YouSaid · the spoken record

Huma Abedin

lines on the record: 50
first: 2021-11-26
most recent: 2021-11-26
sittings or episodes: 1
sources: podcast

Every line below is reproduced as it was said and linked to the record it came from. Nothing here is summarised or generated. Directory · Search · Corrections

“Oh, Razia, my faith carried me through. I mean, what is Muslim prayer, but meditation, stepping back, reflecting on your life, on your intentions? I mean, that is essentially, it is a conversation between you and higher power, but it really forces you to reflect on some of the choices and actions you're going to make. And my faith absolutely saved me. There's no question it did. And it allowed me to be this person. You've gotten me through to this place. I am so grateful for it.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I would still be a broken, angry, bitter person if I had not been taught that radical empathy is an important thing to have in your life. And I've had to forgive. I've had to forgive a lot. I've had to forgive what at one point I thought was the unforgivable. And I had to do it the hardest way, which is instead of running away instead of not wanting to know, instead of being closed, you know, women stopped me on the street. People, mostly women stop me on the street all the time. When does it stop? When do I know when to go? When does the pain stop? And so you have to find your way forward. It's not easy for most of us who've had to deal with it.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, this is the problem when you quote people like Shonda Rhimes and say, This is my year of saying yes because I got in trouble here on my very first live TV morning show and I was shaking and cold and had no idea what it was. Like, wow, I mean, this is amazing, and everyone else I saw was either covered or didn't look like me. So I don't know. I'm kind of excited about what the next year is going to bring.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“A father, a child who has challenges with mental health or addiction, you don't understand. And that's fine. You're blessed. I actually say to people, I envy you. But if you do, you'll understand. And I think my son, I don't want any cycles to repeat themselves. And so for me, I want him to feel loved and supported and be told the truth. And I think he'll be okay. At least, you know, God willing.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, my son is growing up at a time, you know, my father was terminally ill, and we did not know. My parents protected us from that, but we don't live in that world anymore. I can't protect my son, you know, from hard truths. I share the story in the book when his father was in prison being teased about his father being away and marveling at his sense of resilience and actually maturity when he said at least he's taking responsibility for his mistakes. Both his father and I have decided that we are going to be sources of truth for him. There's plenty he's going to read about both of his parents as he gets older and as he can Google things. And I hope when he is old enough to read this book that he will read it and say, I'm really proud of my mommy and what she tried to do and proud of this history, this legacy, this family I came from. And I'm glad she tried to help my dad because I think if you don't understand, if you don't have somebody in your life, you know, a friend, a partner,”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I think, well, two things. I would say number one, I would quote my father again, which is a good life is a balanced life. I did not know that. I actually think this next generation is better about that. I write a chapter in the book where I'm at a family wedding and get a call asking if I want to go to Argentina for work. And I, of course, left the wedding and jumped on that plane and went to Argentina. And for 25 years did that over and over and over again. I always picked work and family and friends came last or came second. And I think if I had to go back, it's the one thing I would adjust. So try to, you know, try to find that balance. And politics is not for the faint-hearted. But what I will say is the only way the system changes is by participation, newer, younger voices, opinions, perspectives come to the table. That's how things change.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Growing up, but there was an author named Elizabeth Lesser, a journalist as well, who wrote a book called Merrow about donating her marrow to her sister that just is the most beautiful story of love and commitment and sisterhood. So all of these people inspired me to write my story.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“There was an epilogue to this book going back to Razia's head's going to explode. There was an epilogue in addition. There was also an epilogue. And the epilogue I write in detail about all the people who inspired me to share my story because I've always loved memoir. I dive into people's stories. I'm fascinated by them, you know, their decisions and choices and actions in their life. And so there were several. One of them was Shonda Rhimes in her year of saying yes, the kind of she encouraged me to write my book. Obviously one of them, you know, you mentioned Wallace Sayinka. I quoted a lot of writers who I read growing up, the books that my parents brought back and then, you know, some of my contemporaries, Rupee Carr and Cleo Wade, who are, you know, these dynamic brilliant young women who I know, people who just Najee Mahfouz, I read a lot when I was.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, I say this my father was larger than life and he died just before I left for school, for college, but then he was sick for most of my life, even though I thought he was Superman. But I write, my mother aided and abetted the illusion. My mother was superwoman. She made everything possible. You know, she got him as kidney translation. That is, she did everything. And so for me, it's honoring, I start with the matriarchs in my family. And I end with them, you know, the notion of choice, one woman's choice to demand to be educated 100 years ago landed me in the center of the White House. I write about the first time, the first thing I did on behalf of my country was greeting the Bangladeshi Prime Minister. In the center room, in the center of the most powerful house in the world. And I owe that to them. I owe those to the, I owe that to the women in my family. So a combination of my mom and my dad, I would have to say.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I don't know. Again, I don't think there's any one thing. It was the perfect storm of things when we were in the campaign, when she was saying there are things happening at Facebook, these ads, these fake ads, people were looking at us saying it's not really possible. You guys are crazy, just like when she suggested that there was interference from another country. All these things are not proven to be factual. So I would actually argue that she was prescient about some of these things. I don't think no, I disagree that she didn't understand that it was Facebook, that she didn't understand Facebook. I think it was, there were active external forces working to defeat her.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I think to some extent I will always be. I write in the book that in 2020 I was watching everything from afar and really having a hard time being on the outside after being at the center of the universe for so long. So yes, I'll always be there to help if anybody needs help. I don't think it's going to be my full-time life, but there's nothing better than at least for me that being in public service.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“So this is something I don't reflect on in my book, and I'm certainly not an expert. I think there are other countries such as yours where you have leaders chosen by their peers. You know, it's really a party that you're putting forward. And here it's all about you want to fall in love. You want to find the candidate that, you know, animates you. I think misogyny, unfortunately, is an international epidemic. It's not specific to the United States, but in our country, it has especially hard for women the way our system is set up to break through.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Oh my God, I'm not going to predict the future. And I hope that there's not a Democrat that goes against President Trump. But I do think I remain hopeful that a woman will be president. I think it's going to be very hard. Just look at 2020. And we had a slate of stars, rising stars, extremely qualified women. And they had a hard time.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I don't think it's specific to politics, in my opinion. I think generally, and there is research, there are studies that show this, that generally we have a hard time seeing women in executive leadership positions. It's why it's hard for women to become president, mayors, you know, CEOs, how many Fortune 500 CEOs are women. It is how I end the book. If those of you who are watching, if I hope, because I do end on our vice president and what she represents to us in this country in the future, but also this notion that unless we change our conscious and unconscious bias towards women, unless we teach our boys not to be afraid of women's power, things are not going to change. We're not going to have more women at the table in our country.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Made me feel like anything was possible, that the world could be a better place, a fairer place, and you had that sense of hope and possibility. Yes, it was effective communication. I think he ceded a lot of fear in people, though what is going to happen. I traveled the country in 2016 on behalf of the campaign. I would go into Muslim communities, Muslim American communities, and give speeches about the threat the other side possed. And the reaction as I write in the book from people was this is a very passionate speech that you're giving, but it's a bit traumatic. I mean, he's not going to do any of these things that he's saying. It's just, you know, entertainment. So I would argue it's a different kind of communication and it worked. And I do think a lot of it was the fear. It was instilling fear in people. And I agree with you, Razzie. It worked effectively. And we ended up with four years of what I believe as a national.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Because you asked about Trump and being an effective communicator, what I believe he did, and this is my personal opinion, is that number one, it was, and that's why I write that scene in the book about the first time we turned the TV on to actually watch him in the midst of a very crowded Republican primary. It was in part entertainment, in part showmanship, and in part you were watching because you did not know what the next really provocative thing would come out of his mouth. That's not why you were turning on the TV. That's not why people would argue Bill Clinton was an effective communicator. I think people would say, when you are in a room, in 1999, if I walked into the East Room of the White House, or if I went to a rally in Iowa and Bill Clinton was speaking, I thought he was talking to me. I thought when he was explaining a program about healthcare, education, college, I got it. That's why he's been called the explainer-in-chief. President Obama.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Absolutely she won. That's true. But she didn't win the election. That's right. I mean, that is a whole separate conversation about the Electoral College. Absolutely. Our system of electing a president is run in this country, which I unfortunately don't foresee changing anytime soon. So let's start there. I do take an issue when people somehow think that she doesn't connect. In that, if she's not connecting, how do you have 66 million people vote for you in 2008, when even she and President Obama, everyone thinks, you know, he ran away with it? It was amazing. He was amazing. But that was a very tight election. So in terms of connecting with people and actual human beings, bodies and numbers voting for her, those are large numbers. Those are numbers that”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Also, I mean, just to remind people 2016, many millions more people voted for Hillary Clinton than Donald Trump. Let's just be clear. It's not that popular vote.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Giggled sort of nervously because there was no outrage. There was no this woman is qualified. She does deserve to be at this debate. She does deserve to be at the table. We ignored it. And as a result, I do believe, you know quite strongly, that sexism played a role in her defeat in 2000. It was always two people her husband and President Obama.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I did not do this well enough, is that I do think it was very hard. I think it was hard as a woman for her to run. She was not a natural. On the one hand, she's married to IRU, one of the greatest communicators of his generation, followed by another greatest communicator of his generation with President Obama. It is hard to be compared to them. And in fact, it's why I tell all these stories about people calling and saying she needs to talk louder. She needs to talk lower. She needs longer jackets. She needs shorter jackets. Put her in t-shirts. Don't put her in t-shirts. She needs makeup. Less makeup. I don't like her hair. Everybody had an opinion. So in part, you know, in 2008, we did not know how to deal with all the incoming. So when people said your jacket is ugly or your likable enough, or when you come on TV, I want to cross my legs. Nobody knew how to deal with it. In fact, I even say we didn't. And that's the argument I make in the book is that we just laughed.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Pages, and so anyone ever I tell somebody who's read the book, they fall out of their chair, and there was a lot more about my early life. And I did end up having to cut a lot about my boss because in the end, it was sort of this is your book. And if it's not, you know, you're not central this particular passage, you have to go. It has to go. And there were several of those. But, you know, Rosie, I would argue that it is one of the things because I do carry a little resentment about how she is somehow, you know, that people forget, first of all, in 2008 that this woman made history in New Hampshire for women and girls in this country for generations like full stop period. It breaks my heart when I talk to young people and they'll say, I didn't even remember she ran for president in 2008. I thought that was, you know, Senator Obama and John McCain. And that was an incredible election and obviously President Obama made history. The argument I make, and maybe, you know,”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Fast forward to 2016. We live in a 24 second new cycle. Now with social media, now with so much information. So as all of these caricatures kept building and we kept saying, oh my God, this is crazy. No one's going to believe she's dying. No one's going to believe Pizzagate. What we didn't really appreciate in the moment was that people did and these things seated.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“In London. And when I sit down, a woman comes up to me and she's like, I don't understand. Why doesn't Hillary talk about herself this way? Like these are amazing stories you're telling. And I said it then and I say it now. She never thought any of this was about her. She was so mission driven that she didn't, the caricatures we were aware of them. And look, I grew up in the Clinton world of politics so in the 1990s with the emergence of cable news 24-hour cable news you were constantly trying to drive the proactive message of the day. So you did not acknowledge the nonsense.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, I approached my reflections on Hillary and the Clinton family. As I said, I think earlier from a show not tell perspective, I'm not telling you she's amazing. I'm not telling you he did this. I'm not telling you. I'm just showing you what it was like. Part of what I loved about writing this story is I wanted to take people into those rooms. I wanted to take people into those rallies as we walked in and you felt the goosebumps and you carried people's hopes and dreams and secrets and fears. Like still there is nothing more rewarding than that feeling what it felt like. I also share, you know, there's a scene in the book. I actually when I'm in London and I get up and I, you know, I'm terrified of public speaking. This is the thing that scares me the most, talking publicly, things that scare me, you know, I write in the book like I was shaking before I had to go out. So I get up and I give this speech on her behalf as a surrogate.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, been newsier, or I don't know what the right word is if I had written it sooner, but I don't think I was ready and I don't think the story would have been as good. I had to get to the other side. I had to get to my lowest point. I had to carry that guilt, that blame. But I had to settle it. I had to work through it and get to the other side. And that's why I'm able to sit here and talk to you about it today.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Absolutely. And I write about it in detail in the book. I write about it that moment. I write about calling Anthony who is away and he didn't have any access to television or news and he had no idea what I was talking about. And I 100% said if she loses, it will be our fault. And in an election that close, every little thing mattered. And this was a big, big thing. And then for two days before the election for there to be another announcement that says, you know, we've reviewed everything and there's nothing here and the investigation is closed again. Really energized the other side, really got them activated and motivated to, you know, to turn out. And it did make a difference. And so, yes, what she says is right. I carried that with me. It took me to a very, very dark place. But I've had to let go of that. I've had to, you know, people have asked, I mean, this book maybe would have.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Resignation again in 2016. I'll write the story of after the unprecedented announcement that the then FBI director made 11 days before the election that just shook up a race, even though there were other investigations going on. And it was so hard for me. I was in such a state of shock that I couldn't even feel. I felt selfish to feel anything.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Every time I've had a challenge in my life, personal challenge especially, she has approached it, I have felt as a friend first and as a boss second. And I share the stories in the book. It's why I share the conversations where the first thing she has said is take care of yourself and your child. But whatever you choose, I'm here to support you. She's never tried to get me to do one thing or another. It's more of I'm here. And if you need me, I'm just let me know. And I've appreciated having that because I tell plenty of stories in the book of people who had very strong feelings about how I should act and not act. And it really did something to me, that does something to you, this, you know, the feeling the elephant in the room, the feeling unwelcome, feeling conversations stopping. And since you asked, I did offer my”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Pay for a mistake that was not mine. That was my husband's. And in that moment, I had encouraged him to run because I had figured, as I had learned in whatever therapy sessions we'd gone to is that people struggled with this compulsive behavior and it didn't mean they didn't have to go out in the world and participate professionally. And I thought this was a way back for him. It was a mistake in hindsight.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“They haven't revealed themselves to me, but I share the story in the book or I call Cheryl, you know, a close advisor of Hillary's and a dear friend of mine and said, I'm hearing these rumors. And she said, yes, there are people who are unhappy about what you did. It seems untenable that you can remain in your job. But given your relationship, Hillary should let you go herself. And so I share the story of driving out to her house thinking it's the last time I'm going to go and all the moments and all the places, the coffee shops we used to visit, I took my little boy with me and watched him play with the puppy and I went inside, you know, to be fired. And she surprised me by essentially saying that though people had said I should be fired, that she didn't believe it was the right thing to do, that I was good at my job and that I was valuable to her. And more than that, she didn't think I should, you know.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Well, as I write in the book, I did. I offered my, you know, in 2013 after Anthony's mayor's race collapsed, I was told by several people I heard rumors. I didn't know who they were. And, you know, in part, I had encouraged him to run for mayor in 2013, which is why when it all fell apart, I did do the press conference with him. I know a lot of people were very unhappy that I did that. But back then, I mean, again, I'm.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Now, as I write in the book, I spent a lot of time even after Anthony proposed really considering it was a real reflection on whether this was the right choice for me. And I even write how I tried not to see him and how miserable that was. And in part, that's why I tell the funny stories of all the ways that he accommodated me and my, I mean, he was fasting with me during Ramadan. He gave up pork and alcohol, all these, which he just volunteered to do. I felt so close. That just made us more, you know, insular in some ways actually brought us closer, especially knowing that I was growing a child inside of me.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Inside because on the inside, we were getting up every day serving the American people. Hillary Clinton was traveling around the world championing rights for women and children. It didn't compute. So to me, when I was in my own situation, which I agree was very different, I was just in this world of, you know, and it was this anomaly. I mean, people had been heard at, you know, sex scandals were not sadly not uncommon in the public space, not just in politics, but other industries. It was this online, this digital, this new world. I mean, these portals through which Anthony's behavior really started didn't exist the year before we got married.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Know, I think no two circumstances are the same. Obviously, I don't see it from that perspective. I know I understand why the parallels are being commented upon now. But I take myself back to that time in the White House and I chose to write about impeachment. And in part, because my professional, all these milestones in my professional growth kind of matched the revelations in that investigation. And in that moment, here I was 21 years old, had no understanding of what it was like to be in a relationship, had no sense of the heartbreak or devastation that my boss was going through. So the reaction I had was really to be there for her, to just, you know, the way I could make her life easier was by doing my job really well. And so I write, you know, actually in the book is that I would watch these things on TV about what was happening in the investigation. And it felt like a parallel reality. That's not what I saw in.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“With my girlfriends here, and they're so frustrated at what they perceive as their partner's lack of support in certain domestic responsibilities. In that sense, on the one hand, I have this perfect husband who's making sure whenever I come back from a trip that the laundry's done and there's hot food on the table and that our child's, you know, all of his needs are taken care of. And he's smart and interesting. And on the other, this destructive behavior was, as I think the world knows, just got worse. I didn't understand it the first time the story broke. I was not even 12 weeks pregnant. I was carrying his child. And I was in shock. And I did not understand the behavior. As somebody who grew up her entire life maintaining control over herself, having control in the workspace, I didn't understand somebody who could not control their behavior. It didn't make sense to me.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“You know, I've actually said this before that I do think a lot of people, certainly in this country, view my relationship with Anthony from a 2021 perspective, like, aha, you know, we always knew. And, you know, just taking people back, you know, Anthony was my first love. He was the first man I was ever with. He was my first Valentine State. It was a very unexpected, you know, we became friends first before anything else. And he was a charismatic, dynamic, you know, public servant. He was a member of Congress. And I really, you know, fell in love in the most unexpected way. And it was a bit of a struggle. We had faith backgrounds and cultural backgrounds, but also I was so private and invisible. And I liked it. You know, part of being a white, you know, a political staffer is to be in the background and is to remain invisible. And I preferred being in that place. And I thought I was with the perfect man. I mean, even now I have conversations.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Appetizer. I say that whole experience 2012 as an appetizer, and boy, in 2016 in this country did my faith become, we are the other, it became the other, right? So to motivate the other side, all these extreme extremists on the other side, the Muslims, they're the other, we are the other. And it's all the more reason why I feel it's important to stand up and, you know, speak up for our values and teach people. Razia, when I most of my American friends who are not Muslims who've read this book are shocked at what I write, if you believe in Jesus, you believe in Moses, like all these connections are surprising to some people.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“if dark. I was not the only Muslim American in government named in those letters. There were other very accomplished, very successful upstanding Muslim Americans who were also in that letter. I just happened to be the most, I think, high profile. But it wasn't even about me. They were both standing up for were the values and the principles upon which this country was founded. It was not okay.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“It was singularly that moment in 2012 when I heard about this letter that five Republican Congress people, led by a woman, Michelle Bachman, who was in Congress at the time, was such a shock to the system. It may have been the hardest thing I had to endure. And I've certainly had hardships in my life. And in part because if anyone who understands that part of the world, I mean, your name and reputation is so important and to have it sullied in this way, to have it questioned, to raise this dark cloud. And, you know, my father not even being alive to defend himself, it was singularly one of the most earth-shattering experiences I have. Because at that point, you know, this was 2012. I've been in politics a really long time. I'd seen the ugly barbs, but I'd also seen, you know, at the time, so at the time John McCain goes to the Senate floor and defends me. President Obama does the same at a White House.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“In Europe, it was going to be hard unless we were all seated at the table treating each other as equals, a lack of understanding leads to a lot of things and look where it's led us today. So yes, were there moments where it was hard for me? Absolutely.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Automatically made a neighbor think that there was a burglar coming to our house. So it was this constant both and constantly knowing I'm serving a country that is trying to do the right thing, but at the same time knowing that we have caused plenty of problems. And certainly in the part of the world that is very near and dear to my heart, and that is the Muslim world, it's the foundation my father ran, it was all about what motivated his thoughts, his beliefs, was how do we all convene together? How are we going to live in this world, particularly Muslims? I mean, it was all, it was about, it is about exploring the condition of Muslim minorities around the world. And he was prescient about things like Bosnia. What was it going to be like for the Uyghurs in China and the Rohingyas in Myanmar? And what was it going to be like for young Muslim men in the UK, in France?”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Know for me because of the way I was raised, and I even share this in the book, that even my parents, when my father got on that ship, my mother got on that airplane, they knew this was not the perfect country. That despite its imperfections, I mean, they lived through the civil rights movement. They were there for the women's movement. They were here in this country. They saw it convulsing. But I think for the notion that the principles and values, the basis upon which this country was founded, getting on that ship, my dad knew that he could practice whatever faith he wanted to do. And it would be okay. But they knew it wasn't perfect. They tell the story in the book of us living in Kalamazoo, Michigan, and my parents recounted as this perfect place. And then I share the story of the police showing up at our front door because a brown man was painting the shutters in 1975, a brown man painting the shutters.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Did see how my faith was now being turned into this convenient boogeyman as a result of these horrific acts of terrorism undertaken by a small but very determined group of individuals casting a shadow over my entire faith? It is one of the, maybe, Razia, I actually haven't had this conversation with anybody. Maybe it is one of the reasons why I am constantly so proudly an American Muslim government representative. This is who we are. It is not the, my entire book, what I try to do, whether it's Hillary or President Obama or even my parents, I'm not telling stories. I'm just showing what it was like, what it was like taking people into those rooms, traveling to Iraq and meeting Iraqi women, traveling to Macedonia and meeting these Kosovar Muslim women. And what it meant, what it meant to me and what it was like.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“It's one of the reasons I chose to write in the book These Moments of Starting in 1993 with the First World Trade Center bombing, my family's experience watching it on TV, living afar. Then when I joined the White House and the bombings in Africa, the USS Cole, and then obviously 9-11, as you said, sort of culminating, I watched on the inside for most of this being in government as the Muslim. You know, when I walked into the White House in 1996, there were not a lot of people who looked like me and there were not a lot of people who practiced my faith. And what I found was an extreme curiosity about who I was, what I believed in, wanting to know more, sending me into spaces and places and countries around the world where I, you know, they believed I brought value. But I did see the dark side.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Confidence about being who I was. My dad always said, you know, people are like plants and a plant is only as good as its roots if you nourish the soil, nourish the roots, it doesn't matter, rainstorm. The plant is going to be okay. And they really inculcated that into us in our growing years and as a result. I've carried the whole both and I appreciate somebody asking me about that. That is, it is you can be a Muslim, a practicing Muslim and also an American patriot. You can be an Indian and a Pakistani. You know, you can be both so many things. It is not either or. And I think, at least in this country, we are living in an increasingly either or world. And I am in the both and space and I will remain there.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Michigan, when I was two, my father was told he had five to ten years to live. He was diagnosed with renal failure, was told to get his affairs in order. And it's one of the first lines I write in the book. My father was told he was dying. And so he went out and lived. And we two months later moved for a one-year sabbatical to Saudi Arabia for my parents to teach at the local university. And the way I was raised ever, like from my earliest memories, was to be curious about the world, traveling to other countries, learning about other cultures, languages, religions, how my father, we are Muslim family. My parents are both practicing Muslims, but they never forced anything on us. It was more kind of showing us by example. And in the end, it was our own choice. And their faith was very close to them. So I feel like as I landed in the United States as an adult as a 17-year-old, I was a teenager.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Was and I give, it was and it is, and I give full credit to my parents as I write in the book. My father would tell me that our eyes are in the front of our head for a reason is to look forward, not look in the back. But he did want us to learn from history just so that we didn't, you know, it informed decisions we made in the future and the present and the future. And I carry this weight, and maybe this is sort of a very American immigrant mindset or failure, maybe any immigrant experience my parent, my father came from India, my mother from Pakistan. They came to the United States as Fulbright scholars. They met at the University of Pennsylvania for them, education was a religion. My mother, you know, her mother fought to go to school and I constantly am reminded of the sacrifices and the commitment they made to give us the life that they had. And when I was two, I was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan. That's a long story, but they did end up in, they were both academics. And we ended up in Kalazu.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“As though I was somebody who is somewhat known in the public space for the last two decades, and other people were writing my story, other people were saying what I was thinking. And as a result, they were writing my history. And I wanted to reclaim that. And I was really happy to reclaim it. I've had such a sort of liberating experience being out in the world talking about my book these last few weeks and I've really enjoyed it.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“Yeah, well, first, I have to say that writing the book, and this was a surprise to me, I had not anticipated this, but writing the book was actually tremendous therapy for me. I write about the early part of my life, in part because my parents were very big influences. And I think my father always believed I would be a writer. I loved writing. I grew up surrounded by stories. It's how I opened the book. And my father always told me the greatest power I held was the power of my pen if I used it wisely. And so to some extent, it is doing what I believed he always thought I would do. But because you asked the why, and I've, you know, I certainly have thought about this, the timing and, you know, I could have written a book in 2015, 2016, you know, 2017 certainly, I think it would have been an angrier, more bitter book given what everyone had read about my personal life. In the news, but the main reason was just recapturing my own story. I felt”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT
“I am so thrilled to be speaking with you today. As I mentioned to you before we got on, I listened to you every day. I listened to you. You're my beacon for news in the world. And so I'm so excited when they told me I'd be in conversation with you. I'm really looking forward to it. And thank you all. Thank you, Connor. And thank you for everybody watching and listening.”
2021-11-26 · Intelligence Squared · Huma Abedin on Hillary Clinton, Anthony Weiner and a Life in Politics · IDENTIFIED FROM THE TRANSCRIPT