The Indian Express (Delhi Edition)
Top Clinton aide leaves husband over new sexting scandal
HUMA ABEDIN, the wife of the former Representative Anthony D. Weiner, announced on Monday that the couple were separating in the wake of a report that Weiner had been involved in another sexting scandal.
Weiner, who resigned in 2011 after it was revealed he had been sending lewd messages and photos to random women online, apparently deleted his Twitter account on Monday after The New York Post reported that he had exchanged sexual messages with an unidentified woman last year.
The initial scandal destroyed his political career and strained his marriage to Abedin, a top aide to Hillary Clinton.
On Monday, Abedin said in a statement: “After long and painful consideration and work on my marriage, I have made the decision to separate from my husband. Anthony and I remain devoted to doing what is best for our son, who is the light of our life. During this difficult time, I ask for respect for our privacy.”
The separation quickly became political fodder for Donald J. Trump, Clinton’s Republican opponent. “Huma is making a very wise decision. I know Anthony Weiner well, and she will be far better off without him,” Trump said in a statement.
“I only worry for the country in that Hillary Clinton was careless and negligent in allowing Weiner to have such close proximity to highly classified information,” he continued. “Who knows what he learned and who he told? It’s just another example of Hillary Clinton’s bad judgment. It is possible that our country and its security have been greatly compromised by this.”
Abedin has been by Clinton’s side for two decades, first as an intern in the first lady’s office in the 1990s and then as a top aide as Clinton began her own political career as a United States senator from New York. Abedin is one of only a handful of advisers who have served on both of Clinton’s presidential campaigns — a mark of loyalty and trust.
Clinton strongly supported Abedin when Weiner’s sexually charged text messages first came to light in 2011, a year into their marriage, and again in 2013 when Weiner was running for mayor of New York.
Friends of Clinton said that she spoke to Abedin at length about the marriage and her best interests during that time and supported Abedin’s decision to remain with Weiner and work on their marriage.
After The Post published its article on Sunday night revealing Weiner’s latest messages, several allies of Clinton said they contacted campaign advisers to express their frustration and anger with Weiner and to ask if the campaign or Abedin would be responding to the article or taking any action. Two of these allies said they were told that some kind of statement would be coming and urged them to respect Abedin’s privacy.weiner did not immediately reply to an email seeking comment. NYT