Opinion: Chelsea in the limelight
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Chelsea Clinton may not actually speak to the press, but she’s finally getting some. She faced two fairly controversial questions from the non-press-pass-holding hoi polloi. The first was a college kid in Indiana who had to mention Monica. From Top of the Ticket:
...some guy asked Chelsea if her mother’s credibility had been injured by the infamous sexual relationship her father had with the White House intern. ‘Wow,’ said Chelsea, ‘you’re the first person actually that’s ever asked me that question in the, I don’t know, maybe 70 college campuses I’ve now been to.’’ Then, she fired: ‘And I do not think that is any of your business.’ The reply drew loud applause.
And today, Fox News is reporting that when asked whether her mother would make a better president than her father, Chelsea sided with Hillary:
“Well again, I don’t take anything for granted, but hopefully with Pennsylvania’s help she will be our next president, and yes, I do think she’ll be a better president,” Clinton said at a stop in Allentown, Pa.
The last time Chelsea made such a splash might have been for something she said in private, responding to her mother’s claim that young people have a bad work ethic (neglecting, apparently, the hard work her own daughter was doing). Hillary publicly apologized to Chelsea. The former first daughter was famously sensitive about the press as a teen at 1600 Pennsylvania and still is today, it seems. The Bush twins are regular, if unintentional, celebutantes by comparison.
In the increasingly unlikely event that she’s first daughter again, how would Chelsea behave? Would she work behind the scenes, or help First Dude Bill with domestic tasks? Or would she stick to her private life outside DC? The young Obama daughters would probably be kept behind the scenes. Probably only Meghan McCain could follow up the Bush twins for media presence and fashion sense.
*Photos of Chelsea Clinton and Meghan McCain courtesy AP.