The Clinton campaign’s bad damage control just made the health story even worse
Hillary Clinton attended a memorial ceremony marking the 15th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks in New York but left early. Her campaign said she felt overheated. (Brian Snyder/Reuters)
Conservative media coverage of Hillary Clinton's health has been borderline hysterical. Okay, not even borderline — just plain hysterical. Amateur diagnoses of the Democratic presidential nominee on various news sites range from Parkinson's disease and cancer to radiation poisoning and aphasia. Mainstream outlets have generally dismissed such conjecture.
But after Clinton was forced to leave a Sept. 11 memorial service early Sunday — feeling overheated, according to her campaign — the journalistic scrutiny seems likely to intensify. And not only — or even primarily — because of the overheating.
The bigger issue is the secretive manner in which Clinton's campaign managed the incident. It is an approach that is sure to prove counterproductive than if reporters had been allowed to follow Clinton out of the ceremony or if aides had been faster to address her condition. A lack of information always makes journalists wonder whether something more serious is being kept hidden. It just does.
In the immediate aftermath of Clinton's exit, reporters tweeted their frustration at not knowing what was going on — and being prevented from finding out.
