"Thanks for the outreach, but I'm ok in the doctor department for now," she wrote back, causing Reines to apologize and clarify that he had meant he was enlisting the help of those who would help dispel some of the doubts cast upon Clinton's condition, given that she had missed a scheduled testimony on the Benghazi attacks because of her injury.
"Sorry, didn't mean medically. Wouldn't ever do that. I meant I enlisted their help in my ongoing efforts to undermine the John Boltons and Laura Ingraham's of the world who are belittling your health. I sent Ingraham a long note. Crafting one to Bolton now. Don't worry, no profanity," Reines said. "Not that kind of note. Just not letting these comments stand, no matter who says them."
In the week following the bombshell resignation of CIA Director David Petraeus after an FBI investigation uncovered an extramarital affair and a month after the attacks on the mission in Benghazi, Blumenthal offered firm advice for Clinton for her own brewing controversy, along with a smattering of news clippings.
"Projection, madness, revenge—you pick the Shakespeare plot. Most of them truly believe in their fevered visions. McCain? Back to Shakespeare, last category. Not to mention the Dittohead FBI agent. Eric Cantor's explanation that he wanted to prevent the investigation from being 'politicized' doesn't rise to risible," he wrote of the Petraeus scandal, recounting a discussion with British ambassador to the U.S. Peter Westmacott in which he dished on Jill Kelley, who played a central role in the unveiling of Petraeus' affair.
"Even if she is just an ambitious dope (or in another jargon, unwitting asset of someone or some power), the scene is squalid. This is the center of the war on terror? Or is it the set of the next season of Homeland? My advice to you?" he said. "Publicly and directly puncture conspiracy fever on Benghazi before any closed hearing, in response to press question that you make yourself available to."
Following her Senate testimony on Benghazi, Blumenthal shared what he felt was the "best analysis so far of [the] hearing," a Feministing blog post titled "How to deal with a mansplainer starring Hillary Clinton in GIFs."
Clinton was a fan ("Loved them!" she replied), and Blumenthal then volunteered that his wife, Jackie, also wears glasses and thought her fashion choice was "very stylish, attractive."
It wasn't all praise for Clinton after her testimony, a fact she shared in an email from former Clinton campaign adviser Mark Penn that she forwarded to Reines, Sullivan and Mills.
"The Republicans but not the American people have been obsessed with Libya and trying to pin the acts of terrorists on you. They have been playing this non stop on their cable tv," Penn wrote, after Clinton's "what difference at this point does it make" line reverberated. "But I don't think the emotion in the hearing works to your advantage -- looks more like they rattled you on something no one outside the crazy right blamed you for anyway."
In passing along Penn's critique, Clinton acknowledged it as such: "Ok, so here's first discordant note--just to keep it real."
Reines had something to say about that.
"I say this as someone who has never had a problem with Mark or held him as accountable as other people do - but... Give Me A Break," he wrote, breaking for another line after each word in the last phrase. "You did not look rattled. You looked real. There's a difference. A big one."
10. Daughters
In an August 2012 email chain to Clinton and her daughter, Chelsea, (under the pseudonym Diane Reynolds), Reines offered his own analysis as to why Mitt Romney's candidacy was doomed to fail: he had no daughters. The senior adviser then listed every president through Franklin D. Roosevelt, noting that only Dwight D. Eisenhower had sons.
"That's fascinating. What did you then conclude?!" Chelsea wrote back, under her Secret Service code name "Energy."
Reines called it "hardly a valid sample size, but it's interesting nonetheless."
"And the historical pattern aside, Romney just also happens to be down 20 pts among women. It makes complete sense to me that a man with daughters would be affected in ways someone with only sons wouldn't be," he wrote.
"I guess my next step will be to look for the last person to win their party's nomination but went on to lose the general election, and see who didn't have daughters. If the pattern holds, it's further anecdotal evidence that we look for certain attributes in our Presidents, supported by the fact that no matter who won, they would have possessed that trait," he noted. "Off the top of my head working backwards, McCain, Kerry, Gore, Dole (I think), Dukakis (I think), and Mondale all had daughters. Further back will require the Google."
In another fawning email from Lanny Davis, the longtime family friend shared the results of a Gallup survey in May 2012 that noted her "near record-high favorability numbers."
"So why am I not surprised? Am writing about the reasons why this is so in Purple Nation column -- ok? I won't embarrass you or make comparisons to others, promise," he wrote Clinton, who responded, "I'm afraid anything you write will be suspect in light of our long relationship!"
Davis responded with a frown emoticon, saying that he would not write it, but if he could, he would write that the secretary of state "is a hard worker," "is fact-driven," "is sensitive to the perspective of others ... as was said about Atticus Finch in 'To Kill A Mockingbird': 'she can walk in other people's shoes and see the world through their eyes.'" Finally, he wrote, Clinton "is a gracious person - the most important quality for a successful diplomat."
Clinton then asked for the email to be printed.
12. Counting trips and asterisks
Clinton's State Department kept a tight count of the secretary's travels throughout her four-year term, as evidenced by a June 2012 email from Reines to his boss and Abedin.
"With 7ish months left, plenty of time to run up the score on total countries. 110 is a reasonable goal. Here are the 94 countries left to choose from," he wrote, before listing each country, including asterisks "next to countries you visited prior to becoming SecState, but not since - so they would count."
13. Stargazing
Clinton could not help herself in the subject line of an email to former U.S. Ambassador Joseph Wilson in December 2012, writing simply, "I met Naomi Watts last weekend and we talked about you and Valerie and how amazing you both are!" Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, is a former CIA officer whose identity as an operative was revealed in a Washington Post column in 2003.
Watts had attended the annual Kennedy Center Honors in Washington the previous weekend. The Oscar-nominated actress played Plame in the 2010 film "Fair Game."
14. How to get a job with Hillary
As Clinton looked to the exit at the State Department, Gary Gensler, the former head of the Commodities Future Trading Commission, sent the secretary of state no fewer than six emails asking for advice. Gensler, whom Clinton named as her campaign's chief financial officer in April, played the long game. He did not leave the commission until January 2014.
In his first message in December 2012, Gensler wrote, "[i]f we might be able to find a moment to chat, I would love to share my thoughts on possible new challenges and opportunities within the Administration.”
Gensler followed up with more emails without a response, before wishing the secretary well after he discovered that she had suffered a fall and concussion.
“My mom always recommended a bit of chicken noodle soup,” he wrote. “And please don't worry about connecting with me on the work matters until you are really up to it.”
A few weeks later after the well-wishes, Gensler wrote Clinton again, expressing that he was "[s]o glad that you are recovering," adding, "Whenever you might be free, it would be wonderful to catch up."
Ahead of his meeting with Israeli President Shimon Peres, Oscar-winning director Steven Spielberg wanted to speak with the secretary of state in March 2012.
"SS has lunch tomorrow with Shimon Peres and sent HRC an email to see if she has a minute to talk between now and then?" wrote Andy Spahn, who worked as head of corporate affairs and communications for DreamWorks SKG from 1994 to 2006.
Capricia Marshall, State's chief of protocol, forwarded the message to Clinton and Abedin: "Fyi - Steven Spielberg hoping to chat with you"
"Capricia - call set up for noon tomorrow," Abedin responded.