Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has issued an apology for comments she made praising former President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy Reagan’s legacy on AIDS at former the First Lady’s funeral on Friday.
Speaking to MSNBC during the televised broadcast of the funeral, Clinton said that the Reagans “started a national conversation” about the AIDS epidemic when “nobody would talk about it.”
“It may be hard for your viewers to remember how difficult it was for people to talk about HIV/AIDS back in the 1980s,” Clinton said. “…When before nobody would talk about it, nobody wanted to do anything about it, and that too is something that I really appreciate with her very effective, low key advocacy but it penetrated the public conscious and people began to say, ‘Hey, we have to do something about this too.'”
Clinton’s comments were shocking to many within and close to the LGBT community, as the Reagans are often blamed for ignoring or making light of the severity of the AIDS crisis. Last year, on World AIDS Day, Vanity Fair debuted a short documentary, When AIDS Was Funny that included audio of Reagan’s press secretary, Larry Speakes, laughing off a question from a journalist asking about the White House’s response to AIDS. And BuzzFeed’s Chris Geidner reported that Nancy Reagan even turned down a plea from her friend, actor Rock Hudson, who was suffering from the disease, to help get him transferred to another hospital that could better treat him.
Immediately, the former Secretary of State’s critics pounced on her comments, with the Huffington Post’s JamesMichael Nichols characterizing them as “polarizing, inaccurate — not to mention offensive.” Gawker’s Sam Biddle accused Clinton of “revisionism” on the history of the AIDS crisis, calling the comments “shocking, insulting and utterly inexplicable.” Prominent LGBT and AIDS activist Cleve Jones took to Facebook, writing: “Hillary Clinton is praising Ronald and Nancy Reagan for ‘starting a national conversation’ about HIV/AIDS. Utter bullshit. Disgusting. Really, just stop it.”
Even allies of the Democratic frontrunner criticized the comments, with Chad Griffin, the president of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) — which has endorsed Clinton for president — took to Twitter, writing: “While I respect her advocacy on issues like stem cell & Parkinson’s research, Nancy Reagan was, sadly, no hero in the fight against HIV/AIDS.”
While I respect her advocacy on issues like stem cell & Parkinson's research, Nancy Reagan was, sadly, no hero in the fight against HIV/AIDS
Within hours, Clinton’s campaign issued an apology, as well as a statement elaborating on and clarifying her past record on HIV/AIDS. The campaign also took to Twitter, writing: “While the Reagans were strong advocates for stem cell research and finding a cure for Alzheimer’s disease, I misspoke about their record on HIV and AIDS. For that, I’m sorry.”
Hillary Clinton’s statement on her comments about the Reagans' record on HIV and AIDS: pic.twitter.com/RtIs0zpJfk
Jared Polis created a stir on social media after he praised Donald Trump's nomination of Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. as Secretary of Health and Human Services.
Polis, a two-term governor and former congressman whose name has been bandied about as a possible Democratic presidential nominee in 2028, appeared to back Kennedy's stated goals, saying in a post on X that he was "excited" by news of the appointment.
" helped us defeat vaccine mandates in Colorado in 2019 and will help make America healthy again by shaking up HHS and FDA," Polis, an out gay man, wrote. "I hope he leans into personal choice on vaccines rather than bans (which I think are terrible, just like mandates) but what I'm most optimistic about is taking on big pharma and the corporate ag oligopoly to improve our health."
The word of the week at the 2024 HIV Research for Prevention Conference, held last week in Lima, Peru, was "choice."
As in PrEP choice, a driving concern for the more than 1,300 scientists, advocates, community representatives, and policymakers who gathered at the fifth annual HIVR4P conference, organized by the International AIDS Society.
"This is the only global scientific conference focused exclusively on the rapidly evolving field of HIV prevention research," said Dr. Beatriz Grinsztejn, the infectious diseases researcher serving as IAS president, addressing the event's opening press conference.
These are challenging times for news organizations. And yet it’s crucial we stay active and provide vital resources and information to both our local readers and the world. So won’t you please take a moment and consider supporting Metro Weekly with a membership? For as little as $5 a month, you can help ensure Metro Weekly magazine and MetroWeekly.com remain free, viable resources as we provide the best, most diverse, culturally-resonant LGBTQ coverage in both the D.C. region and around the world. Memberships come with exclusive perks and discounts, your own personal digital delivery of each week’s magazine (and an archive), access to our Member's Lounge when it launches this fall, and exclusive members-only items like Metro Weekly Membership Mugs and Tote Bags! Check out all our membership levels here and please join us today!
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has issued an apology for comments she made praising former President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy Reagan’s legacy on AIDS at former the First Lady’s funeral on Friday.
Speaking to MSNBC during the televised broadcast of the funeral, Clinton said that the Reagans “started a national conversation” about the AIDS epidemic when “nobody would talk about it.”
“It may be hard for your viewers to remember how difficult it was for people to talk about HIV/AIDS back in the 1980s,” Clinton said. “…When before nobody would talk about it, nobody wanted to do anything about it, and that too is something that I really appreciate with her very effective, low key advocacy but it penetrated the public conscious and people began to say, ‘Hey, we have to do something about this too.'”
Clinton’s comments were shocking to many within and close to the LGBT community, as the Reagans are often blamed for ignoring or making light of the severity of the AIDS crisis. Last year, on World AIDS Day, Vanity Fair debuted a short documentary, When AIDS Was Funny that included audio of Reagan’s press secretary, Larry Speakes, laughing off a question from a journalist asking about the White House’s response to AIDS. And BuzzFeed’s Chris Geidner reported that Nancy Reagan even turned down a plea from her friend, actor Rock Hudson, who was suffering from the disease, to help get him transferred to another hospital that could better treat him.
Immediately, the former Secretary of State’s critics pounced on her comments, with the Huffington Post’s JamesMichael Nichols characterizing them as “polarizing, inaccurate — not to mention offensive.” Gawker’s Sam Biddle accused Clinton of “revisionism” on the history of the AIDS crisis, calling the comments “shocking, insulting and utterly inexplicable.” Prominent LGBT and AIDS activist Cleve Jones took to Facebook, writing: “Hillary Clinton is praising Ronald and Nancy Reagan for ‘starting a national conversation’ about HIV/AIDS. Utter bullshit. Disgusting. Really, just stop it.”
Even allies of the Democratic frontrunner criticized the comments, with Chad Griffin, the president of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) — which has endorsed Clinton for president — took to Twitter, writing: “While I respect her advocacy on issues like stem cell & Parkinson’s research, Nancy Reagan was, sadly, no hero in the fight against HIV/AIDS.”
Within hours, Clinton’s campaign issued an apology, as well as a statement elaborating on and clarifying her past record on HIV/AIDS. The campaign also took to Twitter, writing: “While the Reagans were strong advocates for stem cell research and finding a cure for Alzheimer’s disease, I misspoke about their record on HIV and AIDS. For that, I’m sorry.”
READ NEXT