This week, the State Department unveiled a painting of former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, which was met with widespread mockery on social media.
Several influential accounts on X poked fun at the painting. They condemned Clinton for receiving the honor, citing the terror attack in Benghazi, Libya, in which four U.S. diplomats were killed, which occurred during Clinton’s time as Secretary of State.
Clinton was presented with the honor by current Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday at the State Department headquarters in Foggy Bottom, Washington, D.C., where the image was unveiled.
During the ceremony, the painting was unveiled to reveal a picture of Clinton wearing a green dress and standing in front of an American flag. As Clinton saw the image for the first time, she smiled and laughed at the audience’s applause.
Later, the 67th Secretary of State shared the image to X. She provided a caption for the post, stating, “Today, I was honored to return to the @StateDept and join @SecBlinken in unveiling my official portrait as 67th Secretary of State. We’re delighted to share it with the American public right here in case you don’t make it in person to headquarters in Foggy Bottom anytime soon.”
In a subsequent post, the former Democratic presidential candidate recounted her time starting the role: “When I walked into the State Department as Secretary fourteen years ago, I knew that having the honor to lead the State Department and USAID would be a singular challenge and a unique chance to do good in the world. It was that and so much more.”
“I’m deeply proud of all that we accomplished and grateful to everyone at the Department for their unflagging work to ensure peace, progress, and prosperity around the world. They continue to make me and our country proud,” Clinton concluded.
However, the former top U.S. diplomat’s image has drawn backlash from X users.
The Federalist’s co-founder, Sean Davis, responded to Clinton’s post with a photo of the late U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens, who was killed in the attack along with three other Americans, to remind her of the tragedy in Benghazi.
Eric Spracklen, a digital strategist and conservative user of X, said, “The American public, however, was not delighted to see it.”
In response to Clinton’s tweet, the official account for the House Judiciary Committee tweeted a map of the city of Benghazi.
The Republicans for National Renewal account wrote an enraged reply to Clinton that read, “You should be in jail.”
Gerald Celente of the Trends Research Institute posted, “Two complete disasters: @HillaryClinton and @SecBlinken.”
Buzz Patterson, a columnist for the conservative website RedState, condemned the ceremony honoring Clinton, asking, “What the hell are we doing? Hillary? That Hillary?!”