Monica Lewinsky, a former White House intern, recently expressed on the “Call Her Daddy” podcast that the appropriate response from former President Bill Clinton to their affair that happened over 25 years ago, would have been to resign from office.
Lewinsky, in her conversation with the podcast’s host Alex Cooper, discussed her views on how the political scandal should have been managed once the information of her affair with Clinton, during her time at the White House, became public.
“I think that the right way to handle a situation like that would have been to probably say it was nobody’s business and to resign,” Lewinsky said to Cooper. “Or to find a way of staying in office that was not lying and not throwing a young person who is just starting out in the world under the bus.”
Over recent years, Lewinsky has become a public voice against online harassment and public shaming. She voiced her apprehensions about the extensive impact the scandal had on women of her generation who watched her public humiliation.
“I think there was so much collateral damage for women of my generation to watch a young woman be pilloried on a world stage – to be torn apart for my sexuality, for my mistakes, for my everything,” she stated during the podcast.
The interview was part of the promotion for Lewinsky’s podcast, “Reclaiming,” which she started hosting earlier this month. Her show has featured guests such as actress Olivia Munn and actor Alan Cumming.
Lewinsky has previously discussed the power imbalance in her relationship with Clinton. In a 2021 conversation with Jake Tapper of CNN, she characterized Clinton’s actions as “wholly inappropriate,” considering their positions and age difference.
“I think what’s really important to remember in today’s world is that we never should have even gotten to a place where consent was a question,” Lewinsky said to Tapper. “So it was wholly inappropriate as the most powerful man, my boss, 49 years old. I was 22, literally just out of college. And I think that the power differentials there are something that I couldn’t ever fathom consequences at 22 that I understand obviously so differently at 48.”
The Clinton-Lewinsky scandal of the 1990s led to Clinton’s impeachment by the House of Representatives on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice after he initially denied the relationship. He was later acquitted by the Senate and completed his second term in office.
Lewinsky faced severe media criticism and public shaming during the scandal. She was referred to by derogatory names in the media, and her physical appearance was rated, leading to her portrayal as a “semen-smeared laughingstock” and a “young tramp looking for thrills.” This treatment made finding employment challenging for Lewinsky in the following years, and she contemplated changing her name due to the notoriety.
In recent years, especially after the emergence of the #MeToo movement, there has been a reevaluation of the media’s portrayal of Lewinsky and the power disparity between her and Clinton. Various media figures have expressed remorse over their treatment of Lewinsky during the scandal.
In a 2021 interview with Variety, Lewinsky expressed her hope that young women in similar situations today would not receive the same harsh judgment from the media and society. “I would hope that we would be having a different kind of conversation,” she said. “I would hope that most of the blame would not have rested on my shoulders, and most of the consequences.”
Clinton has previously recognized the impact the scandal had on Lewinsky’s life. In the 2020 documentary “Hillary,” he said he felt “terrible about the fact that Monica Lewinsky’s life was defined” by their affair, “unfairly I think.” He added, “Over the years I have watched her trying to get a normal life back again.”
Despite this, Clinton has previously stated that he “disagreed” with the thought that he should have resigned due to the affair.
Lewinsky’s journey from media vilification to becoming an authoritative voice on consent, power dynamics, and public humiliation reflects broader societal shifts in understanding and discussing such situations.
Alex Cooper, the host of “Call Her Daddy,” is reportedly the most listened-to female podcaster globally. Last year, she signed a $125 million deal with SiriusXM for her podcast, which discusses relationships and pop culture.
