Hillary Clinton Suggests That Her Husband’s Infidelity Was Caused by His Difficult Childhood

While infidelity is a deal-breaker for most marriages, the former first lady chose to stand by her husband after he had an extramarital affair with a white-house aide, the evidence against him notwithstanding. She cited his difficult childhood as the reason he cheated.

The 42nd president of the United States and his first lady met way back in the '70s while both were students at Yale Law School. Their first official meeting was at the university library.

Bill proposed to Hillary in 1973, but Hillary was not ready, so she turned down the proposal. However, soon after, she accepted, and the couple got married two years later, in 1975, in the living room of their new Arkansas home.

A MARRIAGE RIDDLED WITH INFIDELITIES

In his book "Bill and Hillary: The Marriage," veteran celebritologist Christopher Anderson looks deep into the close to 50-year-old marriage that he says has been riddled with infidelity, sexual assault accusations, and betrayal.

And the worst yet is the tattle about the many testimonials from women that Bill had, over the years, dallied and even assaulted, including one Juanita Hickey Broaddrick.

Anderson muses at how interesting it is that through it all, Bill's ever-loyal wife Hillary, despite being aware of her husband's philandering ways, has stood by him, never once faltering in her loyalty to the marriage that has stood the test of time.

He calls the marriage a heartbreaking story. Despite the couple carrying the "history's most remarkable" title for years, Bill has cheated on Clinton, who he nicknamed "The Warden," copiously and regularly.

THE BILL-LEWINSKY SAGA THAT SHOOK THE WORLD TO THE CORE

The year was 1995. Monica Lewinsky was 21-year-old and had just recently graduated. She was seeking an internship at the White House Washington office headed by the Chief of Staff, Leon Panetta.

Her family connections had landed her there, and she was determined to gain every experience possible during her time at the White House, but she was ill-prepared for the scandal that would follow.

In her first year there, she began a relationship with the then-president, a saga that dominated the news and print media for many years to follow.

Still, Hillary stands by her decisions and says that everyone should make decisions based on what they deem best for their friends and loved ones.

The story begins in 1994, when a former Arkansas employee Paula Jones sued Bill for sexual harassment, claiming that Bill had propositioned her when he was governor.

In 1998, the legal team working on the case received an anonymous tip that Bill was having an affair with a White House intern, Lewinsky. As soon as the news was out, Lewinsky was moved to the Pentagon to start a job there.

It was while there that she met Linda Tripp, who would soon become a confidant and a friend. Unbeknownst to Lewinsky, Tripp had been recording all their conversations and soon after released them to the press and exposed Bill.

FORMER FIRST LADY LEARNS OF THE AFFAIR

Caught in the glares of a threatening impeachment and a family that looked up to him, Bill, after denying the affair many times before, finally revealed the truth to his wife.

He says he told her exactly how, where, and when it happened, adding that he felt terrible about it. And after the news had been revealed to his wife, Hillary was devastated by the betrayal.

She asked Bill to tell their 18-year-old daughter about his transgressions, and he did exactly that. Chelsea, just like her mother, was crushed by the news.

And yet, despite the pain it caused her, Hillary was not ready to leave the marriage and chose to stand by her husband through thick and thin.

WHY DID HILLARY FORGIVE HER HUSBAND'S TRANSGRESSIONS?

For many married people, one case of infidelity is enough to break them apart. Still, Hillary sat through not one but several of her husband's cheating stances, all the time making excuses for her husband.

When she was asked why she chose to remain married to Bill, through the impeachment brought about by his denial of involvement with Lewinsky and after even more numerous affairs before that, Hillary said she did what she thought right for her family.

Hillary referred to her husband's misdoings as "a sin of weakness, not of malice." She explained that as a young boy, there had been an ongoing conflict between his mother and grandmother, and as such, it required Bill to choose a side.

This, she says, was a terrible situation to be in for a little four-year-old child and could have been the probable cause of the president's infidelities. According to Los Angeles Times, Hillary said in an interview with Talk Magazine:

“Yes, he has weaknesses. Yes, he needs to be more disciplined, but it is remarkable given his background that he turned out to be the kind of person he is, capable of such leadership.”

Hillary, speaking to ABC America, as reported by the Guardian, says that staying in the marriage was the gutsiest thing she has ever done.

She says she got herself through the drama that riddled all news media for years through long and intricate discussions, religious faith, friends, and soul-searching.

Her mantra states that they work things through. Her husband was ashamed and sorry for what he did to her, their family, and the country as a whole. His slip-ups, though, did not negate everything he had done as a husband, a father, and a president.

In her docuseries, Hillary points out that she decided to revisit her husband's extramarital affair in a bid to help others. Speaking on the Ellen Degeneres Show, Today reports her to have said:

"People need to be thoughtful about the decisions they make in their own lives, and we should be kinder and more supportive to everybody who makes the best decisions that they think they can make."

She says that many of her friends bashed her for choosing to stand by Bill and even refused to support her political inclinations. Still, Hillary stands by her decisions and says that everyone should make decisions based on what they deem best for their friends and loved ones.