Huma Abedin

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Huma Abedin

Abedin, October 2010
Born Huma Mahmood Abedin
(1976-07-28) July 28, 1976
Kalamazoo, Michigan, U.S.
Education George Washington University
Occupation Aide to Hillary Rodham Clinton
Religion Islam
Spouse(s) Anthony Weiner (2010–present; 1 child)
Parents Syed Zainul Abedin and Saleha Mahmood Abedin

Huma Mahmood Abedin (born July 28, 1976[1]) is an American political staffer. She has been a long-time aide to Hillary Rodham Clinton; she 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 is married to former Democratic Congressman Anthony Weiner.

Early years

Abedin was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan. When she was two years old, her family moved to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Both her parents were educators. Her father, Syed Zainul Abedin, born in India in 1928, was an alumnus of Aligarh Muslim University, and later received his Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. He died in 1993.[5] Her Pakistani mother, Saleha Mahmood Abedin, 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][6]

Abedin returned to the United States at 18 to attend George Washington University, where she earned a B.A. degree.[7]

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 an assistant editor of the Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs.[8] She later worked as traveling chief of staff and "body woman" during Clinton's 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination campaign,[2][3] and subsequently served as Deputy Chief of Staff under Clinton in the State Department.[9] She is currently a director of the transition team that is helping Clinton return to private life,[4][10] and works for the William Jefferson Clinton Foundation.

In 2010, Abedin was included in Time's "40 under 40",[11] a list of a "new generation of civic leaders" and "rising stars of American politics".[12] 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."[13]

Conspiracy theory

On June 13, 2012, Republican members of Congress, led by Michele Bachmann, alleged that Abedin "has three family members–her late father, her mother and her brother – connected to Muslim Brotherhood operatives and/or organizations"[14][15] These claims have been widely rejected and condemned by a variety of sources, and are generally regarded as a conspiracy theory.[16][17][18][19] The Washington Post called Bachmann's allegations "paranoid," a "baseless attack" and a "smear."[16] 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."[18][20] The Seattle Times compared Bachmann's accusations to the witch-hunts of Joseph McCarthy, calling the claims "unsupported... assaults by an unthinking zealot."[21] 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".[19] Abedin was subsequently placed under police protection after she received threats of violence, possibly connected to the allegations.[22]

Grassley questions

Senator Chuck Grassley raised questions about Abedin's work as a State Department employee, concerning the fact that she held four jobs[23] from June 2012 to February 2013,[10][24][25][26] as a part-time aide to Clinton while working as a consultant to private clients for consulting firm Teneo Holdings[24][25] and she was working for the Clinton Foundation and also working for Clinton as an assistant.[23] 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 employer. Grassley found the letters unresponsive.[26]

Personal life

Abedin is a practicing Muslim.[27][28][29] She speaks English, Urdu, and Arabic.[30][31][32][33][34]

Abedin married then-Congressman Anthony Weiner (D-NY) on July 10, 2010; Bill Clinton performed the wedding ceremony.[35] In June 2011, Abedin became the subject of widespread media attention amid her husband's Twitter photo scandal. In the press conference where he admitted the online sexual conversations, 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."[36]

Abedin gave birth to a boy, Jordan Zain Weiner, in December 2011.[37]

On July 23, 2013, Abedin spoke at a press conference in which she discussed her commitment to her husband, who was a New York City mayoral candidate, in spite of new revelations regarding online communications Weiner had with a woman in mid-2012. She disclosed the challenges of their marriage, their commitment to their son, and her ongoing support of his campaign.[38] Ruth Marcus of the Washington Post has said that Abedin's press conference was an "uncomfortable stand-by-your-man news conference" taken "to an excruciating new level."[39]

References

  1. ↑ McDevitt, Caitlin (2011-07-28). "Happy Birthday, Huma! - CLICK". Politico.Com. Retrieved 2013-08-04. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 YALAMANCHILI, PAVANI (August 21, 2007). "Hillary’s Handler: Huma Abedin". Nirali Magazine. Retrieved June 15, 2011. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Trebay, Guy (July 22, 2007). "Campaign Chic: Not Too Cool, Never Ever Hot". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 April 2012. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Morgan, Spencer (April 1, 2007). "Hillary's Mystery Woman: Who Is Huma?". The New York Observer. Retrieved July 12, 2007. 
  5. ↑ "Hillary's mystery aide is of Indian descent". The Times of India. November 29, 2007. Retrieved June 15, 2011. 
  6. ↑ Faculty and Administrators Directory, Official website
  7. ↑ "Huma Abedin". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 July 2013. 
  8. ↑ "Journal of Muslim Minority Affairs". Mar 20, 2007. 
  9. ↑ ""Clintonites jostle for jobs at State" – Politico". Politico.com. Retrieved June 15, 2011. 
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Hernandez, Raymond (16 May 2013). "Weiner’s Wife Didn’t Disclose Consulting Work She Did While Serving in State Dept.". The New York Times. Retrieved 2013-05-17. 
  11. ↑ Huma Abedin – Deputy chief of staff to the Secretary of State June 9, 2011. Time.com. October 14, 2010. Retrieved June 15, 2011. 
  12. ↑ ''Time Specials'' – 40 Under 40 June 9, 2011. Time.com. Retrieved June 15, 2011. 
  13. ↑ "Huma Abedin, Weiner's unflappable wife, is Hillary Clinton's right-hand woman". Washington Post. June 7, 2011. Retrieved June 4, 2012. 
  14. ↑ Bachmann: "Letter to the Deputy Inspector General," June 13, 2012, accesses Aug 1, 2013
  15. ↑ Cordes, Nancy (19 July 2012). "Michele Bachmann refuses to back down on claims about Huma Abedin". CBS This Morning. Retrieved 19 July 2012. 
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 Michele Bachmann’s baseless attack on Huma Abedin, Washington Post, July 19, 2012
  17. ↑ WEINSTEIN: Let’s stop the crazy Huma Abedin conspiracies, Jamie Weinstein, The Daily Caller, July 29, 2013
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 Terkel, Amanda. "John McCain Slams Michele Bachmann's 'Unfounded' Attacks On Huma Abedin, Muslim-Americans". Huffington Post. Retrieved 19 July 2012. 
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "ADL Responds To Conspiratorial Letter From 5 Members Of Congress; Urges Bachmann, Others To Stop 'Trafficking In Anti-Muslim Conspiracy Theories'". 
  20. ↑ Rollins, Edward. "Bachmann's former campaign chief -- shame on you, Michele". FoxNews. Retrieved 24 July 2012. 
  21. ↑ Michele Bachmann, have you no shame?, The Seattle Times, July 19, 2012
  22. ↑ "Report: Huma Abedin gets police protection". 
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 Hernandez, Raymond (August 18, 2013). "Questions on the Dual Role of a Clinton Aide Persist". The New York Times. Retrieved August 19, 2013. 
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 Condon, Stephanie (July 26, 2013). "Weiner's wife Huma Abedin under scrutiny over two jobs". CBS News. Retrieved 29 July 2013. 
  25. ↑ 25.0 25.1 "Letters, Senator Charles Grassley's Office" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-08-04. 
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 McKelway, Doug (July 16, 2013). "Huma Abedin faces questions about dual jobs". FoxNews.com. Retrieved 29 July 2013. 
  27. ↑ "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 . . ."
  28. ↑ "Is Huma Abedin’s Muslim faith her fatal flaw with Anthony Weiner? That’s not the Islam I know.". Retrieved July 30, 2013.  By Asma Uddin, Published: July 30, 2013.
  29. ↑ Huma Abedin, Rep. Anthony Weiner’s unflappable wife Washington Post, 2011-06-07.
  30. ↑ ABC News: "Anthony Weiner Says Wife Huma Abedin Will Stay, But Will She?" June 7, 2011
  31. ↑ Ashley Parker (June 6, 2011). "Opposites in Many Ways, but Seemingly Melded Well". New York Times. Retrieved 10 April 2012. 
  32. ↑ New York Metro: "Imam to Rep. Weiner’s wife: Stand by your man" June 7, 2011
  33. ↑ CNN: "Huma Abedin is not a typical congressional wife" June 7, 2011
  34. ↑ Al Jazeera: " Getting to the bottom of Weingergate" June 2, 2011
  35. ↑ "Rep. Anthony Weiner engaged to Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin". The New York Daily News. July 11, 2009. Retrieved June 15, 2011. 
  36. ↑ Susan Page (June 6, 2011). "For Rep. Anthony Weiner, a dramatic fall via social media". USA Today. Retrieved June 7, 2011. 
  37. ↑ Palmeri, Tara; Greene, Leonard (December 22, 2011). "Former Congressman Anthony Weiner's wife gives birth to baby boy". www.nypost.com. 
  38. ↑ DAVID W. CHEN and JAVIER C. HERNÁNDEZ (July 23, 2013). "Weiner Admits Explicit Texting After House Exit". New York Times. Retrieved July 23, 2013. 
  39. ↑ Marcus, Ruth. Huma Abedin’s deja vu moment, Washington Post, July 24, 2013.

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