Was this book necessary? Hillary Clinton’s anguished, angry memoir of her presidential campaign, “What Happened,” will be unveiled this week, complete with television appearances and a 15-city lecture tour.
Other Democrats have been dreading this moment for months.
“I love Hillary,” Al Franken, the senator from Minnesota, said a few weeks ago. “I think she has a right to analyze what happened. But we do have to move on.”
A backward-looking slog through the disappointments of last year’s campaign is not what most Democratic politicians want to dominate the news this fall.
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And that, judging from the many excerpts that have leaked, is exactly what Clinton’s book is: a long and dutiful post-mortem on how she lost to an unqualified blowhard who was even less popular than she was.
It would be one thing if Clinton’s book delivered new insights about what went wrong. But it doesn’t.
Clinton doesn’t spare herself from blame. She admits mistakes large and small. “It’s fair to say that I didn’t realize how quickly the ground was shifting under our feet,” she writes. She acknowledges that she never came up with a theme as compelling as Trump’s “Make America Great Again.”
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But she doesn’t spare anyone else from blame, either. Her list of the guilty begins with James Comey, Julian Assange and Vladimir Putin, all justifiably. Less justifiably, she also blames Bernie Sanders, and even — in smaller ways — Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
Her decision to relitigate her bitter primary battles with Sanders has especially distressed other Democrats because it rolls a grenade into their not-yet-successful efforts to reunify the party.
The independent senator’s attacks on her big-dollar fundraising made it easier for Trump to paint her as “Crooked Hillary,” Clinton complains. “I don’t know if that bothered Bernie or not.”
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Sanders — who, as luck would have it, is on a book tour of his own — fired back. “Secretary Clinton ran against the most unpopular candidate in the history of this country and she lost, and she was upset about it and I understand that,” he said last week. “But our job is not to go backward. … I think it’s a little bit silly to keep talking about 2016.”
This, of course, is a gift to Trump and his conservative allies. They’d like nothing better than to make Clinton the public face of the Democratic Party again — especially since her approval rating in the polls, at 30 percent, is even lower than the president’s. Fox News Channel is giving the book launch lavish coverage, including segments reexamining the controversy over her emails.
Clinton’s excuse: “I had to get this off my chest!” she writes at one point, an explanation that pretty much covers all 512 pages.
But most losing presidential candidates don’t write books about the experience. And the ones who do normally wait a decade or so before ripping the bandages off their wounds.
Mitt Romney didn’t do it after 2012. John McCain didn’t do it after 2008. (As he noted last week. “You’ve got to move on.”) To find a loser who did memorialize his defeat, you have to go back to Richard M. Nixon in 1960 — not a model you might have expected Clinton to emulate. There’s a reason for that. Airing grievances, even when they’re justified, rarely shows anyone’s most appealing side. For losing candidates, even in arguably stolen elections, the tradition has been stoic silence.
It would be one thing if Clinton’s book delivered new insights about what went wrong. But it doesn’t. Every one of her explanations has been hashed out already.
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Here’s the pity: She could have written a different book — a book that briskly summarized the lessons of her loss and suggested a path forward for the causes she loves. It wouldn’t have been a bestseller, but it might have been more useful. Needless to say, the relatively brief, forward-looking part of Clinton’s message has been swamped in media coverage by all the juicy score-settling.
Clinton appears to intend her book to be a vehicle for her reemergence onto the public stage. “There were plenty of people hoping that I, too, would just disappear,” she writes. “But here I am.”
She has set up a new fundraising organization to support progressive causes and serve as her platform. (It’s called “Onward Together,” a name even less inspiring than her campaign slogan, “Stronger Together.”)
But after all her reflection, she still hasn’t quite figured out what went wrong.
“What makes me such a lightning rod for fury?” she writes. “I’m really asking. I’m at a loss.”
With that question unanswered, she might have been better off stowing “What Happened” in a desk drawer. The lesson she’s learning is a harsh one: After a disastrous election, even the supporters of a defeated candidate may not be eager to have her around.
First lady Barbara Bush, left, walks with first lady-to-be Hillary Clinton at the White House on Nov. 19, 1992, in Washington.
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Then-first lady Hillary Clinton, accompanied by President Bill Clinton, reaches out to greet a visitor during the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, on Feb. 4, 1993.
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President Bill Clinton gives Hillary Clinton a proud hug after she made a shot during a round of golf at the Mink Meadows Golf Club in Vineyard Haven, Mass., on Martha’s Vineyard on Aug. 27, 1993.
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President Bill Clinton and first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton wait to address a group of young Democratic supporters known as the Saxophone Club in Washington on June 22, 1994.
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President Bill Clinton, first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and their daughter, Chelsea, sing a hymn during church services at the Bethel African Methodist Church in the Harlem section of New York on Sept. 25, 1994.
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Then-first lady Hillary Clinton appears with Oprah Winfrey on Winfrey’s television show on May 16, 1995. Clinton told the audience that parents in particular and society in general must get more involved in child-rearing.
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President and Mrs. Clinton escort Pulitzer Prize-winning author Studs Terkel of Chicago after presenting him with a 1997 National Humanities Medal during a ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House on Sept. 29, 1997.
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Then-first lady Hillary Clinton waves to a crowd of supporters before an address outside the Kate Mullany House in Troy, N.Y., on July 15, 1998.
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Then-first lady Hillary Clinton signs autographs for children during a visit to Lagan Meadows in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on Sept. 3, 1998, shortly before the arrival of President Bill Clinton from Moscow. They would later travel to Omagh to meet relatives of victims of the Northern Ireland bomb tragedy.
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Then-first lady Hillary Clinton chats with Chicago Cubs slugger Sammy Sosa during a visit to Carl Theodore Georg Regional Hospital in San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic, on Nov. 20, 1998. During the visit, Clinton announced that the U.S. would provide an additional $14.2 million in aid to the Dominican Republic in the aftermath of Hurricane Mitch.
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Then-first lady Hillary Clinton watches President Bill Clinton pause as he thanks those Democratic members of the House of Representatives who voted against his impeachment on Dec. 19, 1998.
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Sen.-elect and first lady Hillary Clinton, right, holds hands with daughter Chelsea as they wave to supporters after her election night victory speech in New York on Nov. 7, 2000. Clinton defeated Republican Rep. Rick Lazio to become the first presidential spouse elected to Congress. Former New York City Mayor Ed Koch looks on from the center rear.
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President Bill Clinton, left, escorts then-first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and former first lady Lady Bird Johnson, followed by former President Gerald R. Ford with former first lady Betty Ford, former President Jimmy Carter with former first lady Rosalynn Carter, and former President George Bush with former first lady Barbara Bush, as they make their entrance into the East Room during a dinner in honor of the 200th Anniversary of the White House in Washington on Nov. 9, 2000.
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Then-New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, center, leads New York Gov. George Pataki, left, and Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., on a tour of the site of the World Trade Center disaster on Sept. 12, 2001.
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Five former first ladies gather for a group photo at a gala 20th anniversary fundraising event saluting Betty Ford and the Betty Ford Center on Jan. 17, 2003, in Indian Wells, Calif. From left are Rosalynn Carter, Barbara Bush, Betty Ford, Nancy Reagan and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.
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Former President Bill Clinton bows his head to the audience as he and then-Sen. Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., participate in a ceremony for the unveiling of the Clinton portraits on June 14, 2004, in the East Room of the White House.
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Former first ladies Rosalynn Carter, from left, and Hillary Clinton, then-first lady Laura Bush and former first lady Barbara Bush walk from the William J. Clinton Presidential Center to the podium during the presidential library’s opening ceremonies in Little Rock, Ark., on Nov. 18, 2004.
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Then-Mayor Richard M. Daley sits next to Sen. Hillary Clinton at the Economic Club of Chicago’s 78th annual dinner meeting at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers on April 11, 2006.
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Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Sen. John McCain listen to President George W. Bush speak during the National Prayer Breakfast on Feb. 1, 2007, in Washington, D.C.
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Sens. Joe Biden, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton talk before a debate between Democratic contenders for the presidency in Orangeburg, S.C., on April 26, 2007.
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Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C., fourth from left, joins Democratic contenders for president before a debate in Orangeburg, S.C., on April 26, 2007. From left are Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.; Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn.; former Sen. John Edwards of South Carolina; Clyburn; Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio; Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del.; New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson; and Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y. Also debating but not pictured was Mike Gravel, former U.S. senator from Alaska.
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Then-Democratic presidential hopefuls Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., left, and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., gesture during a Democratic presidential debate in Myrtle Beach, S.C., on Jan. 21, 2008.
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Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., speaks on stage at a Super Tuesday primary night rally on Feb. 5, 2008, in New York City.
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This image provided by NBC shows then-Sen. Hillary Clinton on “Saturday Night Live” with Amy Poehler, left, who played Clinton on the show.
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Then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and aide Huma Abedin speak before Clinton chaired the Security Council Session on Women, Peace and Security during which the council voted on a resolution to address sexual violence in armed conflict on Sept. 30, 2009, at UN headquarters in New York City.
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President Barack Obama, flanked by then-White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, left, and then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, walks from the White House to the Blair House to participate in bilateral meetings April 11, 2010 in Washington, D.C.
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Former President Bill Clinton, right, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, second from left, pose with their daughter Chelsea during her marriage ceremony with Marc Mezvinsky on July 31, 2010, in Rhinebeck, New York.
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Then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, center, hosts the re-launch of direct negotiations between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, left, and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010, at the Department of State in Washington, D.C.
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Then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton makes a statement to the press on U.S. sanctions on Syrian oil at the State Department in Washington, D.C, on August 18, 2011.
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Then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton checks her BlackBerry from a desk inside a C-17 military plane upon her departure from Malta in the Mediterranean Sea bound for Tripoli, Libya, on Oct. 18, 2011.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, meets with then-U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on her arrival at the APEC summit in Vladivostok, Russia, on Sept. 8, 2012.
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Then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton meets with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jieche at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing on Sept. 4, 2012.
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Then-Secretary of State Rodham testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 23, 2013, before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing on the deadly September attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, that killed Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.
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Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Hillary Clinton wave goodbye after an event promoting Clinton’s book “Hard Choices” at the Harris Theater on June 11, 2014.
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Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton arrives to sign her book “Hards Choices” at the Bunch of Grapes bookstore on Martha’s Vineyard on August 13, 2014.
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Former U.S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gives the thumbs up to then-Gov. Pat Quinn as they leave the Barnes and Noble store following a quick visit at Jackson Blvd. in Chicago, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2014.
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Hillary Clinton arrives on Roosevelt Island in New York on June 13, 2015, to officially launch her campaign for the Democratic Party’s 2016 presidential nomination.
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Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton flexes her muscles with Miss Teen New Hampshire Allie Knault, center, and Miss New Hampshire Holly Blanchard, during a Fourth of July parade, Saturday, July 4, 2015, in Gorham, N.H.
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Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton leaves a pork chop stand during a visit to the Iowa State Fair on Aug. 15, 2015, in Des Moines.
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Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Hillary Clinton speak during a Democratic presidential debate in Las Vegas on Oct. 13, 2015.
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Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton fist bumps Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., after speaking at a rally at Northern Virginia Community College in Annandale, Thursday, July 14, 2016.
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President Barack Obama hugs Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton after addressing the delegates during the third day session of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, Wednesday, July 27, 2016.
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Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton waves after leaving an apartment building in New York on Sept. 11, 2016. Hillary Clinton’s doctors said she was recovering from pneumonia.
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Supporters of Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump listen to the first of three presidential debates, on Sept. 26, 2016 at the Trump headquarters in Urbandale, Iowa.
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Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks to supporters after the first presidential debate with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, in Westbury, N.Y., Monday, Sept. 26, 2016.
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Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton looks at national press secretary Brian Fallon’s smart phone while on her plane with aid Huma Abedin and traveling press secretary Nick Merrill at Westchester County Airport on Oct. 3, 2016, in White Plains, N.Y.
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Then-Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton makes a concession speech after being defeated by Republican President-elect Donald Trump, as former President Bill Clinton looks, on in New York on Nov. 9, 2016.
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Hillary Clinton kicks off her book tour of her memoire of the 2016 presidential campaign titled “What Happened” with a signing at the Barnes & Noble in Union Square on Sept. 12, 2017, in New York.
Doyle McManus is a former Washington columnist for the Los Angeles Times. During his long career at The Times, he has been a foreign correspondent in the Middle East, a White House correspondent and a presidential campaign reporter, and was the paper’s Washington bureau chief from 1996 to 2008. He was director of the journalism program at Georgetown University from 2018 to 2022. McManus, a native of San Francisco, has lived in Washington, D.C., since 1983 but still considers Hermosa Beach his spiritual home.
