Hillary and Obama: Self-Proclaimed 'Frenemies,' And Maybe Even Friends

Remember back in 2008 when then-presidential candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were anything but BFFs?

Obama sniped that Clinton was "likeable enough" during a debate, while Clinton scoffed that his foreign policy experience consisted of living in Indonesia when he was ten.

Fast-forward less than two years and the relationship between these former adversaries has transformed. And even though President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton are still not exactly BFFs — they jokingly refer to each other as "frenemies" — it seems like these two have officially crossed the line into true friendship.

"We’ve developed, I think, a very good rapport, really positive back and forth about everything you can imagine," Clinton told The New York Times in a front-page story analyzing the relationship between the two former political rivals. "And we’ve had some interesting and even unusual experiences along the way."

What's clear is that they have come a long way since they both took office a year ago, when Vice President Joe Biden served as a sort of go-between as the two awkwardly developed their working relationship.

"Hillary would say to me, 'How do you think I should present this to the president?'" Biden recalled in an interview. “And I’d say, Whoa, just present it to him. And Barack would say, 'Does she know what a good job I think she’s doing?’ I’d say, Just tell her."

Now, the pair meet every Thursday afternoon for a foreign policy meeting, and their relationship has gotten so chummy that when Obama learned Chelsea Clinton became engaged, he told her mom she was welcome to tie the knot at the White House. Clinton declined, but declared his offer "sweet."

By all accounts, Clinton and Obama's relationship continues to be a work in progress, but as the two work together to tackle foreign policy issues, it's reassuring they have successfully used diplomacy to forge a positive bond with each other.

Photo by Pete Souza via Wikimedia Commons.