First lady is ready to take on challenges of the millennium

Trude B. Feldman

Saturday, Feb. 26, 2000 | 9:44 a.m.

First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton says the advent of a new millennium evokes a universal longing for worldwide rejection of man's inhumanity to man and a revival of ethical, spiritual and moral values.

"At the outset of the 21st century, my vision for America is political action for human betterment," Mrs. Clinton told me in an exclusive interview -- her first in the new century. "I want to make a difference in the enhancement of opportunity for peoples all over the world.

"The decisions made in this century will perhaps determine what kind of a country we will be. We need to challenge every inequality and answer every indignity; and we need to intensify our stand for equal justice, human dignity and mutual respect."

As one of the most famous women in the world today, Mrs. Clinton is not ready to relax, but instead she has become the first sitting first lady to run for the U.S. Senate. Here she gives her reasons for running and clarifies some of the misconceptions about herself:

TBF. Mrs. Clinton, why do you really want to be a senator from New York and how did the evolution begin?

HRC. At first, I was honored when some New Yorkers asked me to consider the possibility of running for the seat of (Democratic) Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan. The more they talked, the more I listened and became convinced. Then I traveled around the state. When I was asked to help on various issues, it just seemed to be the right way for me to make a contribution in public service. It was an accumulation of people discussing the idea and my believing I could really help on the issues that I had worked on for many years.

Q. Why did you choose New York over Illinois, your native state, or Arkansas?

A. I've always wanted to live in New York, and the president and I planned to move there after our time in the White House. I just sped it up by one year.

Q. But, logistically, how do you envision your marriage working?

A. Well, we are now one of the many commuter couples in America, and I am very confident it will be a new and exciting experience for me and my husband.

Q. But isn't moving to New York now helping to fuel rumors that you are distancing yourself from the president?

A. No, that's a myth about our relationship. We still love and care about one another and expect to spend the rest of our lives together. Those who speculate or talk about our personal lives do not know the truth.

Q. How would you end speculation that you want to use a Senate seat to run for the presidency?

A. By telling you that I am committed to the Senate because I believe in its importance. ... I want to be the best senator I can be. I have seen what a difference one vote can make. You know, much of our prosperity is due to the combination of the private sector's energy and dynamism and new technology. But there is also the role the president's policies have played, and the 1993 economic plan passed by only one vote in the Senate. So I am a strong believer that the Senate makes a difference, and those who vote in that chamber affect our lives.

We also made a difference to families who were worried about their children playing in the street by passing a tough crime bill with more police on the streets and more positive activities for children. And it made a difference that brave Democrats like Marjorie Margolies-Mezvinsky (former representative from Pennsylvania) had put their political lives on the line to pass the president's Deficit Reduction Act. It passed by only one vote in the House -- Marjorie's vote -- and by only one vote in the Senate -- Vice President (Al) Gore's vote. So it is important that New Yorkers be represented by members of Congress who understand today's issues.

Q. Both you and Mayor (Rudolph W.) Giuliani are smart, tenacious and tough. But he is a seasoned New Yorker. How will you stand up to him?

A. I will stand up for the issues that concern the people, particularly the children. The election should not be about the mayor or about me but about what is important to the people. I will try to make sure they have the leadership that helps bring jobs, improves public education, provides health care, protects the environment and keeps guns out of children's hands. I will fight for sensible gun legislation, like the Brady Bill, which has already saved countless lives. (The bill is named for former presidential press secretary James S. Brady.)

Q. Will you be a leader in the Senate, and what is your definition of leadership?

A. I believe the best kind of leader is a leader-servant, someone who serves the people, but who also expresses ideas and views about what is in the best interest of the people who are represented. I would like to be a servant-leader in the sense that I would do my best on behalf of the needs of the people. But I would also try to point out some of the problems I think have to be addressed and try to lead in that direction.

Q. How will the president help you?

A. He is already helping me. He gives me lots of good advice. Remember, he was successful in New York in his two elections for the presidency and is still popular there. Also, he has been a good president for New York. So his involvement is important.

Q. What impact will the president's personal indiscretions and his impeachment have on your Senate campaign or the general elections? Will that experience make a difference in voters' minds?

A. Well, the president and I both believe in moving on. And I think New Yorkers are sophisticated and will care more about what I will do for them to improve their lives. If our family and I have forgiven my husband for his personal behavior, I think most Americans will do likewise. So, hopefully, the voters will judge my candidacy on the issues and not on my husband's personal mistakes or the aftermath.

Q. Seventeen months ago, during an interview for Yom Kippur (the Jewish Day of Atonement), the president told me he believes in the reality of atonement, forgiveness and the healing process. Can you say a word about how that process is progressing?

A. The president has engaged in a very genuine process of self-examination and has made quite a heartfelt effort. He has also received lots of support and good advice from clergy and friends. He strongly believes in atonement and in forgiveness as well as in responsibility and in healing. That belief has helped both of us work through the challenges that the last few years presented us with.

He learned from that experience, and I think anyone who suffers has more empathy and compassion for others and their dilemmas. We are committed to the healing process and continue to work on that as a family. So it is an ongoing part of how we live our personal lives.

Q. The president also told me your devotion and love have been a constant inspiration to him, especially during his painful days. How has that source of strength manifested itself?

A. Well, I am very grateful that I have a deep faith that sustains me through difficult and painful times. My husband and I love each other very much, and we are both close to our daughter, whose unique strength touches both of us. I'm very blessed with love and support from family and friends. So it's not just my support that helps my husband; it is his love and care that nurture me as well. It is mutual. We lean on each other to get through the vicissitudes of life.

Q. When his presidency ends next January, how do you want your husband to be remembered?

A. He has really set a hallmark for a different kind of leadership here and around the world, and already has a remarkable record of accomplishments. The country is in better shape today than it was when he became president seven years ago. He has put into action his plans to extend opportunity and responsibility in very definite ways into people's lives. The country is economically so much better off. He has worked on behalf of racial reconciliation and inequality and against bigotry and prejudice of any kind.

Q. If you had your seven years in the White House to live over, what would you do differently?

A. I would certainly have a different approach to the health care reform effort (in 1993), because I would have liked that to be judged on its merits. Also, I would have been more aware of the political process that surrounded it and tried not to make the mistakes I made. Now one of my most difficult challenges will be to pass a new health care plan.

Q. In hindsight, do you regret you proposed your health care reform before proposing welfare reform when Sen. Moynihan recommended that to the president?

A. Well, there were reasons why the president wanted to go with health care first. So we got welfare reform done and not health care. That is a piece of unfinished business.

Q. What were the president's reasons?

A. He believed that the deficit had to be dealt with first and that the expense of health care, which was going up so dramatically, was a major problem with obtaining fiscal responsibility and erasing the budget deficit. This is why he wanted to treat health care at the same time as he treated his economic plan.

Q. In retrospect, do you regret the president's decision?

A. It's difficult to turn back the clock. But I think Sen. Moynihan was certainly aware of how difficult health care reform would be, and his advice to first pursue welfare reform was very sound advice.

We now are at a point seven years later where we have seen welfare reform enacted, but we don't yet have comprehensive health care reform.

So yes, that's regretful, because it would have been great if we could have done not only deficit reduction but also welfare and health care reform while the Democrats were in control of Congress in 1993 and '94 ... and we might not have lost the Congress if that had been done right.

Q. How would you now conceptualize a new health plan?

A. I don't have preconceptions about the best way to address it, so I plan to consult with health experts who have new and good ideas.

Q. There are millions of people without health insurance in the U.S. who cannot afford quality medical care. How would you expand the number of people covered by health insurance?

A. The president has proposed that people be able to buy into either Medicare or the federal health employees benefit package between the ages of 55 and 65. That is a proposal we should consider and work on. As for Medicare, those benefits for people over 65 should be expanded to include prescription drugs.

Q. What about people under age 55? And do you favor a Patients' Bill of Rights as suggested by the American Medical Association?

A. There will be a proposal to provide insurance for working parents whose children will be insured under the Children's Health Insurance Program that I worked to help pass. But our principal challenge is how we create a system that enables every American to be insured. I favor providing support for Americans under 55 to be able to buy into Medicare ... or Medicaid or private insurance.

The president may extend health care coverage to different groups of Americans, particularly the working poor families and their children. And, yes, everyone should be protected by a strong Patients' Bill of Rights.

Q. What would you do to make sure Medicare is protected?

A. I would use the surplus that has been resulting because of our strong economy and our responsible fiscal policies to extend the life of Medicare and to provide for a prescription drug benefit program.

Q. It appears that the current priority is to focus on men's health. How would you focus more on health care for women?

A. We have dramatically increased our attention and funding for women's health care and even have a special office for that. We increased the amount of money for the study of women's health and provided clinical trials for drugs and treatments that primarily affect women. We also increased the amount of money for research for diseases including osteoporosis, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer and others. We expanded efforts to find a cure and prevent breast cancer, and added Medicare benefits for mammograms.

I'm convinced that preventive measures like mammograms can reduce the morbidity and mortality of breast cancer. I would particularly cite the initiatives of Dr. John Williams, vice president of the George Washington University Medical Center (in Washington, D.C.) Under his direction, the mobile Mammography Unit travels around Washington to enable poor or busy women to access mammograms for free or at reduced rates.

Q. What about dental care for children of the poor?

A. I hope that will be included in the new plan ... because I think we're not providing adequate dental care -- not only for poor children, but for others whose insurance policies don't cover dental care.

Q. Let's turn to the woman behind the candidate. What makes you tick? Describe yourself to a stranger.

A. I'm someone who tries very hard to live by the tenets of my religious faith and by the advice of philosophers that an unexamined life is not worth living, but that our highest obligations are to our faith, our family and friends and to our community. I am constantly asking myself what more I can do to help someone else, and how I can live the best life I am capable of living. Therefore, I sometimes do what is conventionally accepted and perceived by others as typical. And I sometimes do things that are surprising to others but which seem right to me. But I can only live my life according to my own values.

Q. What makes you happy?

A. I find the greatest joy in my family and friends. Certainly, I have been very lucky and am well aware of how fortunate I've been. The things that make me happy are simple things, whether it is laughing with a friend or taking a walk on a beautiful day.

Q. What do you do for relaxation?

A. I try to do anything that helps me to decompress. I love to read, to spend quiet time with my family on weekends, holidays and vacations. I play word games and card games like pinochle, hearts and spades. I like to exercise and to catch up on my sleep.

Q. Who are those who have influenced you and how?

A. As I grew up, my dad taught me that I could achieve anything I set my mind on if I worked hard at it. My mother has instilled in me the drive I still have to care about and help others. My husband has influenced me with his love of life, his caring and his kindness toward all people. And Chelsea -- from her vantage point as a college student -- influences me when she shares her views, thoughts and those of her friends.

Q. How do you cope with the various problems in and out of the White House?

A. I try to keep my focus on what I think is important, and rely on my faith through prayer and reading. That helps me clear my mind. I also try to be surrounded by loving, caring and positive people, and ... and I take vitamins.

Q. What are your most important accomplishments in the past seven years?

A. I am very grateful that I've been able to work on lots of important legislation that has changed people's lives, whether it was the economic plan that I helped advocate or the anti-crime provisions or the adoption and foster care laws or the efforts to try to extend economic opportunity to working Americans.

I'm satisfied with the work I've done to make the White House the best I could in terms of history as well as making it more of a showcase for American art, music, cuisine and decor. I am also pleased that I could defend the arts and speak up for the arts at a time when they were threatened. I am glad I could take our message of democracy and freedom around the world to people in so many different countries.

Q. During this election year, how can the so-called "politics of personal destruction" be lessened or prevented?

A. I think that is part of the media culture in which we now live ... that the sensational, the scandalous and the personally destructive are filling our airwaves and print media, and now the Internet outlets. It will take self-discipline and willingness on the part of those who determine what is in our media to back away from that, and I hope political leaders will help to lead the way.

Q. How can we try to combat evil, hatred and intolerance so evident in our society today?

A. We have to change people's hearts. The prejudice and bigotry that infect the human heart are not in our genetic code. They are planted in the hearts of children by the adults around them. We need to stand against the perpetuation of such evil.

And, whenever possible, the U.S. must speak out strongly and act against the kind of hatred and evil we see in Kosovo, Northern Ireland, Africa and other places.

Q. But don't we have evil and hatred and prejudice right here in America?

A. We surely do, and we have to root it out wherever we see it. That is why I want to be a catalyst ... to begin such a task in the Senate. I would also try to demonstrate, by example, how that scourge can begin to be eradicated, and I would start with traditional ethics.

Each individual should look into his or her heart and make sure there is no unjustified hatred, bitterness or anger toward any person or group.

Q. Finally, if you lose your race for the Senate, what are your plans?

A. I will always be concerned and will work for my causes. I hope to do this in the Senate. But, if not, no matter where I am, I will work on behalf of improving the lives of families here and around the world.

If America is to remain the indispensable nation and the leader of this complex world, we have to reach out, take risks for peace, be willing to stand behind those who advocate human rights and tolerance and to put a human face on the problems now confronting us.

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