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  Hillary and Monica

  Posted Thursday, March 20, 2008 4:10 PM | By Rachael Larimore

  Hillary Clinton released her "public schedules" from her days as first lady, and Ann Althouse has a good riff on how Hillary was a very "First Lady-y First Lady." But—and I suppose it was bound to happen—the AP went through Mrs. Clinton's schedules and apparently cross-referenced the Starr Report, and the result is a half-dozen or so incidences of Bill Clinton trysting with Monica Lewinsky while Hillary was at the White House.

  I had two immediate reactions. First, I felt sorry for poor ol' Hillary. Bill is such an unrepentant philanderer that he had no qualms mocking his marital vows right under his wife's nose. Plus, Hillary's lived with this elephant in the room for the whole campaign. And now, boom, here it is out in the open. But then, a more cynical reaction: Could it be that Bill didn't worry about getting caught because Hillary was aware and lived with it because a scandal could have tainted her political future? Even when I'm feeling cynical, though, I still feel for her.

  For some reason, this particular encounter really stands out for me: "Jan. 7, 1996: On a Sunday afternoon, Lewinsky and the president spent most of the afternoon in the Oval Office. The first lady and the president had a small dinner with 20 people at ‘the Old Family Dining Room' at the White House." Was that particularly daring of Bill? Wouldn't it be easy for Hillary to pop down to the Oval Office and see how Bill's doing or ask him if he wanted to serve the red wine or the white at their dinner that night, on a quiet Sunday afternoon?

  So, colleagues, is my sympathy for Hillary misplaced? Or is my cynicism?

  Filed under: Hillary Clinton, Monica Lewinsky

About Rachael Larimore

• Rachael Larimore is Slate's copy chief.

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