What does a person do after 11 hours of testimony? Well, if you’re Hillary Clinton, you order in, get a little sloshed and enjoy some much-needed R&R.
“I had my whole team come over to my house and we sat around eating Indian food and drinking wine and beer,” Clinton told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow in her first post Benghazi interview on Friday. “That’s what we did. It was great.”
The former secretary of state seemed relaxed and in a good mood as she answered Maddow’s questions. And why shouldn’t she? By all accounts, the Democratic presidential frontrunner managed to come out on top after a grueling 17-month probe.
According to Clinton’s communications director Jennifer Palmieri, Clinton had her best fundraising hour to date yesterday between 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. ET, just as she finished her testimony.
Asked what she thought of the fact that the man leading the investigation, Republican Rep. Trey Gowdy, admitted he couldn’t think of one new thing that the panel learned after 11 hours of inquiry, Clinton stayed above the fray.
“I said I would do it and I did it,” Clinton said. “We live in a complicated, dangerous world. And so we do want to have a, a good conversation where people come to the table ready to actually learn about what we can do. ”
Clinton also spoke of Vice President Joe Biden, who announced on Wednesday he will not seek the party’s nomination for president in 2016. Maddow asked if Clinton was jealous of Biden now that he doesn’t have to endure a grueling campaign.
“That’s a good question!” joked Clinton.
Speaking more generally about the Obama/Biden era, the former Secretary of State said, “I want to build on the progress that they are leaving behind. I feel very strongly about that. I want to go further, but I think the real point of this election is whether or not the Republicans are going to be able to turn the clock back and rip away the progress that has been made. So I want to support what the president and the vice president have accomplished.”
Maddow also asked Clinton about the differences between her style and President Obama’s when it comes to cooperating with Republicans.
“When you are dealing with the other party in Washington, it’s that old saying — you know, you hope for the best, you prepare for the worst,” Clinton said. “Of course you want to have the opportunity to work across party lines. I did that when I was a senator. I did it when I was secretary of state. But you need about — you know, six, seven, eight, 10 scenarios if something doesn’t go your way.”
The full interview will air Friday at 9 p.m. EST.