Lewinsky sees 'problematic' issue of consent in Clinton affair

[Boiler 46,059]

Washington (CNN)In a new essay for Vanity Fair, Monica Lewinsky said the #MeToo movement has forced her to confront the power dynamics of her 1990s affair with then-President Bill Clinton.

"I am in awe of the sheer courage of the women who have stood up and begun to confront entrenched beliefs and institutions. But as for me, my history, and how I fit in personally? I'm sorry to say I don't have a definitive answer yet on the meaning of all of the events that led to the 1998 investigation; I am unpacking and reprocessing what happened to me," Lewinsky wrote in a piece published Sunday.

Lewinsky's affair with Clinton was made public during the 1998 investigation conducted by independent counsel Ken Starr. The affair led to Clinton's eventual impeachment for lying under oath about the relationship, among other statements.

 

Lewinsky, who disclosed that she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of the ordeal, said the #MeToo movement began to change her mind about the affair and the subsequent investigation.

She acknowledged that her past descriptions of the affair, which emphasized that the relationship was consensual, didn't address the dynamics of consent -- namely that Lewinsky was a White House intern in her early 20s and Clinton was one of the most powerful men in the world.

 

 https://www.cnn.com/2018/02/26/politics/monica-lewinsky-me-too/index.html

[Dashinka 24,771]

Say it isn't so.  Bill potentially sexually assaulted Monica in the White House!

[TBoneTX 46,071]

Twenty years and she's still unpacking it?

Maybe Hillary scheduled her "suicide" on an open-ended basis...

Edited February 26, 2018 by TBoneTX

[Póg mo 1,749]

I always thought that she was treated unfairly by the media, but I am not sure how what happened to her was necessarily rape either. If she had let it known at the time that she didn't like Bill's advances, and Bill used his position of power to get his way, then sure, but I don't believe that is what happened. At any rate, sexual norms where a little different back then, so it probably wouldn't be fair to judge him, by today's standards either.

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Not sure it was rape, certainly abuse of power.

 

It isn't that long ago.

[yuna628 9,712]

6 minutes ago, Póg mo said:

I always thought that she was treated unfairly by the media, but I am not sure how what happened to her was necessarily rape either. If she had let it known at the time that she didn't like Bill's advances, and Bill used his position of power to get his way, then sure, but I don't believe that is what happened. At any rate, sexual norms where a little different back then, so it probably wouldn't be fair to judge him, by today's standards either.

Well I have the same standards I have now as I did back then. Half of society thought it was shocking a president had an affair and the rest were totally over it.  I just felt it downright hypocritical and disrespectful to his family and the office. The lying made it stupid-worse. I hold leaders to a high standard. It's amusing that she wants to sit back and 'reflect' when there's really not much to reflect on. She had a consensual affair. She was not a child or a baby, but a grown woman. It takes two. She never claimed assault or rape, nor did she ever claim that him being in a position of power made a threatening move or felt obligated to oblige him. She could have done that, and could have done it for years. A lot of women are threatened and obligated to 'oblige' - thus consenting without truly consenting, but she has long maintained this is not the case.

 

Even in her offering: "I now see how problematic it was that the two of us even got to a place where there was a question of consent. Instead, the road that led there was littered with inappropriate abuse of authority, station, and privilege. (Full stop.)"  She states the two of them got there. Which is correct. He shouldn't have approached her in the first place, as 99.9% of all the men outed from MeToo, but she consented and never at any point withdrew that consent. She didn't mind being the other woman, or how that consent would impact his family, her family, or herself. And neither did he. I don't like saying that somehow sexual norms were different back then (I know they were) - but they should always be the same. Because a decent society should understand that cheating on your wife is wrong, approaching a woman while you are the president or in a position of power is also wrong. They should also understand that a woman agreeing to those advances of their own free will and without threat or obligation is a willing actor, and doesn't get a MeToo backdated participation trophy. Actions have consequences.