Anthony Weiner may cost Huma Abedin her career
Clinton 2016 wants no Carlos Danger associations
When Huma Abedin agreed to take Anthony Weiner for better or for worse, she probably never anticipated how bad being Mrs. Carlos Danger could be. Or, that it could cost her a promising political career.
Unfortunately for Abedin, a new article is confirming what many have already suspected: Her husband's embarrassing sexting scandals and pathetic mayoral campaign may prematurely cut her connection to Hillary, just as rumors of a 2016 presidential run are building to a fever pitch. Joe Hagan's New York cover story on the former secretary of state reveals that "the biggest question among Hillary's circle concerns Huma Abedin." Though she is currently serving as chief of Clinton's "transition office," the second round of sexting revelations "blindsided the Clintons" and "summoned sordid images of unruly appetites and bimbo eruptions, exactly the sort of thing that needs to be walled off and excised in a 2016 campaign."
Weiner reminds people of all the things they didn't like about the Clintons, especially the now extra popular Slick Willie, and Hillary's circle believes she can't have anyone associated with such scandals on her staff.
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"Huma has a choice to make," a Clinton insider told New York magazine, "Does she go with Anthony, or does she go with Hillary?" An ultimatum if there ever were one.
Abedin is now in the highly unenviable position of deciding whether she'll let her husband's online antics ruin her career potential. "Turns out that even if a person subscribes to the unlimited plan, sexts can be pretty expensive," writes Erin Gloria Ryan at Jezebel.
Is this a fair position in which to place Abedin? Ryan argues that it's unreasonable that her husband's behavior could impact her profession. "Weiner's actions are still being talked about in the context of Abedin's competence and will continue to be. Because people are stupid." However, just because it's undeserved, doesn't mean it's not a reality that a Clinton 2016 campaign would have to prepare for. "Elected officials don't have the option of only catering to voters who are unstupid enough to refrain from blaming wives for husbands' actions," writes Ryan.
Abedin's link to Weiner could be extra perilous considering that, ironically, some critics accused her of sticking by his side because she believed he would be a political success. As Jennifer Seniors at New York wrote this summer following the second episode of sexts, "Huma did not, after all, fall in love with a housedad. She fell in love with a member of Congress. And today, Huma has been an enthusiastic participant in his revival."
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Of course, none of this information is probably new to the politically savvy Abedin. Suspicions that she was trying to distance herself from her embarrassing husband were more than validated when she stayed in the Hamptons on primary election day rather than appear with him. Perhaps, it is a sign that the decision will not be so hard for Abedin to ultimately make.
Emily Shire is chief researcher for The Week magazine. She has written about pop culture, religion, and women and gender issues at publications including Slate, The Forward, and Jewcy.
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