MASSIVE GAG ALERT
NEW DELHI: She came, she spoke and she conquered - US Senator Hillary Clinton left an indelible impression on young and first-time Indian MPs during an all-too-brief 15-minute interaction with them during her visit here.
"She was amazing. We all were very excited," gushed first-time Congress MP Naveen Jindal when asked about the meeting during Clinton's three-day visit to India last week.
The meeting, though "short but sweet", gave the MPs a chance to listen to her views on India-US relations, share their concerns about the two democratic countries and ask her questions about various issues ranging from Iraq to new US visa rules.
The MPs, who were completely bowled over by the former US first lady, did not conceal their excitement about the meeting.
"She looked stunning in her black trousers and fuchsia coloured silk jacket," said one of them.
"But she smartly dodged our queries on her prospect of becoming the next American president," said Jitin Prasada, also a first time Congress MP.
Many MPs pointed out that Clinton spoke of her "special bonding" with India.
"India has been closer to my heart since I visited this country with my daughter Chelsea in 1995. That bond strengthened when I visited here with my husband (former US president Bill Clinton)," one of the 25-odd MPs who attended the meeting quoted Hillary Clinton as saying.
"Chelsea also still cherishes her memories about India. It's vital to have closer interactions between the two democratic countries," the senator added.
When BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad, a former minister, asked Clinton about the US' "tilt" towards Pakistan, she admitted that India played a crucial role in fighting terrorism, but said the US wanted Pakistan also to do that.
"She was very diplomatic, supported the Bush government's foreign policies and was frank enough to say that she also believed an immediate troop withdrawal from Iraq would not be good," said Madhu Goud Yaskhi, a New York attorney who won his first Lok Sabha victory on the Congress ticket.
Clinton assured Yaskhi, who asked if there was a move to increase H1-B visas, that the Democrats would support such a move in the senate.
Yaskhi will forever remember the meeting.
"When I told her that I was once her constituent and was now a member of the Indian parliament, she asked me about what I was doing, why I had come back and how I felt here. She was very sweet," Yaskhi said.
To businessman-turned-politician Vijay Mallya, who spoke of the difficulties Indians faced due to visa restrictions, Clinton said: "You have to understand what we are going through in the post-September 11 scenario. One has to live with this."
The senator also urged the Indian government to facilitate investors if it wanted to improve inflows into the country.
"I would always prefer India to China because it's a democratic country," she told Jyotiraditya Scindia of the Congress.
Where necessary, Clinton did not hesitate to call a spade a spade.
"You do not have good airports or good roads, so how will you attract investments. Look at China, they have developed all the infrastructure facilities required," she maintained.
Onkar Singh Kanwar, president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and banker Deepak Bagla, apart from a few other businessmen also attended the meeting, organised by the Young Parliamentarians' Forum.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1037093.cms
MARTHA Stewart has lost so much weight in jail, she needs a whole new wardrobe. The domestic diva has dropped close to 20 pounds due to workouts, yoga and her inability to eat prison food — so she sent daughter Alexis to get her some clothes to fit her new, svelte figure. Alexis and a Bergdorf Goodman personal shopper were "ostentatiously" perusing the racks last week for size 12. "They decided on a $3,980 suede jacket for Martha," said our spy, "among other things. I guess it will be Martha's 'coming out' look." Stewart gets out this weekend. (Page Six)
In 15 minutes? The way Hillary drones on there were probably all of two questions asked and maybe one of them was answered.
Hillary the hawk takes flight again...
(1010 WINS) (WASHINGTON) Democratic Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton called Tuesday for tougher punishment against Syria, saying the country was aggressively supporting terrorism in the "dangerous neighborhood" of the Middle East.
In lambasting Syria, Clinton joined a growing chorus of officials in Washington urging the United States to take a harsher stance against that country following a Feb. 14 bombing in Beirut that killed the former premier of Lebanon.
Speaking to the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, Clinton branded Syria and Iran bad neighbors bent on upsetting the fragile balance in the region.More