Secretary of State Hillary Clinton appeared before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and House Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013, to testify about Benghazi. Secretary Clinton was sporting a completely new personal style as she took the microphone today.
One of her answers about the cause of the Benghazi attacks seems to also sum up her new look: "What difference does it make?" Here is what she said, as reported by Huffington Post:
"With all due respect, the fact is we had four dead Americans," Clinton responded, raising her voice at Johnson, who continued to interrupt her. "Was it because of a protest or was it because of guys out for a walk last night who decided to kill some Americans? What difference at this point does it make? It is our job to figure out what happened and do everything we can to prevent it from ever happening again, Senator."
Her large, Coke-bottle glasses and lack of any notable makeup are the first things that stick out to the viewer. Hillary Clinton's long, blonde hair was cut off into an older, more traditional bob, and the color seemed to be toned down.
Secretary Clinton was wearing a familiar style suit, but the color was strikingly different than what she usually wears. It was a bright, old-lady green. It looked like she just said, "What difference does it make?"
But, don't be fooled. Any impression created by what Hillary Clinton was wearing was carefully considered and planned ahead of time. The question is why did they want to create that impression?
Was creating sympathy and establishing the reality of her previous illness part of the plan? Is that why there is no mascara? Maybe she wanted to look more believable by donning the "smart girl" glasses. Possibly, she wanted to look older and more capable of handling the presidency. That color probably has some kind of purpose in creating a certain effect. Green is known for symbolizing calm, peace, and good luck, according to About.com "Color Psychology." This was not a particularly "peaceful" green, though.
As far as the glasses, it comes to mind that she might be hiding wrinkles or planning to have some work done before the 2016 campaign. She may be trying to hide from the camera's scrutiny during these hours of close-up testimony, thus avoiding "before" shots of crow's feet. It remains to be seen.
Possibly the stress of her illness and the Benghazi situation has taken its toll, but the odds are that there was an underlying strategy. This is a Clinton we are talking about!
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