Video News Clips: In Their Own Words

Michelle Obama Suggests Hillary Clinton Only Lost To Her Husband Because She’s Woman

Screenshot/YouTube/Call Her Daddy and Michelle Obama

Former first lady Michelle Obama suggested on “Call Her Daddy” Wednesday that Hillary Clinton lost to her husband Barack Obama in the 2008 Democratic presidential primaries because of her gender.

The former first lady said America was not “ready” for a female president on “IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson” on Nov. 14. She indicated on “Call Her Daddy” that Democratic primary voters preferred her husband over the more experienced Clinton because he was a man.

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“There are men out there that were not going to vote for a woman. People have had those conversations. Let’s just be real about it. And let’s put that on the table and talk about, well, what’s that about? Let’s not be mad because I made the statement,” the former first lady said. “Let’s look at the fact that we’ve had two really qualified female candidates. One who was first lady, secretary of state, well educated … my husband beat her. People were more comfortable with him as a newcomer.”

“And now we just had the former vice president [Kamala Harris]. We’ve had qualified women, and if they’re not perfect and they don’t cross every T and dot every I, there’s a falling shortness that is happening … why can’t we talk about that?” she asked. “Why are we pretending that that didn’t just happen?”

Clinton and Obama were locked in a tight race during the 2008 Democratic primaries.

SiriusXM host Stephen A. Smith disputed Democratic South Carolina Rep. James Clyburn’s claim that gender likely played a role in Harris’ 2024 election loss during a December episode of “Straight Shooter with Stephen A.” He noted that Clinton secured the popular vote by a significant margin against President Donald Trump in 2016.

Smith also expressed disagreement with the former first lady’s statement about America not being prepared for a woman to be president.

“I think we’re very ready as a country to elect a woman, because I think women, by and large, are smarter, more composed, more disciplined than the men have proven to be,” Smith said.