The Clinton–Lewinsky sex scandal is one of the most publicly discussed political scandals of all time, which resulted in charges of perjury and impeachment being filed against US President Bill Clinton.

Bill Clinton, born in Arkansas, USA, is the 42nd President of the United States of America (1993–2001). He was the youngest president to serve two full terms in the Oval Office, yet his mark on history among the list of U.S. presidents can be termed as both controversial and notorious.

January 17, 1998, marked the day when the whole world witnessed the Clinton–Lewinsky sex scandal. Monica Lewinsky - an intern at the White House during 1995–1996 - came into public attention as the secret girlfriend of Bill Clinton. This expose turned Clinton's presidency upside down and became the biggest scandal after Watergate. 

In the episode released recently in Feb 26, 2025 of the famous American podcaster Alex Copper’s Call Her Daddy podcast, Lewinsky opened up about the infamous scandal that has followed her for decades. She shared in the podcast : “People have been co-opting and telling my part in this (Her Intimacy with Bill Clinton) story for decades. In fact, it wasn't until the past few years that I've been able to fully reclaim my narrative—almost 20 years later.”

Beginning of the Scandal

Back in July 1995, as a young 21-year-old college graduate, Monika Lewinsky moved to Washington, D.C., where she landed an unpaid internship at the White House. What was supposed to be the beginning of her career turned out to be something no less than a reputation sabotaging disaster which will haunt her for the rest of her life.

Bill Clinton, who was 49 at that time and serving the 3rd year of his first term in office, first met Monica Lewinsky in the West Wing where she was working on the calling desk of the POTUS’s chief of staff, Leon Panetta. After the first meet up, Clinton started visiting the west wing more frequently and would try having conversation with Lewinsky.

They started their relationship with subtle flirting, according to the report of Kenneth Starr - an independent counsel appointed by the US senate to investigate allegations of misconduct by President Bill Clinton. He  penned the Starr Report, which laid the basis for the impeachment of the “Boy Governor.” - a name given to President Clinton because of his youthful appearance.

The report stated that in November 1995, during the second day of the government shutdown, their relationship sparked its beginning. Flirtatious confrontations, eye contact, and revealing their mutual crush were how it all began. The report goes on to say that in an attempt to flirt with him, Lewinsky even showed President Clinton “the straps of her thong underwear.” 

Details from the Starr Report

In the testimony, Ms. Lewinsky confirmed that there was a chemistry between her and Bill Clinton. “We talked briefly about a chemistry that was there before and that we were both attracted to each other and then he asked me if he could kiss me.”, said Lewinsky according to the report. 

Their relationship has always been speculated to be more than just an office fling, as it lasted for nearly 18 months. During the course of their relationship, the intern and the president exchanged gifts, spoke on lengthy phone calls, and engaged in sexual encounters.
The president once telephoned Lewinsky to come to the Oval Office “on the pretext of delivering the paper to him.” Inside the folder was a Hugo Boss necktie for Mr. Clinton.

In 1996, Lewinsky was transferred to the Pentagon, where she met Linda Tripp. Tripp was Monica Lewinsky’s co-worker in the public affairs office of the Pentagon. Lewinsky trusted Tripp and began to share her secret with her. Tripp advised the former White House intern to save all the gifts and the semen-stained blue dress as proof—like an “insurance policy.”
Under the influence of Lucianne Goldberg, who was an American literary agent and author, Ms. Tripp began to record their conversations and later handed over the tapes to Kenneth Starr. The tape is said to be 20 hours long.

After the leaks started happening in the public about their secret relationship, Clinton and Lewinsky broke up. Post break up,  and amidst the pressure from the ongoing Paula Jones case in which Clinton was already facing sexual harassment charges, Lewinsky was forced to sign an affidavit that claimed she and the president were never in a sexual relationship.

Paula Jones was a civil servant who sued Clinton for sexual harassment in 1994, which was settled in 1998. The act of distancing himself from Lewinsky, however, did not help Clinton from going his secret relationship public. 

The Aftermath

The news of the affair began circulating, with every media channel covering the scandal and Kenneth Starr pressuring Lewinsky to cooperate. She later added that she was “hounded and terrorized—not just [me] but my family.” Clinton later admitted to having an inappropriate relationship with Lewinsky and publicly apologized for misleading the public, saying, “It was wrong... I misled people, including even my wife. I deeply regret that.”

In 2021, Monica Lewinsky was among the executive producers of Impeachment: American Crime Story, a 10-episode series based on the scandal itself.  [Rh/VS]