Tell us how you really feel, Mrs. Clinton Mrs. Clinton spokesman:
Moments before Huma Abedin stood amid a phalanx of television cameras last week and announced to a national audience that she was standing by her embattled husband, Anthony D. Weiner, she made a quick phone call to a trusted colleague.Philippe I. Reines, the personal spokesman and adviser to Hillary Rodham Clinton, picked up the phone. Longtime allies from Mrs. Clinton’s close-knit inner circle, the two spoke for several minutes beforeMs. Abedin ended the call and stepped before reporters to make her statement. [...]
For his part, Mr. Reines plays down his interactions with the Weiner operation, saying he is unpaid and primarily concerned with assisting Ms. Abedin, a beloved surrogate daughter to the Clintons who has faced unfriendly headlines and pointed questions about her judgment after publicly vouching for Mr. Weiner.
And at times, he cannot hide his exasperation with Ms. Abedin’s husband. On a campaign conference call hours before that news conference on July 23, Mr. Reines learned for the first time that Mr. Weiner had engaged in online liaisons after leaving Congress. He was enraged and proceeded to berate Mr. Weiner, saying he would “reach through this phone” and “pull out” his throat, adding an expletive, according to a participant on the call.
