Outwardly, they put on a show of unity — but privately, the Obamas and Clintons, the two power couples of the Democrat Party, loathe each other.
“I hate that man Obama more than any man I’ve ever met, more than any man who ever lived,” Bill Clinton said to friends on one occasion, adding he would never forgive Obama for suggesting he was a racist during the 2008 campaign.
The feeling is mutual. Obama made excuses not to talk to Bill, while the first lady privately sniped about Hillary.
On most evenings, Michelle Obama and her trusted adviser, Valerie Jarrett, met in a quiet corner of the White House residence. They’d usually open a bottle of Chardonnay, catch up on news about Sasha and Malia, and gossip about people who gave them heartburn.
Their favorite bête noire was Hillary Clinton, whom they nicknamed “Hildebeest,” after the menacing and shaggy-maned gnu that roams the Serengeti.
‘Michelle could be president’
The animosity came to a head in the run-up to the 2012 election, when Obama’s inner circle insisted he needed the former president’s support to win. Obama finally telephoned Bill Clinton in September 2011 and invited him out for a round of golf.
“I’m not going to enjoy this,” Bill told Hillary when they gathered with a group of friends and political associates at Whitehaven, their neo-Georgian home on Embassy Row in Washington, DC.
“I’ve had two successors since I left the White House — Bush and Obama — and I’ve heard more from Bush, asking for my advice, than I’ve heard from Obama. I have no relationship with the president — none whatsoever,” Clinton said.
“I really can’t stand the way Obama always seems to be hectoring when he talks to me,” Clinton added, according to someone who was present at the gathering and spoke on the condition of anonymity. “Sometimes we just stare at each other. It’s pretty damn awkward. Now we both have favors to ask each other, and it’s going to be very unpleasant. But I’ve got to get this guy to owe me and to be on our side.”
During the golf game, Clinton didn’t waste any time reminding Obama that as president he had presided over eight years of prosperity, while Obama had been unable to dig the country out of the longest financial doldrums since the great Depression.
“Bill got into it right away,” said a Clinton family friend. “He told Obama, ‘Hillary and I are gearing up for a run in 2016.’ He said Hillary would be ‘the most qualified, most experienced candidate, perhaps in history.’ His reference to Hillary’s experience made Obama wince, since it was clearly a shot at his lack of experience when he ran for president.
“And so Bill continued to talk about Hillary’s qualifications . . . and the coming campaign in 2016. But Barack didn’t bite. He changed the subject several times. Then suddenly, Barack said something that took Bill by complete surprise. He said, ‘You know, Michelle would make a great presidential candidate, too.’
“Bill was speechless. Was Barack comparing Michelle’s qualifications to Hillary’s? Bill said that if he hadn’t been on a mission to strike a deal with Barack, he might have stormed off the golf course then and there.”
Blackberry snub
Bill Clinton would go on to campaign for Obama in 2012, but he felt betrayed when the president seemed to waver when it came to a 2016 endorsement of Hillary. Obama attempted to smooth things over with a joint “60 Minutes” interview with Hillary, and later a private dinner for the two couples at the White House.
‘I HATE THAT MAN OBAMA MORE THAN ANY MAN I’VE EVER MET, MORE THAN ANY MAN WHO EVER LIVED.’ - Bill Clinton In 'Blood Feud'
And so, on March 1, 2013 — the very day that the $85 billion in budget cuts known as the “sequester” went into effect — the Clintons slipped unnoticed into the White House and sat down for dinner with the Obamas in the Residence.
Typically, once Obama decided to do something (for example, the surge in Afghanistan), he immediately had second thoughts, and his behavior during dinner degenerated from moody to grumpy to bad-tempered.
After the obligatory greetings and small talk about family, Obama asked Bill what he thought about the sequester: Would it turn out to be a political plus for him? Bill went into a long — and boring — lecture about the issue.
To change the subject, Hillary asked Michelle if it was true, as she had heard, that the first lady was thinking about running for the Senate from Illinois.
Michelle said that she was warming to the idea, though she had yet to make up her mind.
Bill shot Hillary a look of incredulity.
Bill then moved the conversation to Obama’s vaunted 2012 campaign organization. He told Obama that it would be a good idea to fold the organization, along with all its digital and social-media bells and whistles, into the Democratic National Committee.
Obama’s only response was a disparaging smile.
President Barack Obama acts cordial with former President Clinton but it’s all for show, according to the new book “Blood Feud,” by journalist Edward Klein.Photo: White House
“You have to use your organization to aid the candidate in 2016,” Bill pressed Obama.
“Really?” Obama replied in a tone of undisguised sarcasm.
The two men went back and forth over the subject of where the money for Obama’s campaign organization had come from and how to allocate funds for the 2016 presidential election. Bill raised his voice. So did Obama.
As Bill Clinton went on about his managerial experience, Obama began playing with his Blackberry under the table, making it plain that he wasn’t paying attention to anything Clinton had to say. He was intentionally snubbing Clinton. Others around the table noticed Obama thumbing his Blackberry, and the atmosphere turned even colder than before.
Hillary changed the subject again.
“Are you glad you won’t have to campaign again?” she asked Obama. “You don’t seem to enjoy it.”
“For a guy who doesn’t like it,” Obama replied tartly, “I’ve done pretty well.”
“Well,” Bill said, adding his two cents, “I was glad to pitch in and help get you re-elected.”
There was another long pause. Finally, Obama turned to Bill and said, sotto voce, “Thanks.”
After the dinner, and once the Clintons had been ushered out of the family quarters, Obama shook his head and said, “That’s why I never invite that guy over.”
Obama’s mini-me
Lately, Bill Clinton has become convinced that Obama won’t endorse Hillary in 2016. During a gathering at Whitehaven, guests overheard Bill talking to his daughter Chelsea about whether the president would back Joe Biden.
“Recently, I’ve been hearing a different scenario from state committeemen,” Clinton said. “They say he’s looking for a candidate who’s just like him. Someone relatively unknown. Someone with a fresh face.
“He’s convinced himself he’s been a brilliant president, and wants to clone himself — to find his Mini-Me.
“积不相能，猜疑妒忌。”在新书《血海深仇》（Blood Feud）中，美国资深媒体人爱德华•克莱因如此形容奥巴马夫妇与克林顿夫妇之间的关系，他认为两家的积怨可能在2016年总统大选期间集中爆发。
克莱因曾供职于《新闻周刊》、《名利场》、《纽约时代杂志》等多家媒体并身居高位，利用手握的独家内幕，他先后发表关于肯尼迪家族、希拉里和奥巴马等人的文章和内幕，其作品多次登上《纽约时报》畅销书排行榜。
***人前友爱人后厌恶
表面上，美国民主党最有权势的两对夫妻——奥巴马夫妇和克林顿夫妇——表现得团结友爱；私底下，他们却相互厌恶、势如水火。
“我厌恶奥巴马胜过我所见过的任何人、胜过活着的任何人。”曾经在某个场合，希拉里的丈夫克林顿直白地表达对奥巴马的反感，他说自己永远不能原谅奥巴马在2008年大选时暗示他是种族主义者的言论。
而这种厌恶是相互的。奥巴马的妻子米歇尔经常会与其信赖的助手瓦莱丽•贾勒特在白宫把酒闲聊，除了谈论米歇尔的两个女儿之外，抨击希拉里是两人的最爱。米歇尔和贾勒特甚至给希拉里起了个绰号“Hildebeest”，这个词由希拉里的名字（Hillary）与牛羚（wildebeest）合成。
***“米歇尔也能当总统”
竞选连任时，顾问团坚称奥巴马需要请克林顿来为他站台。诚不得已，奥巴马于2011年9月给克林顿打电话，邀请他一起去打高尔夫。
“我不会喜欢这次会面。”成行之前，克林顿在自家举行的一场聚会上向妻子说明了他的看法，“我离开白宫之后有两位继任者——布什和奥巴马，前者经常向我请教治国之道，后者很少。我跟这个总统没有关系，一点关系都没有。”
据偶然听见克林顿夫妇对话的一位与会者透露，克林顿还愤愤然地补充道：“奥巴马跟我说话时，总是一副居高临下的口气，我真是受不了。有时我们面对面干瞪眼，简直太尴尬了。但现在我们都有求于对方，尽管见面会很不愉快，我还是会让这个家伙欠我一份人情、站到我这边。”
待到打球之时，克林顿无时无刻不在提醒奥巴马，他在位八年期间美国繁荣昌盛，而奥巴马却治国无方始终没能领导美国走出经济困境。
“克林顿告诉奥巴马，‘希拉里和我正在为2016年总统大选做准备，她可能是史上最有资质、最有经验的竞选人’，暗示要奥巴马支持他的妻子。”克林顿夫妇一位共同的朋友透露，克林顿的滔滔不绝令奥巴马有些厌烦，“奥巴马撂出一句狠话，‘你知道的，米歇尔也将是一位很棒的总统竞选人’，这令克林顿哑口无言。奥巴马拿毫无从政经验的米歇尔跟希拉里比？克林顿愤怒了，他说如果不是自己还有求于奥巴马，当时愤而离场了。”
***共进晚餐火药味十足
奥巴马成功连任后，克林顿感觉自己遭到背叛了，因为奥巴马在公开场合谈及2016年大选支持希拉里事宜时显得犹豫不决。于是，2013年3月1日，美国自动削减赤字机制生效的当天，克林顿夫妇悄悄进入白宫，与奥巴马夫妇共进晚餐。
程式化寒暄结束后，奥巴马询问克林顿对于自动减赤的看法：“你觉得这会为我加分吗？”之后，克林顿打开了话匣子，开始了一段冗长、无趣的“演讲”。
为了改变话题、活跃气氛，希拉里问米歇尔她是不是真的考虑竞选伊利诺伊州参议员。米歇尔回答道，她有兴趣但还没决定。
此时，克林顿看了希拉里一眼，眼神中满是怀疑。接着，他又把话题转向奥巴马的2012年竞选团队，建议将该团队的所有资源转移到民主党全国委员会，但换来的只是奥巴马轻蔑的一笑。
克林顿仍不放弃，他继续强调：“你应该用你的团队去帮助2016年的党内候选人。”“真的吗？”奥巴马的话语里讽刺意味明显。然而，二人在此话题上展开唇枪舌战、嗓门越来越高。
言语交锋终告一段落，克林顿继续讲述自己的治国经验，奥巴马的耐心耗尽、连敷衍都不愿意，开始在桌子底下玩起手机。奥巴马有意冷落克林顿的举动，被所有人看在眼里，饭桌上的气氛变得更为尴尬。
于是，希拉里决定为丈夫解围。“不用再参加竞选了，你很高兴吧？”希拉里问奥巴马，“看上去你并不喜欢竞选。”“对于一个不喜欢竞选的人来说，”奥巴马毫不客气地回应说，“我做得很棒了。”“不错，”克林顿也不相让，“我很乐意帮助你再次当选。”这时出现了一段长时间的沉默，最后，奥巴马转向克林顿，低声说了句“谢谢啊。”
用餐完毕，终于把克林顿夫妇“扫地出门”了，奥巴马摇了摇头，说了一句：“这就是为什么我从不邀请这家伙的原因。”
***“他在寻找迷你版的奥巴马”
不久前，克林顿终于开始相信奥巴马不会在2016年总统大选中支持希拉里。在一次聚会上，有人听见克林顿和他的女儿切尔西聊起此事。
“最近，不少国会议员告诉我，奥巴马正在寻找一位跟他相似的候选人，某个知名度不那么高的新鲜面孔。”克林顿认为，这个人有可能是现任副总统拜登。
“奥巴马自认为是位杰出的总统，所以想克隆自己。”克林顿说，“他相信美国人民不愿投票给政坛老手，他说我和你的妈妈都‘活在20世纪（已经过时了）’，他在寻找一个迷你版的贝拉克•奥巴马。”
***“希拉里的心脏有问题”
在《血海深仇》一书中，希拉里的真实健康状况首次曝光。据称，这位热门潜在总统竞选人的健康问题比她对外公布的情况要严重得多。
“她把自己的病史藏起来，是担心一旦曝光，她将失去竞选总统的资格。”书中写道，2012年底希拉里入院接受治疗期间，被诊断出患有多种严重疾病。除右耳后侧、大脑和颅骨之间一条血管内有血栓外，她还患有甲状腺疾病，她的心律不齐、心脏瓣膜无法有规律地进行开放和关闭，影响血液流动。并且，因血栓而晕倒，希拉里早已习以为常。
克莱因曾试图联系希拉里的主治医生艾伦•施瓦兹，询问希拉里的心脏问题是否严重，但施瓦兹拒绝回应。不过，据一位知情人士透露，医生曾建议希拉里接受心脏瓣膜置换手术，尽管最终决定不做手术，但希拉里出院时，医生提醒克林顿必须仔细“监控”妻子。
