By Jordan Stephen
For liberals, it is a broken record. For conservatives, it is proof of deceit. For the candidate, it is nothing but a headache.
Try as she may, Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton cannot shake the controversy over her use of a personal email account during her tenure as Secretary of State.
Millennials, like the rest of the country, tend to be divided on the issue along party lines, but are more concerned with consequential political issues.
For nearly six months, the 2016 hopeful's campaign has been trying with little success to steer the conversation towards policy propositions.
Clinton's frustration was apparent at a press conference earlier in the month stating she doesn't know "how it works digitally at all." As she left the room with her hands in the air, she told reporters "nobody talks to me about it other than you guys." Scrutiny regarding the emails has intensified since the Federal Bureau of Investigation launched an inquiry into whether any classified information was at risk during Clinton's time at the State Department.
The investigation was categorized as a counterintelligence referral, not a criminal referral.Millennials, however, have flocked to policy-focused candidates such as Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.) and former Governor of Florida Jeb Bush, suggesting they care less about attacking character and more about how contenders plan on tackling big issues.
Regardless, attempts by the former Secretary of State to reshape the dialogue have mostly fallen flat. The announcement of a comprehensive student debt plan and the supposed leak of a meeting with the Black Lives Matter activist group did little to quell the onslaught of probing.
Clinton is no stranger to volleys from the political press. For more than 20 years, she has been in the limelight as she went from the White House, to the Senate and then to Foggy Bottom.
But, despite her experience, the candidate alienated reporters early on in her campaign by virtually shunning them. One incident where journalists were literally corralled with rope has come to typify the approach.
The use of a personal email server is having a considerable effect on her perceived level of trustworthiness, with as much as three fifths of the country viewing her as dishonest, according to a recent Quinnipiac University poll.
Public perception aside, Clinton is still riding high among both her Democratic and potential Republican opponents. Real Clear Politics shows her more than 20 points ahead of the runner up Sanders and winning out over theoretical matchups with every Republican candidate.
Even if Clinton cannot fully overcome the accusations of deception, her lead is wide enough to let her sit back until the story fizzles out. She better take a few aspirin in the meantime.
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