Tarana Burke, the founder of the #MeToo movement, said the affair between President Clinton and White House intern Monica Lewinsky was “absolutely an abuse of power.” Burke gave an interview to The Root days after Hillary Clinton told CBS ‘Sunday Morning” she did not find her husband’s actions to be an abuse of power.
“When I think about the things that Hillary Clinton said about the Monica Lewinsky and Bill Clinton affair not being an abuse of power, that is just tragic and it’s wrong,” said Burke in a video released by The Root Tuesday.
“You’re talking about an age dynamic but you’re also talking about the president of the United States. The amount of power, the amount of accumulated power that is in that position alone, versus an intern, it’s absolutely an abuse of power,” continued Burke in the clip.
CBS News correspondent Tony Dokoupil asked Clinton about her husband’s affair in an interview released Sunday, “In retrospect, do you think Bill should’ve resigned in the wake of the Monica Lewinsky scandal?”
“Absolutely not,” Clinton responded.
“It wasn’t an abuse of power?” rebutted Dokoupil. “No. No,” responded the politician.
During Hillary Clinton’s time as first lady, she stood by Mr. Clinton when he became only the second president in history to be impeached by Congress. The Senate acquitted him on charges of lying under oath to a federal grand jury and obstructing justice and declined to remove him from office.
The affair began in 1995 when Monica Lewinsky was a 22-year-old unpaid intern and Mr. Clinton was 49 years old.
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Mr. Clinton came under fire this summer for saying he did not feel that he owed Lewinsky an apology, as he apologized publicly many times, during an interview on NBC’s Today show.
Burke added in her interview that it was “unfortunate” the former secretary of state did not utilize the moment to be accountable.
“I think now, 20 years down the road, It’s ok to say ‘this was an abuse of power,'” said Burke. “It doesn’t mean that he had to step down from his position, but it is, It was an abuse of power that I’m sure he regrets.”
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