Monica Lewinsky isn’t just a Beyoncé lyric. Her story isn’t just the one Scandal is loosely modeled after either. In 1995 and 1996 Monica Lewinsky had an affair with America’s Sweetheart President Bill Clinton.You would think that a President in his 40s who had an affair with his twenty-two-year-old intern would bear the brunt of a media firestorm but that wasn’t the case. While Bill Clinton was famously impeached and then acquitted and ultimately faced no real consequence, it was Monica Lewinsky who was painted as an evil, seductress who ruined the President. Worst of all, Hillary Clinton was portrayed as weak by many feminists for having stayed with her husband. It’s the age old tale where the media blames the women, who were exploited and manipulated, for the man’s transgression.
I certainly don’t believe a President should be impeached for cheating on his wife because that is personal shit. And while he was a President sleeping with his intern, who was a consenting adult at the time, it’s strange but not worth losing a Presidency over, so I am glad he ultimately did not. Still, the media’s portrayal of Monica Lewinsky was heartbreaking.
Monica, just this week, returned to the public to talk about the harrowing experience. Monica told Vanity Fair, “Sure, my boss took advantage of me, but I will always remain firm on this point: it was a consensual relationship. Any ‘abuse’ came in the aftermath, when I was made a scapegoat in order to protect his powerful position. . . . The Clinton administration, the special prosecutor’s minions, the political operatives on both sides of the aisle, and the media were able to brand me. And that brand stuck, in part because it was imbued with power.”
The reason I bring back the infamous Barbara Walters interview is because Monica Lewinsky in a lot of ways is a really cool chick. The President was flirting with her so what does she do? She takes off her blazer and lifts up her shirt to reveal her high riding thong underwear. This chick was a boss. Nowhere in the interview does she apologize for being overtly sexual (especially when the President was reciprocating). Nowhere does she blame anyone else for her actions. Nowhere does she not stand up for herself, her sexuality and her behavior. She wanted something, went after it, but was ultimately deceived by the people she trusted. A twenty-two-year-old gutsy enough to hang with the President isn’t a stupid person or someone who should be shamed. It’s unfortunate that her behaviors resulted in painfully hurting Hillary and Chelsea Clinton but protecting those two women was the responsibility of Bill Clinton not hers.
The interview is actually very funny and very shocking. She talks about giving Bill Clinton head but him never finishing because he was religious. The intensity of their stares. The boldness of her actions. We could learn a thing or two from Monica.
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Never Forget Friday: Barbara Walters Interviews Monica Lewinsky
