Hillary and HumaAs Hillary heads to SOS-ville, Marc Ambinder says keep your eyes on Huma, who's not just a personal assistant. She was born in Michigan and is a Muslim, who speaks fluent Arabic, which is going to come in handy.
Ambinder: I've been a Clinton Kremlinologist for years, and although there are many armor-plated guardians of Clinton's inner circle, Huma Abedin has been the toughest to crack. No exaggeration: with Clinton heading to State, Abedin is going to be a major force in American diplomacy for the next several years.
Abedin was one of the First Lady's travelling personal assistants during the second term, but hasn't been only that for years Formally, she is a Senior Advisor to Senator Clinton, and was her Travelling Chief of Staff during the campaign. In that latter role, she was in charge of the roadshow, one of the few parts of the campaign that met with near universal praise, both internally and externally.
She is part of the crucial connective tissue between HRC and her far flung world of supporters, friends, staff, former staff, advisors, donors, on and on. Not a gatekeeper, because she is famous for her openess and sharing even the smallest details with HRC to keep her fully briefed, and manages some of the biggest egos around with diplomatic aplomb (I can only imagine.. "Hi Huma, it's Dick Holbrooke and I REALLY need to talk to Hillary about this Jim Steinberg thing") read more
