“Still, the Chinese did not give in. At one point, an advisor who was present recalled, Clinton finally seemed to catch their attention by mentioning what a political circus the case had become — with Chen even dialing into a U.S. congressional hearing that Thursday by cell phone from his hospital bed to say he feared for his safety if he remained in China. The Chinese team was visibly surprised. Eventually, Dai agreed at least to let the negotiations proceed. A few hours later, exhausted U.S. officials announced a deal.
By the next morning when we met, it was already clear this had been the most intense high-stakes diplomacy of Clinton’s tenure as secretary of state. She had worked hard to rescue Chen without blowing up the American relationship with China, but it was not yet obvious whether she had accomplished either goal. The Chinese were furious about the embarrassing attention to their human rights abuses. Clinton and her aides were being pilloried at home by everyone from Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney to the human rights community for abandoning Chen at the hospital. And the secretary was still worried about the deal. ‘Until he’s actually out and up with his family,’ she told me, ‘it’s still touch and go.'”
While I am not in 100% agreement with our policy toward Syria, Russia, and the subsequent intersections in Central Asia where rampant and ongoing human rights abuses are so often an afterthought to lucrative resource deals, this is nevertheless an excellent article about Hillary Clinton.
Article: Head of State (Foreign Policy)
Wayfaring Feminist 