Clinton was even influenced by religious figures such as Martin Luther King Jr., who she heard speak in 1962 during a trip to hear him with her pastor.
This likely shaped her understanding of treating change actively rather than passively which she addressed later on in political speeches.
The press, however, barely discussed this asset Clinton had when reporting on her during her campaign.
Despite the fact that she had publicly spoken positively on the issue of qualifying ideals with religious influences prior to mid-1990s, media outlets howled at this notion and played up mockery instead of civil discussion.
Not only did this impede any further exploration into the topic but it likely made Clinton want to play down her religious beliefs for fear of facing another barrage of criticism as she had before.
Hillary Clinton’S Winning Strategy Of Embracing America’S Working Class People
When the Democratic primaries in January 2016 were going badly for Hillary Clinton, it might have seemed like all was lost.
The challenge from Bernie Sanders was far stronger than expected, with his ads running all over the country and ahead of her in the polls.
But Clinton refused to take defeat lying down – even at this early stage of her campaign, her best qualities as a presidential candidate were showing through.
Faced with an uphill battle she became utterly determined and galvanized, as Bill Clinton said often happened when his wife had to come out guns blazing.
No better example can be found than in the hard-fought Nevada caucus campaign of February 2016.
Clinton campaigned tirelessly and spoke directly to ordinary people – she wasn’t afraid to talk to housekeepers, ice cream vendors, cooks or kids playing soccer!
Perhaps most tellingly the public responded positively to such openness – they recognized that they had someone they could identify with in Hillary Clinton]
Clinton’S Refusal To Back Down Against Trump In The Debates Helped Inspire Women And Latino Voters, But It Also Overshadowed Her Policy Platform
While debating Donald Trump during the 2016 US Presidential election, it’s clear that Hillary Clinton was a stronger debater.
She had a quick wit and knowledge to back up what she was saying – she simply understood the issues better than her opponent.
However, while Clinton proved herself again and again on the debate stage, she allowed Trump’s tactics to throw her off her game.
This meant that instead of promoting her own talking points about jobs, health care and education, she spent time challenging Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric.
As much as his comments were concerning, it wasn’t strategically smart for Clinton to focus on his dialogue instead of hers.
In this way, Clinton was “distracted” by Trump’s behavior, leaving little room for any real discussion of the key issues at stake in the campaign.
In hindsight, it would have been smarter for Clinton to stick to the facts and focus on her talking points so she could leave a lasting impression with voters until Election Day.
The Power Of Community: How The Disappointment Of Clinton’S Loss United All Who Supported Her
Hillary Clinton’s election loss to Donald Trump was a shock and a deeply depressing experience.
For the Democrats, it didn’t just represent their failure to win the Election; it felt like they had failed to prove that they could properly represent their followers – especially those who were women.
But this defeat has also created a shift in perspective.
The journalists, who mostly comprised of women themselves, saw the sentiment of defeat but were nourished by her resilience and strength when she quoted Galatians 6:9 at her concession speech.
They also noticed that Hillary was wearing purple as a reference to the flag once held up in Women’s Suffrage marches, signifying opposition against LGBTQ bullying and possibly being an expression of her Methodist faith as purple is a color associated with penitence in that religion.
Moreover, Clinton’s supporters grew even more loyal as they witnessed what she said and did despite the election loss – focusing on friends, family and community going forward.
That motto is now shared by many Democrats heading into future elections.
This loss is certainly something sad for many people but it has ultimately created an amazing opportunity for growth and change moving forward.
Wrap Up
Chasing Hillary is a book that serves as an important reminder of the complex relationship between the press and politicians.
It’s clear from reading this book that Hillary Clinton was a powerful presidential candidate, but that her complicated relationship with the press had a major impact on her election loss.
The press frequently attacked Clinton, making it difficult for her to stay in the public eye in a positive way and eventually leading to voter apathy and distrust toward her.
This book provides an essential reflection on how powerful the press can be and how much control it has over election outcomes.
The final summary of Chasing Hillary is that even if someone is well prepared and well suited for the job, they cannot always overcome the power of negative press.
