Hillary Clinton’s hugely anticipated book about her dizzying defeat to Donald Trump launched yesterday. What Happened is a reflection on the things that went wrong on her campaign trail and tries to figure out how Trump ended up in the Oval Office instead of her. While much of the book compares Trumps' 'war on truth' to George Orwell's 1984, it's also stuffed with touching musings on the inner workings of her campaign.
Here are seven quotes that left us heartbroken that Clinton lost.
WATCH: Clinton Against Trump In Numbers
1. On Trump
Unsurprisingly, Clinton has a lot to say about Trump in What Happened, talking about everything about the alleged Russian involvement in the campaign to how much time he spent on Twitter. But one of the more visceral quotes is about the night of the second presidential debate, which happened days after the pussy grabbing scandal came out.
‘Donald Trump was looming behind me. Two days before, the world heard him brag about groping women. Now we were on a small stage, and no matter where I walked, he followed me closely, staring at me, making faces. It was incredibly uncomfortable. He was literally breathing down my neck. My skin crawled.’
2. On Obama encouraging her to run for office
Clinton said in the book that President Obama’s support for her running for the top White House job meant a great deal to her.
‘He made it clear that he believed that I was our party’s best chance to hold the White House and keep our progress going, and he wanted me to move quickly to prepare to run. I knew President Obama thought the world of his Vice President, Joe Biden, and was close to some other potential candidates, so his vote of confidence meant a great deal to me.’
3. On sticking by Huma Abedin
In October, weeks before the election, the then-FBI Director James Comey announced that he was reopening the investigation into Clinton’s emails that had plagued her trail. The new evidence came from emails the FBI had found on Anthony Weiner’s laptop, the disgraced New York Congressman and estranged husband of Clinton’s righthand woman, Huma Abedin.
Comey’s announcement so close to the election was a mayor blow to Clinton’s campaign and speculation was rife that she would pin the disaster on Abedin. In What Happened Clinton wrote that was never going to happen.
‘Some people thought I should fire Huma or "distance myself." Not a chance. She had done nothing wrong and was an invaluable member of my team. I stuck by her the same way she has always stuck by me.’
4. And on the matter of those emails…
Clinton’s use of her private email server was one of the many factor widely thought to have ended her chances in the Oval Office. She had this to say about them:
‘In the end, what was meant to be convenient turned out to be anything but. If I had known all that at the time, there’s no question I would have chosen a different system. Just about anything would have been better. Carving messages in stone and lugging them around town would have been better.’
5. On conceding and getting burgers with Bush
One of the first people to call Clinton after her concession speech was none other than former President George W Bush.
‘George actually called just minutes after I finished my concession speech, and graciously waited on the line while I hugged my team and supporters one last time. When we talked, he suggested we find time to get burgers together. I think that’s Texan for “I feel your pain.”'
6. On watching a lot of TV after the election
In the weeks after the election, like any gracefully defeated candidate, Clinton watched a shitload of telly.
‘Back at home, I caught up on TV shows Bill had been saving. We raced through old episodes of The Good Wife, Madam Secretary, Blue Bloods, and NCIS: Los Angeles, which Bill insists is the best of the franchise. I also finally saw the last season of Downton Abbey.’
7. On deciding to go to Trump’s inauguration
Whether she would attend Trump’s inauguration was something Clinton agonised over. In the end, she sought advice from her pal George Bush again who told her to go for the good of the country.
'That gave me the push I needed. Bill and I would go.'
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.