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The feud between the Obamas and ‘Hildebeest’
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Outwardly, they put on a show of unity — but privately, the Obamas and Clintons, the two power couples of the Democrat Party, loathe each other. “I hate that man Obama more than any man I’ve ever met, more than any man who ever lived,” Bill Clinton said to friends on one occasion, adding he would never forgive Obama for suggesting he was a racist during the 2008 campaign. The feeling is mutual. Obama made -excuses not to talk to Bill, while the first lady privately sniped about Hillary. On most evenings, Michelle Obama and her trusted adviser, Valerie Jarrett, met in a quiet corner of the White House residence. They’d usually open a bottle of Chardonnay, catch up on news about Sasha and Malia, and gossip about people who gave them heartburn. Their favorite bête noire was Hillary Clinton, whom they nicknamed “Hildebeest,” after the menacing and shaggy-maned gnu that roams the Serengeti. ‘Michelle could be president’ The animosity came to a head in the run-up to the 2012 election, when Obama’s inner circle insisted he needed the former president’s support to win. Obama finally telephoned Bill Clinton in September 2011 and invited him out for a round of golf. “I’m not going to enjoy this,” Bill told Hillary when they gathered with a group of friends and political associates at Whitehaven, their neo-Georgian home on Embassy Row in Washington, DC. “I’ve had two successors since I left the White House — Bush and Obama — and I’ve heard more from Bush, asking for my advice, than I’ve heard from Obama. I have no relationship with the president — none whatsoever,” Clinton said. “I really can’t stand the way Obama -always seems to be hectoring when he talks to me,” Clinton added, according to someone who was present at the gathering and spoke on the condition of anonymity. “Sometimes we just stare at each other. It’s pretty damn awkward. Now we both have favors to ask each other, and it’s going to be very unpleasant. But I’ve got to get this guy to owe me and to be on our side.” During the golf game, Clinton didn’t waste any time reminding Obama that as president he had presided over eight years of prosperity, while Obama had been unable to dig the country out of the longest financial -doldrums since the Great Depression. “Bill got into it right away,” said a Clinton family friend. “He told Obama, ‘Hillary and I are gearing up for a run in 2016.’ He said Hillary would be ‘the most qualified, most experienced candidate, perhaps in history.’ His reference to Hillary’s experience made Obama wince, since it was clearly a shot at his lack of experience when he ran for president. “And so Bill continued to talk about Hillary’s qualifications .?.?. and the coming campaign in 2016. But Barack didn’t bite. He changed the subject several times. Then suddenly, Barack said something that took Bill by complete surprise. He said, ‘You know, Michelle would make a great presidential candidate, too.’ “Bill was speechless. Was Barack comparing Michelle’s qualifications to Hillary’s? Bill said that if he hadn’t been on a mission to strike a deal with Barack, he might have stormed off the golf course then and there.” Blackberry snub Bill Clinton would go on to campaign for Obama in 2012, but he felt betrayed when the president seemed to waver when it came to a 2016 endorsement of Hillary. Obama attempted to smooth things over with a joint “60 Minutes” interview with Hillary, and later a private dinner for the two couples at the White House. ‘I HATE THAT MAN OBAMA MORE THAN ANY MAN I’VE EVER MET, MORE THAN ANY MAN WHO EVER LIVED.’ - Bill Clinton In 'Blood Feud' And so, on March?1, 2013 — the very day that the $85?billion in budget cuts known as the “sequester” went into effect — the Clintons slipped unnoticed into the White House and sat down for dinner with the Obamas in the Residence. Typically, once Obama decided to do something (for example, the surge in Afghanistan), he immediately had second thoughts, and his behavior during dinner degenerated from moody to grumpy to bad-tempered. After the obligatory greetings and small talk about family, Obama asked Bill what he thought about the sequester: Would it turn out to be a political plus for him? Bill went into a long — and boring — lecture about the issue. To change the subject, Hillary asked Michelle if it was true, as she had heard, that the first lady was thinking about running for the Senate from Illinois. Michelle said that she was warming to the idea, though she had yet to make up her mind. Bill shot Hillary a look of incredulity. Bill then moved the conversation to Obama’s vaunted 2012 campaign -organization. He told Obama that it would be a good idea to fold the organization, along with all its digital and social-media bells and whistles, into the Democratic National Committee. Obama’s only response was a disparaging smile. President Barack Obama acts cordial with former President Clinton but it’s all for show, according to the new book “Blood Feud,” by journalist Edward Klein.Photo: White House “You have to use your organization to aid the candidate in 2016,” Bill pressed Obama. “Really?” Obama replied in a tone of undisguised sarcasm. The two men went back and forth over the subject of where the money for Obama’s campaign organization had come from and how to allocate funds for the 2016 presidential election. Bill raised his voice. So did Obama. As Bill Clinton went on about his managerial experience, Obama began playing with his Blackberry under the table, making it plain that he wasn’t paying attention to anything Clinton had to say. He was intentionally snubbing Clinton. Others around the table noticed Obama thumbing his Blackberry, and the atmosphere turned even colder than before. Hillary changed the subject again. “Are you glad you won’t have to campaign again?” she asked Obama. “You don’t seem to -enjoy it.” “For a guy who doesn’t like it,” Obama replied tartly, “I’ve done pretty well.” “Well,” Bill said, adding his two cents, “I was glad to pitch in and help get you re-elected.” There was another long pause. Finally, Obama turned to Bill and said, sotto voce, “Thanks.” After the dinner, and once the Clintons had been ushered out of the family quarters, Obama shook his head and said, “That’s why I never invite that guy over.” Obama’s mini-me Lately, Bill Clinton has become convinced that Obama won’t endorse Hillary in 2016. During a gathering at Whitehaven, guests overheard Bill talking to his daughter Chelsea about whether the president would back Joe Biden. “Recently, I’ve been hearing a different scenario from state committeemen,” Clinton said. “They say he’s looking for a candidate who’s just like him. Someone relatively unknown. Someone with a fresh face. “He’s convinced himself he’s been a brilliant president, and wants to clone himself — to find his Mini-Me. |
（本文為編譯） “積不相能，猜疑妒忌?！痹谛聲堆Ｉ畛稹罚˙lood Feud）中，美國資深媒體人愛德華?克萊因如此形容奧巴馬夫婦與克林頓夫婦之間的關系，他認為兩家的積怨可能在2016年總統大選期間集中爆發。 克萊因曾供職于《新聞周刊》、《名利場》、《紐約時代雜志》等多家媒體并身居高位，利用手握的獨家內幕，他先后發表關于肯尼迪家族、希拉里和奧巴馬等人的文章和內幕，其作品多次登上《紐約時報》暢銷書排行榜。 ***人前友愛人后厭惡 表面上，美國民主黨最有權勢的兩對夫妻——奧巴馬夫婦和克林頓夫婦——表現得團結友愛；私底下，他們卻相互厭惡、勢如水火。 “我厭惡奧巴馬勝過我所見過的任何人、勝過活著的任何人?！痹浽谀硞€場合，希拉里的丈夫克林頓直白地表達對奧巴馬的反感，他說自己永遠不能原諒奧巴馬在2008年大選時暗示他是種族主義者的言論。 而這種厭惡是相互的。奧巴馬的妻子米歇爾經常會與其信賴的助手瓦萊麗?賈勒特在白宮把酒閑聊，除了談論米歇爾的兩個女兒之外，抨擊希拉里是兩人的最愛。米歇爾和賈勒特甚至給希拉里起了個綽號“Hildebeest”，這個詞由希拉里的名字（Hillary）與牛羚（wildebeest）合成。 ***“米歇爾也能當總統” 競選連任時，顧問團堅稱奧巴馬需要請克林頓來為他站臺。誠不得已，奧巴馬于2011年9月給克林頓打電話，邀請他一起去打高爾夫。 “我不會喜歡這次會面。”成行之前，克林頓在自家舉行的一場聚會上向妻子說明了他的看法，“我離開白宮之后有兩位繼任者——布什和奧巴馬，前者經常向我請教治國之道，后者很少。我跟這個總統沒有關系，一點關系都沒有?！?/p> 據偶然聽見克林頓夫婦對話的一位與會者透露，克林頓還憤憤然地補充道：“奧巴馬跟我說話時，總是一副居高臨下的口氣，我真是受不了。有時我們面對面干瞪眼，簡直太尷尬了。但現在我們都有求于對方，盡管見面會很不愉快，我還是會讓這個家伙欠我一份人情、站到我這邊?！?/p> 待到打球之時，克林頓無時無刻不在提醒奧巴馬，他在位八年期間美國繁榮昌盛，而奧巴馬卻治國無方始終沒能領導美國走出經濟困境。 “克林頓告訴奧巴馬，‘希拉里和我正在為2016年總統大選做準備，她可能是史上最有資質、最有經驗的競選人’，暗示要奧巴馬支持他的妻子?！笨肆诸D夫婦一位共同的朋友透露，克林頓的滔滔不絕令奧巴馬有些厭煩，“奧巴馬撂出一句狠話，‘你知道的，米歇爾也將是一位很棒的總統競選人’，這令克林頓啞口無言。奧巴馬拿毫無從政經驗的米歇爾跟希拉里比？克林頓憤怒了，他說如果不是自己還有求于奧巴馬，當時憤而離場了。” ***共進晚餐火藥味十足 奧巴馬成功連任后，克林頓感覺自己遭到背叛了，因為奧巴馬在公開場合談及2016年大選支持希拉里事宜時顯得猶豫不決。于是，2013年3月1日，美國自動削減赤字機制生效的當天，克林頓夫婦悄悄進入白宮，與奧巴馬夫婦共進晚餐。 程式化寒暄結束后，奧巴馬詢問克林頓對于自動減赤的看法：“你覺得這會為我加分嗎？”之后，克林頓打開了話匣子，開始了一段冗長、無趣的“演講”。 為了改變話題、活躍氣氛，希拉里問米歇爾她是不是真的考慮競選伊利諾伊州參議員。米歇爾回答道，她有興趣但還沒決定。 此時，克林頓看了希拉里一眼，眼神中滿是懷疑。接著，他又把話題轉向奧巴馬的2012年競選團隊，建議將該團隊的所有資源轉移到民主黨全國委員會，但換來的只是奧巴馬輕蔑的一笑。 克林頓仍不放棄，他繼續強調：“你應該用你的團隊去幫助2016年的黨內候選人?！薄罢娴膯幔俊眾W巴馬的話語里諷刺意味明顯。然而，二人在此話題上展開唇槍舌戰、嗓門越來越高。 言語交鋒終告一段落，克林頓繼續講述自己的治國經驗，奧巴馬的耐心耗盡、連敷衍都不愿意，開始在桌子底下玩起手機。奧巴馬有意冷落克林頓的舉動，被所有人看在眼里，飯桌上的氣氛變得更為尷尬。 于是，希拉里決定為丈夫解圍。“不用再參加競選了，你很高興吧？”希拉里問奧巴馬，“看上去你并不喜歡競選。”“對于一個不喜歡競選的人來說，”奧巴馬毫不客氣地回應說，“我做得很棒了?！薄安诲e，”克林頓也不相讓，“我很樂意幫助你再次當選?！边@時出現了一段長時間的沉默，最后，奧巴馬轉向克林頓，低聲說了句“謝謝啊?！?/p> 用餐完畢，終于把克林頓夫婦“掃地出門”了，奧巴馬搖了搖頭，說了一句：“這就是為什么我從不邀請這家伙的原因?！?/p> ***“他在尋找迷你版的奧巴馬” 不久前，克林頓終于開始相信奧巴馬不會在2016年總統大選中支持希拉里。在一次聚會上，有人聽見克林頓和他的女兒切爾西聊起此事。 “最近，不少國會議員告訴我，奧巴馬正在尋找一位跟他相似的候選人，某個知名度不那么高的新鮮面孔?！笨肆诸D認為，這個人有可能是現任副總統拜登。 “奧巴馬自認為是位杰出的總統，所以想克隆自己?！笨肆诸D說，“他相信美國人民不愿投票給政壇老手，他說我和你的媽媽都‘活在20世紀（已經過時了）’，他在尋找一個迷你版的貝拉克?奧巴馬。” ***“希拉里的心臟有問題” 在《血海深仇》一書中，希拉里的真實健康狀況首次曝光。據稱，這位熱門潛在總統競選人的健康問題比她對外公布的情況要嚴重得多。 “她把自己的病史藏起來，是擔心一旦曝光，她將失去競選總統的資格?！睍袑懙?，2012年底希拉里入院接受治療期間，被診斷出患有多種嚴重疾病。除右耳后側、大腦和顱骨之間一條血管內有血栓外，她還患有甲狀腺疾病，她的心律不齊、心臟瓣膜無法有規律地進行開放和關閉，影響血液流動。并且，因血栓而暈倒，希拉里早已習以為常。 克萊因曾試圖聯系希拉里的主治醫生艾倫?施瓦茲，詢問希拉里的心臟問題是否嚴重，但施瓦茲拒絕回應。不過，據一位知情人士透露，醫生曾建議希拉里接受心臟瓣膜置換手術，盡管最終決定不做手術，但希拉里出院時，醫生提醒克林頓必須仔細“監控”妻子。 （譯者 諶融 編輯 丹妮） 掃一掃，關注微博微信
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