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It’s been three decades since Monica Lewinsky’s name became etched into American history — but now, at 51, she’s reclaiming her story in her own words.
Appearing on Elizabeth Day’s podcast How To Fail, the former White House intern reflected on the high-profile affair with then-President Bill Clinton that not only rocked Washington, but also nearly ruined her life.
Lewinsky was just 22 when the scandal broke. Clinton was 49 and the most powerful man in the world. The relationship dominated headlines, triggered an impeachment, and unleashed a tidal wave of public shaming — mostly aimed at her.
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And for the first time in years, Monica is revisiting the emotional truth behind it all.
“It was 22 to 24-year-old young woman’s love,” she said.
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“I think there was some limerence there and all sorts of other things, but that’s how I saw it then. I think it was also an abuse of power.”
Lewinsky didn’t hold back when talking about the damaging narrative the White House pushed after the scandal broke.
“My very first job out of college was working in the White House,” she explained.
I don’t think that’s the kind of trajectory that someone thinks then 10, 12 years later, that person’s not going to be able to get hired
After the affair was exposed, Lewinsky said the Clinton administration spun a humiliating version of her—branding her with the outdated and degrading label: “bimbo.”
“I wasn’t a dumb bimbo. I was portrayed to be, and that was a big struggle for me to deal with that.”
She added that much of the backlash came from women, even though it was a narrative “crafted and put out by the White House.”
“That mantle was picked up by a lot of women,” she said.
Following the scandal, Clinton initially denied the affair — until August 17, 1998, when he publicly admitted he was “solely and completely responsible” for the relationship.