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Revision as of 01:54, 7 October 2015

Huma Abedin
Abedin, October 2010
Born
Huma Mahmood Abedin

(1976-07-28) July 28, 1976 (age 48)
Kalamazoo, Michigan, U.S.
EducationGeorge Washington University
OccupationAide to Hillary Rodham Clinton
SpouseAnthony Weiner (2010–present)
Children1
Parent(s)Syed Zainul Abedin
Saleha Mahmood Abedin
RelativesSiblings:
Hassan Abedin
Heba Abedin

Huma Mahmood Abedin (born July 28, 1976)[1] is an American political staffer. She has been a long-time aide to Hillary Clinton, and was U.S. Secretary of State Clinton's Deputy Chief of Staff at the State Department, and before that, traveling chief of staff and "body woman" during Clinton's campaign for the Democratic nomination in the 2008 presidential election.[2][3][4] She currently serves as vice chairwoman of Clinton's 2016 campaign for President.[5] She is married to former Democratic Congressman and 2013 New York City mayoral candidate Anthony Weiner.

Early years

Abedin was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Her father, Syed Zainul Abedin, was Indian, and her mother, Saleha Mahmood Abedin, is Pakistani.[6] When she was two years old, her family moved to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where she lived until returning to the States for college.[7]

Both of her parents were educators. Her father, born in New Delhi, India on April 2, 1928,[8] was an Islamic and Middle Eastern scholar of Indian descent, who founded his own institute devoted to Western-Eastern and interfaith understanding and reconciliation, and published a journal focusing on Muslim minorities living in the diaspora.[7] He graduated from Aligarh Muslim University in 1947, with a masters in English literature, and joined the department's faculty as a lecturer.[8] He later received his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. He died in 1993.[9] Her mother also received her Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, and is currently an associate professor of sociology at Dar Al-Hekma College in Jeddah.[4][10]

Abedin returned from Saudi Arabia to the United States at 18 to attend George Washington University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree.[11]

Career

While a student at George Washington University, Abedin began working as an intern in the White House in 1996, assigned to then-First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. In 1998, she was also an assistant editor of the Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs.[12] For several years, she served as the back-up to Clinton’s personal aide, and officially took over as Clinton’s aide and personal advisor during the 2000 New York Senate campaign,[7] and later worked as traveling chief of staff and "body woman" during Clinton's 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination campaign.[2][3]

Subsequently, she served as Deputy Chief of Staff to Clinton in the State Department,[13] under a "special government employee" arrangement, while also being employed at the Teneo consulting firm, and as a paid consultant for the Clinton Foundation.[14] In 2013 she served as director of the transition team that helped Clinton return to private life,[4] and continued her work for the Clinton Foundation.[14]

In 2010, Abedin was included in Time's "40 under 40",[15] a list of a "new generation of civic leaders" and "rising stars of American politics".[16] At a celebration before Abedin's wedding to Anthony Weiner, Clinton said in a speech, "I only have one daughter. But if I had a second daughter, it would [be] Huma."[17]

Email inquiry

Main article: Hillary Clinton email controversy

In 2015, emails by Abedin were part of an FBI investigation surrounding Hillary Clinton's private email account while Secretary of State, when it was determined that potentially classified emails from Abedin and aide Jake Sullivan relating to the 2012 Benghazi attack and its aftermath had been sent through Clinton's private, non-government server.[18][19]

2016 presidential campaign

Abedin serves as vice chairwoman for Hillary Clinton's 2016 campaign for president, and continues in her role as personal assistant to Clinton.[5]

Conspiracy theory allegations

In a letter dated June 13, 2012, to the State Department Inspector General, five Republican members of Congress claimed that Abedin "has three family members–her late father, her mother and her brother – connected to Muslim Brotherhood operatives and/or organizations."[20][21] (Those signing the letter were: Michele Bachmann (R-Minn), Trent Franks (R-Ariz), Louie Gohmert (R-Texas), Thomas J. Rooney (R-Florida), and Lynn Westmoreland (R-Georgia).)[22] The claims in the letter were widely rejected and condemned by a variety of sources, and were generally labelled as a conspiracy theory.[22][23][24][25][26] The Washington Post called the allegations "paranoid," a "baseless attack" and a "smear."[22]

Republican Senators, led by John McCain, stated: "The letter and the report offer not one instance of an action, a decision or a public position that Huma has taken while at the State Department that would lend credence to the charge that she is promoting anti-American activities within our government."[24][27] The Seattle Times compared the letter's accusations to the witch-hunts of Joseph McCarthy, calling the claims "unsupported... assaults by an unthinking zealot."[28] The Anti-Defamation League condemned the letter as well, referring to it as "conspiratorial", and saying that the Representatives involved should "stop trafficking in anti-Muslim conspiracy theories".[25] Abedin was subsequently placed under police protection after she received threats of violence, possibly connected to the allegations.[29]

Congressional inquiries

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley has raised questions about Abedin's work as a State Department employee, concerning the fact that she held four jobs[30] from June 2012 to February 2013.[14][31][32][33] These included serving as a part-time aide to Clinton at the State Department, while also working as a consultant to private clients for the consulting firm Teneo Holdings,[31][32] a consulting firm run by Douglas Band, a longtime aide to former president Bill Clinton.[34] At the time, she was also being paid a salary for work at the Clinton Foundation, and working as Hillary Clinton's personal assistant, or "body woman".[30] The State Department and Abedin both responded, with the State Department indicating that it uses special government employees routinely "to provide services and expertise that executive agencies require", and Abedin stating that she did not provide any government information or inside information gained from her State Department job to her private employers. Grassley said he found the letters unresponsive.[33]

In July 2015, Senator Grassley released information indicating that the State Department’s inspector general had found that Abedin was overpaid by almost $10,000 for unused leave time when she left the government, resulting from violations of the rules governing vacation and sick leave during her tenure on the payroll as a Federal employee in the department.[35][36] Grassley also expressed concern over the possibility that the investigation had been somewhat thwarted due to much of Abedin's correspondence as a State Department employee being sent through Clinton’s private email server,[35] and that the majority of Abedin’s emails were among those not provided to the State Department from Clinton's private server.[37] Abedin's attorneys said that she had learned in May that the Department’s inspector general had found that she improperly collected $9,857 for periods when she was on vacation or leave, and responded with a 12-page letter contesting the findings, and formally requested an administrative review of the investigation’s conclusions.[36]

Personal life

Anthony Weiner, Congressional portrait, c. 2007

Abedin is a Muslim.[38][39][40] She speaks English, Urdu, and Arabic.[41][42][43][44][45] Oscar de la Renta, who was a personal friend of Abedin, and a friend and supporter of the Clintons, said of Abedin, “she’s a Muslim” and “she’s very conservative.”[7]

On July 10, 2010, Abedin married then-Congressman Anthony Weiner. Former President Bill Clinton performed the wedding ceremony.[46] In June 2011, Abedin became the subject of widespread media attention amid her husband's Twitter photo scandal. In a press conference where he admitted to sexting, Weiner said he had revealed his online relationships to his wife before their marriage. Regarding the new revelations, Weiner said, "She was very unhappy, she was very disappointed, and she told me as much. And she also told me that she loved me and we're going to get through this."[47] The Twitter photo scandal led to Weiner's resignation from Congress on June 23, 2011.[48][49]

In December 2011, Abedin gave birth to a boy, Jordan Zain Weiner.[50]

On July 23, 2013, Abedin spoke at a press conference where she discussed her commitment to her husband, who was then running as a candidate in New York City's mayoral primary election, in spite of new revelations that had by then emerged regarding online communications Weiner had with a woman in mid-2012. At the July 2013 press briefing, Abedin discussed the challenges of her marriage, the couple's commitment to their son, and her ongoing support of his mayoral campaign.[51] Weiner went on to lose in the mayoral primary election, finishing fifth with 4.9% of the vote.[52]

References

  1. ^ McDevitt, Caitlin (July 28, 2011). "Happy Birthday, Huma! - CLICK". Politico.Com. Retrieved August 4, 2013.
  2. ^ a b YALAMANCHILI, PAVANI (August 21, 2007). "Hillary's Handler: Huma Abedin". Nirali Magazine. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  3. ^ a b Trebay, Guy (July 22, 2007). "Campaign Chic: Not Too Cool, Never Ever Hot". The New York Times. Retrieved April 10, 2012.
  4. ^ a b c Morgan, Spencer (April 1, 2007). "Hillary's Mystery Woman: Who Is Huma?". The New York Observer. Retrieved July 12, 2007.
  5. ^ a b Katie Glueck (April 12, 2015). "Hillary Clinton 2016 campaign staff: The power players - POLITICO". POLITICO. Retrieved August 2, 2015.
  6. ^ "Who Is Huma Abedin?". Wall Street Journal. July 26, 2012. Retrieved December 29, 2014.
  7. ^ a b c d Spencer Morgan - "Hillary’s Mystery Woman: Who Is Huma?", Observer News, August 2, 2015. Retrieved 2015-08-19
  8. ^ a b "In Memorium". Middle East Studies Association Bulletin. December 1993. Retrieved December 30, 2014. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  9. ^ "Hillary's mystery aide is of Indian descent". The Times of India. November 29, 2007. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  10. ^ Faculty and Administrators Directory, Official website
  11. ^ "Huma Abedin". The Washington Post. July 25, 2012. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  12. ^ "Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs". March 20, 2007.
  13. ^ ""Clintonites jostle for jobs at State" – Politico". Politico.com. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  14. ^ a b c Hernandez, Raymond (May 16, 2013). "Weiner's Wife Didn't Disclose Consulting Work She Did While Serving in State Dept". The New York Times. Retrieved May 17, 2013.
  15. ^ "Huma Abedin – Deputy chief of staff to the Secretary of State June 9, 2011". Time.com. October 14, 2010. Retrieved June 15, 2011. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  16. ^ "''Time Specials'' – 40 Under 40 June 9, 2011". Time.com. Retrieved June 15, 2011. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  17. ^ Henderson, Nia-Malika (June 7, 2011). "Huma Abedin, Weiner's unflappable wife, is Hillary Clinton's right-hand woman". Washington Post. Retrieved June 4, 2012.
  18. ^ Carol D. Leonnig, Rosalind S. Helderman & Tom Hamburger, FBI Looking into the Security of Hillary Clinton's Private e-mail Setup, The Washington Post (August 4, 2015).
  19. ^ Schmidt, Michael S. (March 2, 2015). "Hillary Clinton's Use of Private Email at State Department Raises Flags". The New York Times. Retrieved April 1, 2015.
  20. ^ Bachmann: "Letter to the Deputy Inspector General," June 13, 2012, accesses August 1, 2013
  21. ^ Cordes, Nancy (July 19, 2012). "Michele Bachmann refuses to back down on claims about Huma Abedin". CBS This Morning. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
  22. ^ a b c Michele Bachmann’s baseless attack on Huma Abedin, Washington Post, July 19, 2012
  23. ^ WEINSTEIN: Let’s stop the crazy Huma Abedin conspiracies, Jamie Weinstein, The Daily Caller, July 29, 2013
  24. ^ a b Terkel, Amanda (July 18, 2012). "John McCain Slams Michele Bachmann's 'Unfounded' Attacks On Huma Abedin, Muslim-Americans". Huffington Post. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
  25. ^ a b "ADL Responds To Conspiratorial Letter From 5 Members Of Congress; Urges Bachmann, Others To Stop 'Trafficking In Anti-Muslim Conspiracy Theories'".
  26. ^ Oy! Latest Conspiracy Theory on Huma Abedin. Strauss, Elissa. The Forward, 30 July 2013
  27. ^ Rollins, Edward (July 18, 2012). "Bachmann's former campaign chief -- shame on you, Michele". FoxNews. Retrieved July 24, 2012.
  28. ^ Michele Bachmann, have you no shame?, The Seattle Times, July 19, 2012
  29. ^ "Report: Huma Abedin gets police protection".
  30. ^ a b Hernandez, Raymond (August 18, 2013). "Questions on the Dual Role of a Clinton Aide Persist". The New York Times. Retrieved August 19, 2013. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |newspaper= (help)
  31. ^ a b Condon, Stephanie (July 26, 2013). "Weiner's wife Huma Abedin under scrutiny over two jobs". CBS News. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  32. ^ a b "Letters, Senator Charles Grassley's Office" (PDF). Retrieved August 4, 2013.
  33. ^ a b McKelway, Doug (July 16, 2013). "Huma Abedin faces questions about dual jobs". FoxNews.com. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  34. ^ S.A. Miller - "Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin emerges as potential liability in 2016 bid", The Washington Times, August 4, 2015. Retrieved 2015-08-19
  35. ^ a b Devlin Barrett & Peter Nicholas - "Close Clinton Aide Huma Abedin in Overpayment Dispute", Wall Street Journal, July 31, 2015.[1] Retrieved August 1, 2015
  36. ^ a b Tom Hamburger, Rosalind S. Helderman & Carol D. Leonnig - "Top Clinton aide accused of receiving overpayments at State Department", Washington Post, July 31, 2015.[2]
  37. ^ The Washington Times, Editorial: "Hillary’s Islamic Connection; Her correspondence with Huma Abedin went into the email trash, too", May 7, 2015. Retrieved 2015-08-19
  38. ^ "Hillary's Secret Weapon; Huma Abedin oversees every minute of Senator Clinton's day". Retrieved July 30, 2013. Vogue, August 2007, U.S. edition, photo spead and interview conducted by Rebecca Johnson. Quote: "Fluent in Arabic and a practicing Muslim born in . . ."
  39. ^ Uddin, Asma. "Is Huma Abedin's Muslim faith her fatal flaw with Anthony Weiner? That's not the Islam I know". The Washington Post. Retrieved July 30, 2013. By Asma Uddin, Published: July 30, 2013.
  40. ^ Huma Abedin, Rep. Anthony Weiner’s unflappable wife Washington Post, June 7, 2011.
  41. ^ ABC News: "Anthony Weiner Says Wife Huma Abedin Will Stay, But Will She?" June 7, 2011
  42. ^ Ashley Parker (June 6, 2011). "Opposites in Many Ways, but Seemingly Melded Well". New York Times. Retrieved April 10, 2012.
  43. ^ New York Metro: "Imam to Rep. Weiner’s wife: Stand by your man" June 7, 2011
  44. ^ CNN: "Huma Abedin is not a typical congressional wife" June 7, 2011
  45. ^ Al Jazeera: " Getting to the bottom of Weingergate" June 2, 2011
  46. ^ "Rep. Anthony Weiner engaged to Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin". The New York Daily News. July 11, 2009. Retrieved June 15, 2011.
  47. ^ Susan Page (June 6, 2011). "For Rep. Anthony Weiner, a dramatic fall via social media". USA Today. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  48. ^ "Weiner to Resign from Congress". Fox News. April 7, 2010. Archived from the original on July 13, 2011. Retrieved June 17, 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  49. ^ Camia, Catalina (July 20, 2011). "Anthony Weiner hasn't officially resigned yet". USA Today.
  50. ^ Palmeri, Tara; Greene, Leonard (December 22, 2011). "Former Congressman Anthony Weiner's wife gives birth to baby boy". www.nypost.com.
  51. ^ "Weiner Admits Explicit Texting After House Exit". New York Times. July 23, 2013. Retrieved July 23, 2013. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |authors= ignored (help)
  52. ^ "Sydney Leathers, former sexting partner of Anthony Weiner, attempts to crash his election night party", Daily News, New York, retrieved September 11, 2013
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