Kathleen Willey's New Book Has Made Her a Target

I recently got the opportunity to pose some questions to former Clinton White House Aide Kathleen Willey about her new book, TARGET: Caught in the Crosshairs of Bill and Hillary Clinton Below we will follow Willey from when she first met Bill Clinton through to what her life is like these days.

Thank you for agreeing to this interview Ms. Willey. Before we talk about your book, can you tell us about yourself and how you became involved with Bill and Hillary Clinton?

I was born in Philadelphia and raised in Richmond, VA. I was educated in Catholic schools and very taken by John F. Kennedy when I was a kid, which set me on the course to be a lifelong Democrat.

I met Bill Clinton during Doug Wilder's campaign for governor in 1989. When Clinton announced his bid for the presidency in 1991, I helped form the state campaign organization called "Virginians for Clinton." The group's HQ was in my husband Ed's law office.

Did you ever have any idea that Bill Clinton was interested in you in any other way than as a friend and political supporter?

During that gubernatorial campaign, my husband and I attended a fundraiser dinner for Doug Wilder. Bill Clinton was there, and tried to sit next to me. That seat was full, so he sat at another table, but I felt like he was zeroing in on me, making eye contact, being assertive. That made me uncomfortable but I shrugged it off.

The next week at Wilder campaign headquarters, someone told me that Gov. Clinton had called me and left a message. I wanted him to attend another fundraiser for us, so I was excited about that. Never got ahold of him though, at least not at that time. But he certainly made an impression on me.

Let’s talk briefly about your husband for a moment. Ed’s actions put you in a position where you sought a meeting with President Clinton. What went through your mind when Ed told you he had taken money from his clients? Did you realize at the time how serious the situation was and how deeply it would affect your family?

Well, I was in a complete state of shock when he told me about this. He had won a condemnation case for some clients, put the money in escrow, and illegally borrowed the money. The clients had found out about it. If we signed a promissory note and got the money to them in two weeks, they wouldn't press charges. It was a quarter-million dollars! There was no way we were going to come up with that kind of money in two weeks, and my reaction, after vowing to help my husband, was panic. I had to do something to keep my family together, and to keep Ed from losing his law license. But the clients reported him to the state bar anyway. It was a horrible time in my life.

Would you have sought the help of President Clinton if you didn’t need to? Would you have ever requested that meeting if you didn’t believe it held the key to helping your family out of a dire situation?

I was a soccer mom, working as a volunteer in the White House social office and enjoying both roles. I was happy with my life, my husband and my kids, and wouldn't have sought a paying job if the situation hadn't been truly desperate.

You went to ask President Clinton for a paying position to help pay back the money that Ed had stolen from his clients. How would a salaried position at the White House help repay $274,000? Were these the type of people who would be willing to wait?

Of course it wouldn't have paid the entire amount back immediately, but it would have helped, and it would have shown a good-faith effort that I was hoping would mitigate the damage Ed had caused.

You speak vividly in your book, Target, of the day you went to see President Clinton. You describe what you were feeling and what happened during the assault. At this point, Ed had moved out of the house, and you couldn’t reach him on the phone. You were afraid of what might have happened to him. Did your fear of what might have happened to Ed influence how you approached President Clinton? Would you have done something differently if you had not been afraid that Ed had come up against some trouble?

I was a wife and a mother. My family always took precedence for me over everything else, as it continues to do, and I would have done anything to help them. The situation that Ed had gotten us into was of course paramount in my mind and influenced many of my actions at that time, to the extent that I was doing exactly what I felt I had to do to get the people I loved out of a jam, one that we were already in. There was no going back at this point.

In December 1993, after Ed’s suicide and the assault, you began writing letters to President Clinton. According to what you wrote in Target, they were continued requests to obtain a paying position. Did those letters adversely affect your credibility when you spoke out about the assault in the Oval Office?

Well, the question is, what was I supposed to do? With my husband gone I needed a paying job more than ever. You don't get higher up the referral chain than the President of the United States. He could have picked up the phone and called any of a dozen people, a hundred people, in DC or Virginia and helped me. This wasn't a question of pride, or of propriety. It was a question of survival at that point.

According to the book, what happened next was the Drudge Report where the assault was exposed, a betrayal by your best friend, and the terror and smear campaign that started as a way to keep you quiet. Did you have any idea how far this would go once it was exposed?

No. The entire way all of this unfolded truly ended up being a nightmare, one that has lasted a decade and has completely transformed my life in ways I couldn't have imagined or wanted. And it just doesn't stop. Every time one of the Clintons steps into the spotlight -- and they are such media hogs, they never quit - I feel exposed to the world. But at the same time, whatever mistakes I made, I admitted to them long ago. Mudslinging doesn't hurt me anymore the way it used to. Over the years, thanks not just to me but many others, the Clintons' real nature has been put out there for all to see. I feel vindicated.

What have you learned from this experience?

Well, life throws you curves, that's for sure. But like anyone who's faced adversity and come through it, I've learned that I am a lot tougher than maybe I gave myself credit for being. I never gave in, or gave up. I didn't let this very powerful, vindictive couple dictate the way I lived my life, even though their minions and private investigators managed to scare the hell out of me more than once.

Where can readers purchase a copy of Target: Caught in the Crosshairs of Bill and Hillary Clinton?

It's available at major bookstores and online -- Amazon and bn.com

How is life for you these days? Have you been able to move on to some degree?

Life is good. I enjoy my career in real estate, even though the market is going through some problems obviously. I still love politics and follow the roadshow that presidential primaries and elections have become avidly. And I'm not just glad that the word is out on the Clintons -- I'm glad I had a part in exposing them for what they really are, a crass and classless couple whose only concern is themselves. Of course, I learned that the hard way. But I'm glad I've done what I could to prevent the country from having to go through this again.

Is there anything you would like to add?

We should all be grateful for the internet, and the ability it provides us to get the truth out.

Thank you for answering my questions today, Ms. Willey. It was a pleasure to talk with you.