Vanity Fair

The cover was released today, Megyn Kelly is the cover but the story's headline is on it, which reads "The Huma Factor: Secrets of Hillary's Right Hand Woman." We have MMFA, CtR, and core surrogates lined up, which we can expand on tomorrow. As discussed, we don't know what the tone of the piece will be, but I wrote some shell points, below, that we can adapt as needed. Most of this is pulled from things we've said before. Nick Surrogate Talking Points for Vanity Fair Toplines · Vanity Fair is no stranger to provocative, hyperbolic stories, and this is no exception. · Among the many claims peddled in this story, the recycled claims about someone’s faith are outrageous, claims that everyone from John McCain to Marco Rubio have denounced as nonsense. · It would seem that Vanity Fair has joined the ranks of Donald Trump and Michelle Bachman to slander not a candidate or public official, but a longtime staffer known for her hard work and government service, to sell magazines. · Huma Abedin, to everyone that knows her, couldn’t be more different from the picture painted by those who attack her for partisan gain. She is smart, she’s humble, she’s graceful, and she works as hard as anyone in politics or government service, where she’s spent her entire career. She’s exactly the kind of person you want working in government. Which is what makes going after her for things like her maternity leave and her faith all the more reprehensible. Follow Ups Grassley Investigations · Senator Grassley and his staff have made it pretty clear what they are up to. For months they have been making unfounded, irresponsible assertions about Huma’s government service while at the Department of State. Their interest only grows the deeper we find ourselves into election season. Not a coincidence, and disappointing that Vanity Fair seems to have bought into it hook, line, and sinker. · This is someone who has spent nearly two decades in public service, and is widely known for her integrity and tireless work ethic. After the birth of her son, she took maternity leave. The IGs questions about the details of her leave were thoroughly answered. Anything beyond that is the product of partisan leaks with a clear agenda. · So while this isn’t surprising, it is disappointing. Muslim Brotherhood Accusations · To perpetuate baseless accusations about someone’s faith to sell magazines is reprehensible, and frankly surprising coming from Vanity Fair. For fringe partisans to make these claims is bad enough. But years later, after being denounced by everyone from John McCain to Marco Rubio, for a magazine to pick up and give column inches to this nonsense is as irresponsible as it is baseless. Personal Life · Huma’s personal life is just that, her personal life. She is a wonderful mother which she balances with a very impressive career. I don’t know how she does it all, but she does, with grace and humility. Role in Hillaryland · Huma has worked for Hillary Clinton for a long time, and there are a few good reasons for that. She smart, she’s humble, and she’s multi-faceted. She balances an enormous amount and makes it look easy, which is how she’s gone from an assistant to being a part of the senior command of a presidential campaign. She’s a valued member of the team, which is why it’s all the more upsetting to see people try and get to Hillary by going after her with their partisan agendas.