Hillary Clinton - yes, Hillary Clinton - answers MNers' questions: come and watch!

[KateMumsnet]

We put Mumsnetters' questions to Former Secretary of State (and, if rumours are to be believed, potentially the first female President of the USA) Hillary Clinton. See what she has to say on abortion rights, learning to brush off misogynist criticism, becoming a grandmother - and how she squares her position as a feminist icon with 'standing by her man'.

Have a look, and tell us what you think on the thread. And don't forget to have a look at Hillary's special message for Mumsnetters, . RebeccaMumsnet is, understandably, thrilled .

[MrsJamin]

I'd vote for her!

[CateBlanket]

Given all the excitement about the prospect of a "web chat" there doesn't seem to be many comments about it or are they elsewhere?

[Obstacles]

Good questions and great answers. Yes I'd vote for her if she was to run here. Where is our Hilary Clinton? Is the closest we have really Theresa May?

[EssexMummy123]

Wow - just great, Thanks mumsnet HQ - although I'm still left wondering what her favourite biscuit is...

[SconeRhymesWithGone]

I think it was great. I hope I'll get the chance to vote for her again.

[FrenchLimeBlossom]

Really great. A very impressive woman, if only she would run in 2016 I think could make a massive difference in US foreign and domestic policy. Feminist icon indeed.

[gallicgirl]

As much as she is laying out her opinions for political reasons, I think she comes over as very genuine and amusing. Hopefully the questions were welcome and thought provoking.
I disagreed with asking her about her decision to stay with Bill after his affair, but I think she answered very graciously.

[JugglingFromHereToThere]

I thought she did particularly well on the personal ones. I like her but possibly not quite as much as Obama, of whom I'm still a massive fan

[FinallyGotAnIPhone]

Love her. I'd vote for her!

[SconeRhymesWithGone]

I didn't post this on the question thread, but I have met her twice, once at professional conference when she a lawyer in Arkansas, and later in a large social gathering in New York when she was in the Senate. Contact was limited in both instances, but she is very personable and funny, with a huge raucous laugh that just takes over the whole person and spreads to others. That is my favorite kind of laugh, so I loved being with her just for that.

[nameequality]

I am so so happy that I got to ask Hillary Rodham Clinton a Q! Mine is at 7m28s and is about her 1995 speech to the UN 'women's rights are human rights' and did any men ask her to 'tone it down'.

I think her answer diplomatically says "hell yeah - but I didn't"

Thanks MN Towers this was genuinely ace!

Can we do some webchats in this style for the general election with the party leaders?!

[BewitchedBotheredandBewildered]

Scone that is so interesting.

I would guess that " a huge raucous laugh" is something that she has been encouraged to lose.

It's the best kind of laugh from a woman and fab to hear that she has stuck with it.

[PacificDogwood]

Oh, that woman give me hope and I love her for that.

Go, Hilary, go!!

[ReallyFuckingFedUp]

Would CEO of facebook be asked questions about her marriage? I think a website used primarily by and for women should have respected her enough to not as such a personal questions. Would we ask Justine about her private life on a MN web chat?

Loved her and the other questions though

[TheWholeOfTheSpoon]

I can't believe you asked her (twice?) about "standing by her man". Jesus Christ. Their marriage is none of our business.

[TheWholeOfTheSpoon]

Seriously, she "stood by her man" in 1998! 3/4 of my children weren't even born!

[wordsmithsforever]

What a coup for Mumsnet! I'm delighted she answered my question about her defence of the 40-something rapist of a 12 year rape victim.

The link to the story is at www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/06/20/exclusive-hillary-clinton-took-me-through-hell-rape-victim-says.html.

The right wing media has of course run with the story like crazy focusing on her laughing about the case but to me that's not the real issue.

I've listened to the tapes and I think her laughter is mostly gallows humour - I don't think she is actually laughing at the 12 year old victim. I also agree that her job was to defend the scum man and that's ok.

However, I am seriously concerned about how she chose to defend her case. She is quoted as calling the victim "emotionally unstable" and saying that children have a "tendency to exaggerate or romanticise sexual experiences, especially when they come from disorganised families such as the complainant".

I'm disappointed that we cannot rely on Hillary Clinton of all people to construct a vigorous defence of a rapist without resorting to malicious slander and an unethical character attack in a rape case (and on a child rape victim too). (When I say malicious slander it seems she told the court the child had made claims of attacks in the past when there was apparently no such evidence whatsoever. It is widely reported that this was made up out of thin air as a character assassination point.)

I'm also deeply concerned at the inference that we should believe abuse victims from nice middle class homes but not really those from disorganised homes. Isn't this exactly why abusers prey on vulnerable children? It makes me furious that the police and courts are less likely to believe children/rape victims from "bad backgrounds" and this is all over the world (I'm not in the UK).

Having said (all of) this, I get that HC was a 27 year old young lawyer and (I think) the case was in the 1970s like all the crap we're seeing in the UK at the moment.

I would love to see HC apologise to the victim for mounting an unethical if not illegal defence, and working like crazy to make this sort of victim blaming (as well as what rape victims were wearing/their sexual preferences etc) inadmissible in court evidence.

[TanteRose]

TheWhole they didn't ask her twice - it just came up twice in the screen text - I also think her reply was to the point and gracious.

Glad that one question was about how to cope with criticism of appearance etc. (my question on the "double standard" was not voted for, but she answered it!)

Going back to the screen text, could MNHQ please correct the spelling of Surpreme Supreme (tsk)?

Fab interview, and loved Hillary on TSSDNCOP

[tribpot]

I'd imagine Clinton faced the same problem as any lawyer required to defend someone accused of rape. People deserve to be defended and I was interested to learn on MN recently of the 'cab rank rule' which requires barristers to take cases in turn, so they can't be excused from defending those who appear to deserve it least. Would she mount the same defence now? Probably not. But if she were still practising law she would still have to do her utmost to defend her client.

I completely agree with other posters, asking her about her marriage was cheap and unnecessary. And what was she ever going to say? "Okay - you got me, mere contact with MN has convinced me to LTB". Also it would have been much more appropriate to ask her about her favourite biscuit.

The question about 'what do you say to people who say you can't do your job properly once you're a grandmother' was very odd, with apologies to the MNer who came up with it. Has anyone ever actually said that?

More than anything she came across as smart and genuine. I enjoy her books very much (as I did Obama's). Go Hillary.

[PacificDogwood]

I think that if a man set himself up to be a Defender of Civil Liberties, for instance, but also turns out to be abusive at home, questions (quite rightly) would be asked about how he reconciles this.
Poor example, I know, but I think the way the question about HC 'standing by her man' was posed does justify it: as a feminist icon how do you square that with standing by your man after his affair.
And she answered v graciously, without saying anything personal or embarrassing for either of them
I bet she ripped his head off in private at the time!

I don't understand enough about how the law works to have much of an opinion on how she talked about the rape case and her involvement. I know I'd struggle to be a defence lawyer for somebody I know to be guilty. I wonder what other 'defence' there is for a rapist, other than trying to smear the victim?

[TanteRose]

tribpot the grandmother thing was HUGE in the States when it was first announced that Chelsea was pregnant
www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/22/chelsea-clinton-pregancy-hillary-clinton-grandmother-conspiracies

[SpecialAgentFreyPie]

Oh my goodness she answered my questions on guns!!!

[TanteRose]

this was very funny too

[PTFsWife]

I think many of the people on the Mumsnet relationship board would do well to watch her answer to the final question about her decision to stay with her husband after his affair. The bit about not judging others for the decisions they make.

I think she was fantastic and I'd vote for her

[juneau]

You didn't ask my question!!!! It was voted no. 1 on the poll you ran and you didn't ask it!!!! Why???