Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says her fellow Democrats lived in a state of denial for decades that abortion rights enshrined under the Roe v. Wade decision could be reversed, and insisted that "we could have done more to fight."
"We didn’t take it seriously, and we didn’t understand the threat," Clinton, who lost her bid for the presidency in 2016 to Donald Trump, said in an interview conducted with The New York Times earlier this year and published Saturday.
"Most Democrats, most Americans, did not realize we are in an existential struggle for the future of this country."
And while Democrats were denying that the Supreme Court could revoke the right to an abortion, which in the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health ruling handing abortion decisions back to the states accomplished, the anti-abortion movement was able to hack away at Roe until it was too late to save it, said Clinton.
"One thing I give the right credit for is they never give up," she said. "They are relentless. You know, they take a loss, they get back up, they regroup, they raise more money. It’s tremendously impressive the way that they operate. And we have nothing like it on our side."
Clinton also accused Senate Democrats of being "complacent" and not doing enough to stop the slate of conservative justices appointed under Trump's presidency to be sworn in.
“I just think that most of us who support the rights of women and privacy and the right to make these difficult decisions yourself, you know, we just couldn’t believe what was happening, and as a result, they slowly, surely, and very effectively got what they wanted," Clinton said. "Our side was complacent and kind of taking it for granted and thinking it would never go away.”
Clinton pointed out that while she was running for the White House in 2016, she tried warning people about the anti-abortion efforts, but her concerns were largely dismissed. Polling during that time also showed voters didn't think abortion rights were at risk, The Times reported.
The former senator and first lady also warned that this year's presidential election poses an "existential" threat that if "we don't make the right decision," that could mean "we may never have another actual election."
"I will put that out there because I believe it," Clinton added. "And if we no longer have another actual election, we will be governed by a small minority of right-wing forces that are well organized and well funded and are getting exactly what they want in terms of turning the clock back on women."
Such forces, she continued, are part of a "global phenomena" that restricts women's rights.
Clinton pointed to the push by Chinese leader Xi Jinping to press women to focus on raising children; the punishment of women who do not obey the conservative dress code in Iran; and what she said is the misogyny of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"Authoritarians, whether they be political or religious based, always go after women," she said. "It’s just written in the history. And that’s what will happen in this country."
Clinton also blamed sexism for her loss in 2016, including from women who she said abandoned her for not being "perfect."
"More people have got to wake up because this is the beginning," Clinton said. "They really want us to just shut up and go home. That’s their goal. And nobody should be in any way deluded. That’s what they will force upon us if they are given the chance."