In a report for Monday’s NBC Today, news anchor Natalie Morales highlighted a new interview with Monica Lewinsky in the The Guardian and used the words of the former White House intern to scold Republican frontrunner Donald Trump for bringing up Bill Clinton’s past sex scandals during the 2016 campaign.
Morales declared: “Lewinsky says her reputation often comes back to haunt her. ‘My narrative gets pulled into things based on what other people are doing, even if I do nothing.’ Donald Trump thrusting Lewinsky into a conversation about the Clintons here on Today in December.”
A clip played of Trump being pressed on the issue during the December 29, 2015 exchange on Today:
DONALD TRUMP: You look at whether it's Monica Lewinsky or Paula Jones or many of them, and that certainly will be fair game.
SAVANNAH GUTHRIE: Are you saying an extramarital affair by Bill Clinton is fair game and something that you think should be in the campaign?
TRUMP: I'm not saying – what I'm saying is very simple, if she's going to play the woman card, it's all fair game.
Morales noted: “When asked if she's worried about Trump bringing her up, Lewinsky tells The Guardian, ‘I'm not going to answer that. How’s this? I'm affected by what happens on the world stage, but I don't let it deter me.’”
Following the report, co-host Matt Lauer urged candidates not to mention Lewinsky: “You wonder if any of the candidates – and I think we’re looking at person in particular – will take her personal situation into account, or hear those words before invoking her name.”
Morales replied: “You would hope....She's trying to move on and start a new path for herself, but it's been 20 years of this.”
Here is a full transcript of the April 18 segment:
8:08 AM ET
SAVANNAH GUTHRIE: And you’ve got another headline this about Monica Lewinsky.
NATALIE MORALES: That's right. She's back in the headlines. She’s speaking out in a new interview about the scandal that thrust her into the spotlight two decades ago, and her ongoing battle against bullying.
[ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Monica Lewinsky’s New Mission; Speaks Out on Stopping Bullying]
A candid Monica Lewinsky, unfiltered and opening up about her affair with former President Bill Clinton.
MONICA LEWINSKY: At the age of 22, I fell in love with my boss.
MORALES: And its aftermath. Now 42, she says, “the shame sticks to you like tar. I felt like every layer of my skin and my identity were ripped off of me in '98 and '99,” she tells The Guardian newspaper in a new interview. “It's a skinning of sorts. You feel incredibly raw and frightened.”
LEWINSKY: Life was almost unbearable.
MORALES: That fear driving Lewinsky to become an advocate against cyberbullying.
LEWINSKY: Overnight, I went from being a completely private figure to a publicly humiliated one worldwide.
MORALES: And now teaming up with Vodafone to create anti-bullying emojis and gifs for teens. Though she never attempted suicide, she admits in the interview, “I came very close. I think some young people don’t see suicide as an ending, but as a reset.” Lewinsky says her reputation often comes back to haunt her. “My narrative gets pulled into things based on what other people are doing, even if I do nothing.” Donald Trump thrusting Lewinsky into a conversation about the Clintons here on Today in December.
DONALD TRUMP [DEC. 29, 2015]: You look at whether it's Monica Lewinsky or Paula Jones or many of them, and that certainly will be fair game.
GUTHRIE Are you saying an extramarital affair by Bill Clinton is fair game and something that you think should be in the campaign?
TRUMP: I'm not saying – what I'm saying is very simple, if she's going to play the woman card, it's all fair game.
MORALES: When asked if she's worried about Trump bringing her up, Lewinsky tells The Guardian, “I'm not going to answer that. How’s this? I'm affected by what happens on the world stage, but I don't let it deter me.”
LEWINSKY: Cruelty to others is nothing new.
MORALES: Two years ago, Lewinsky defended the affair as between two consenting adults, writing, “Sure, my boss took advantage of me, but I will always remain firm on this point: it was a consensual relationship. Any ‘abuse’ came in the aftermath, when I was made a scapegoat in order to protect his powerful position.”
LEWINSKY: You can insist on a different ending to your story.
MORALES: Two decades later, Monica Lewinsky is slowly reclaiming her identity and says, “I'm incredibly grateful for the movement I have in my life right now.”
And Lewinsky says she came up with the emojis after talking with some teenagers who were struggling to express sympathy. She realized that the anti-bullying symbols are a fast way to try and help someone feeling alone and upset.
MATT LAUER: You wonder if any of the candidates – and I think we’re looking at person in particular – will take her personal situation into account, or hear those words before invoking her name.
MORALES: You would hope.
GUTHRIE: She’s trying to move on, but –
MORALES: She's trying to move on and start a new path for herself, but it's been 20 years of this.
LAUER: Yeah.
GUTHRIE: Natalie, thank you.
