Chelsea Clinton has spoken out about the immense scrutiny that she was put under after her father became president when she was only 12 years old – as she recalled Rush Limbaugh’s ‘vicious’ comments that she was the ‘White House dog.’
The author, now 43, opened up about the downsides that came with growing up in the public eye during a recent appearance on Dear Media’s The Skinny Confidential Him & Her podcast with Lauryn Evarts Bosstick and her partner, Michael.
She explained that when her dad, Bill, was elected as the 42nd President of the United States, people all over the globe had ‘opinions’ about her and her family.
Most notably, famous political commentator Limbaugh referred to her as a canine during a television appearance in 1993.
Chelsea Clinton (seen in 1992) has spoken out about the immense scrutiny that she was put under after her father became president when she was only 12 years old
Chelsea (left in 2022), now 43, opened up about the downsides that came with growing up in the public eye during a recent appearance on Lauryn and Michael Bosstick’s (right) podcast
The author explained that her dad, Bill, was elected as the 42nd President of the United States when she was only 12, which resulted in people all over the globe having ‘opinions’ about her
Most notably, famous political commentator Rush Limbaugh (seen in 2019) referred to her as the ‘White House dog’ during a television appearance in 1993
‘Socks is the White House cat. But did you know there is also a White House dog?’ Limbaugh said at the time, while holding up a snapshot of then-12-year-old Chelsea.
‘I don’t think adults really should have opinions on kids,’ she said during her recent appearance on the podcast, while reflecting on Limbaugh’s ‘creepy and inappropriate’ statement.
‘Rush was quite vicious to me. He said terrible things about my appearance and called me the “White House dog” repeatedly,’ Chelsea continued.
‘I was 12 or 13. I remember thinking, “This is just so odd and wrong. Why is this old man obsessed with me? This is so weird and creepy and inappropriate.”‘
Chelsea explained that her parents were ‘furious’ over what he said, adding that they did their best to ‘protect her.’
But it got worse as she got older. She said people would show up at her college campus and shout nasty things at her like, ‘Don’t you wish your mother would’ve aborted you?’
Chelsea, who is now a mother-of-three, also recalled a more recent time that someone said to her, ‘I hope that your children die so that your family’s evil isn’t perpetuated.’
‘What do you say when people say things like that? Like, I’m so sorry you have that much pain and anger inside you, but I’m not gonna dwell on that,’ she said.
‘I don’t think adults should have opinions on kids,’ Chelsea (seen in 2000) said during her appearance on the podcast, while reflecting on Limbaugh’s ‘creepy’ comments
Chelsea (seen at Stanford in 1999) said people would show up at her college campus and yell nasty things at her
The mother-of-three (seen in 1996) recalled one time that someone said to her, ‘Don’t you wish your mother would’ve aborted you?’
Chelsea explained that because her dad was the Governor of Arkansas before he became president, she was in the public eye long before he would lead the nation.
And being subjected to scrutiny from a young age helped her develop thick skin.
‘In some ways I was really privileged to have grown up as the daughter of the Governor of Arkansas because I grew up being aware on a deep cellular level that people are always watching me,’ she said.
‘I have memories of being a kid and people commenting on what I was wearing or what I looked like, and I remember thinking, “That’s so weird. Why are you commenting on what a six- or seven-year-old is doing?”
‘I think that really did prepare me for just the huge onslaught of attention and scrutiny when I was living in the White House.’
While reflecting on her unusual upbringing, Chelsea said she ‘gives her parents so much credit’ for ‘trying to ensure’ that her childhood was ‘as normal as possible.’
She said that while they made her ‘aware’ of how ‘privileged’ she was to be living in the White House and were very vocal about the ‘responsibility’ that came with it, they also encouraged her to participate in activities that any other child would.
Chelsea (seen with her mom as a baby) explained that because her dad was the Governor of Arkansas before he was president, she was in the public eye long before he led the nation
While reflecting on her upbringing, Chelsea said she ‘gives her parents so much credit’ for ‘trying to ensure’ that her childhood was ‘as normal as possible.’ The family is seen in 1997
She said that while they made her ‘aware’ of how ‘privileged’ she was to be living in the White House, they also encouraged her to participate in activities that any other child would
She recalled them teaching her, ‘You need to be respectful because we’re living in the White House. But also, it is your home.’
‘That really helped me feel like I could bring my friends over,’ she added.
‘I mean, we weren’t gonna be wild and crazy, we were gonna be respectful, but it also was my home.
‘My friends could come over for sleepovers and to watch movies, or we could do our homework or study for exams. And so it very much was ordinary and also extraordinary.’
She added that while it was ‘odd’ to have Secret Service around her at all times, they also did their best to give her a normal childhood.
‘If I was in a friend’s home, Secret Service wasn’t in the home with me or if I was in the White House, they weren’t on the same floor as me and my friends while we were studying or talking about boys or whatever we were doing,’ she revealed.
‘And many of the agents that I was really privileged to grow up around were parents themselves and were deeply, not just sympathetic, but empathetic to the dynamic. And I always understood that they had a job to do and I never ran away from them.’
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