The 36-year-old prime minister of Finland received some support from Hillary Clinton on Sunday. Prime Minister Sanna Marin is in hot water in Finland for photos that have surfaced of her partying with friends. Hillary Clinton weighed in on Twitter and posted a photo of herself dancing in Cartagena, Colombia during her time as Secretary of State in the Obama administration. She received flak at home when she was shown drinking beer and dancing at a club at the end of the VI Summit of the Americas in 2012.
“Keep dancing” was Hillary’s advice.
As Ann Richards said, “Ginger Rogers did everything that Fred Astaire did. She just did it backwards and in high heels.”
Here’s me in Cartagena while I was there for a meeting as Secretary of State.
Keep dancing, @marinsanna. pic.twitter.com/btAtUFOcNV
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) August 28, 2022
I imagine Hillary weighed in on Twitter to grab a little attention, as she frequently does. She and Chelsea have a new Apple TV+ show Gutsy. Hillary has proven she is not one to gracefully get off the stage though her time in office is over. This venture with Chelsea is an eight-part docuseries that premieres on September 9. The two interview, yes, gutsy women. It seems to be a follow-up to their book, “The Book of Gutsy Women”.
It’s interesting that Hillary used a quote by Ann Richards, former governor of Texas. She is best known for her quote that ridiculed George H.W. Bush during a Democrat convention. She said, “Poor George. He can’t help it. He was born with a silver foot in his mouth.” She was a Democrat who divided by class warfare at every opportunity and loved to slam the Bushes. Nonetheless, just four months after Democrats applauded and laughed at her mockery of GHW Bush, he easily defeated Michael Dukakis. Then, six years later, George W. Bush defeated Ann Richards. It was the first time in a quarter of a century that a Republican won the governor’s race. Thanks, Ann.
I have to say, I’m not too concerned about the Finnish prime minister enjoying some time with friends in her off hours. As long as she doesn’t get too intoxicated, in case an emergency arises, or does drugs while in office, it’s really not a big deal. Her critics probably already don’t like her or want her in office. Frankly, she’s a young woman in a very big position in her country. She’s a wife and mother. She has a lot of things going on. If she finds the opportunity to relax and blow off some steam now and then, who cares?
Did I criticize Hillary Clinton when those photos of her emerged in 2012? Probably. I don’t like Hillary and didn’t want her to be Secretary of State. That is usually how this works. I would say her behavior wasn’t becoming of her office.
Boris Johnson has been kicked out of office partly due to his partying ways in office. He was already unpopular with English voters over his responses to the pandemic. Then when he chose to ignore his own mandates and party with staff at 10 Downing Street, along with others, he cooked his own goose. Them’s the breaks, as BoJo said when he announced his resignation. Sanna thanked Hillary for her support.
Thank you @HillaryClinton ❤️ https://t.co/8XU9RKUlas
— Sanna Marin (@MarinSanna) August 28, 2022
The accusations that the prime minister was using drugs as she partied was more serious. Sanna apologized for her behavior and said she would take a drug test. She did and it was negative.
During an interview with Helsingin Sanomat, Finns Party chair Riikka Purra called on Marin to take a test after allegations the Finnish word for “powder” (“jauho”) could be heard on one of the clips. Marin denied there were any drugs at the party and social media users have argued the word used is “jallu” not jauho, and therefore a reference to the Finnish brandy Jaloviina.
A similar call for Marin to take a test was made on Twitter by Mikko Kärnä, an MP with her party’s coalition partners the Centre Party.
Monday’s press release further noted that the drug test certificate was signed by occupational health physician Paavo Halonen from Terveystalo, and that the Prime Minister covered the costs of the test herself.
Not everyone in Finland appreciated Hillary’s advice to their prime minister.
Some Finns urged Clinton to keep her nose out of their politics, telling her to instead “take care of US domestic policy.”
Another critic wrote: “Well, dear Hillary and Marin, is this the right time to dance, and have a party. I don`t think so. The whole world is falling apart. Or, is that the reason why you celebrate?”
Times are tough right now. The world is a dangerous place, especially in Finland’s neighborhood. Finland is going to be accepted into NATO. Important things are happening. However, having a beer or two while dancing with friends and acting a little goofy now and then shouldn’t disqualify Sanna Marin from her position as long as she is doing her job.
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