Former Obama adviser David Axelrod needles Hillary Clinton for her 'unhealthy penchant for privacy'


The press has expressed frustration over Hillary Clinton's failure to make public the fact that she was suffering from pneumonia this weekend, and now the chief strategist for Barack Obama's presidential campaigns, David Axelrod, has piled onto the criticism:
Clinton was mysteriously rushed away from the 9/11 Memorial in New York City on Sunday after appearing unsteady on her feet in videos captured by witnesses. Her doctor later reported that she had been diagnosed with pneumonia Friday and was on antibiotics.
"It ... shows what happens when the Clinton campaign fails to treat those reporters as a true protective pool, which would travel in the same Secret Service protected-motorcade to every place the candidate goes," Washington Post reporter Anne Gearan, who chairs the Clinton campaign press pool, told CNNMoney. "The pool was left behind when she abruptly left the memorial, and was not kept apprised of what was happening in real time."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
While Donald Trump and his allies have repeatedly pushed conspiracy theories about Clinton's health, the Republican nominee has reportedly decided against using her illness as a talking point. Trump's campaign manager Kellyanne Conway even agreed with Axelrod about the "unnecessary" controversy, retweeting him with the comment, "Whoa. Well said."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
RFK Jr. visits Texas as 2nd child dies from measles
Speed Read An outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease continues to grow following a decade of no recorded US measles deaths
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Shingles vaccine cuts dementia risk, study finds
Speed Read Getting vaccinated appears to significantly reduce the chances of developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Measles outbreak spreads, as does RFK Jr.'s influence
Speed Read The outbreak centered in Texas has grown to at least three states and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is promoting unproven treatments
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
RFK Jr. offers alternative remedies as measles spreads
Speed Read Health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. makes unsupported claims about containing the spread as vaccine skepticism grows
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Texas outbreak brings 1st US measles death since 2015
Speed read The outbreak is concentrated in a 'close-knit, undervaccinated' Mennonite community in rural Gaines County
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Mystery illness spreading in Congo rapidly kills dozens
Speed Read The World Health Organization said 53 people have died in an outbreak that originated in a village where three children ate a bat carcass
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Ozempic can curb alcohol cravings, study finds
Speed read Weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy may also be helpful in limiting alcohol consumption
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New form of H5N1 bird flu found in US dairy cows
Speed Read This new form of bird flu is different from the version that spread through herds in the last year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published