Lunching with Hillary Clinton is no routine affair. When I arrive at Washington’s sleek Park Hyatt hotel, the somewhat jittery manager steers me to a discreet side door to await her arrival. After several minutes of awkward small talk, it turns out Clinton already came through the front entrance and has been seated for some minutes. They whisk me past her secret service detail to a semi-enclosed dining area of the Blue Duck Tavern, the hotel’s Michelin-starred, locally sourced restaurant. Clinton is chatting with Nick Merrill, her longtime aide, who stayed on with her after she stepped down as secretary of state in 2013.
與希拉里?克林頓(Hillary Clinton)共進午餐并非尋常之事。當我抵達華盛頓時髦的柏悅酒店(Park Hyatt)時，有些緊張的經理把我領到一個不起眼的側門，等待她的到來。經過幾分鐘尷尬的閑聊，原來克林頓已經從前門進來了，并且已經坐了幾分鐘。他們帶我匆匆經過她的特勤隊，來到藍鴨酒館(Blue Duck Tavern)的一個半封閉的用餐區。藍鴨酒館是這家酒店的米其林星級餐廳，使用的食材均來自當地。克林頓正在和她的長期助手尼克·梅里爾(Nick Merrill)聊天。2013年她辭去國務卿職務后，梅里爾一直陪著她。