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    George Clooney talks politics and opens up about what Hillary Clinton did wrong

    ‘It was frustrating because I never saw her elevate her game’

    Jenny Proudfoot's avatar
    By Jenny Proudfoot
    Published 25 September 2017 In News

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    (Image credit: Rex)
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    ‘It was frustrating because I never saw her elevate her game’

    Almost a year on from the shock 2016 US presidential election that saw Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton to become America’s 45th president, Hillary has released her memoir: What Happened.

    In the memoir, the 69-year-old opens up about life on the campaign trail, detailing what she believes cost her the election.

    ‘There was anger. And there was resentment. I knew that,’ she explained in an interview with Jane Pauley on CBS Sunday Morning. ‘But I believed that it was my responsibility to try to offer answers to it, not to fan it.’

    She continued: ‘I think that it was a mistake because a lot of people didn’t wanna hear my plans. They wanted me to share their anger. And I should’ve done a better job of demonstrating that I get it.’

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    Hillary Clinton concession speech

    Rex
    (Image credit: Rex Features (Shutterstock))

    Since Hillary has spoken out about where she thinks she went wrong, several high profile Democrats have followed suit, offering their thoughts on what went wrong on the campaign.

    The latest A-lister to voice his views is Academy Award winner George Clooney, who was a vocal Hillary supporter during the campaign, holding back-to-back Hillary Clinton fundraisers with his wife Amal last year.

    Marie Claire Newsletter

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    This week however, in an interview with the Daily Beast, George opened up about where she went wrong and what frustrated him about her campaign.

    ‘Hillary, for years and years and years, has been the presumptive nominee, and quite honestly, she was incredibly qualified for the job,’ the 56-year-old actor and new dad explained. ’But being qualified for the job does not necessarily mean you’re the right person to be president.’

    ‘She was more qualified than even her husband was when he was elected president, but she’s not as good at communicating things,’ he went on to explain. ‘That’s simply true. When she got up and gave a speech, it didn’t soar.’

    He continued: ‘It was frustrating because I never saw her elevate her game. I never saw it. And I had a lot of liberal friends who were like, “She's not good at this” And I see that, and I understand it. I also think, though, that if it was a guy it wouldn't have been so polarising. I think the fact that she's a woman made it a much harder uphill battle.’

    He added: ’I think that she wasn't particularly good at articulating the things that she wanted to do, and unfortunately we live at a time right now where articulating what you want to do is more potent in the electorate than the other way around, obviously, when Trump only said he was going to “Make America Great Again.”’

    Jenny Proudfoot
    Jenny Proudfoot
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    Contributing Features Editor

    Jenny Proudfoot is an award-winning journalist, specialising in lifestyle, culture, entertainment, international development and politics. After working at Marie Claire UK for seven years - rising from intern to Features Editor - she is now a freelance contributor to the News and Features section.

    In 2021, Jenny was named as a winner on the PPA's '30 under 30' list, and was also listed as a rising star in journalism.

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