I'm not really a big fan of Hillary Clinton -- I don't hate her, but I don't think she is some great savior of the Democratic Party, and she has a certain ceiling (which I think she's hit). Most of my irritation probably came from her going from "I'm not going to be some Tammy Wynette, standing by my man" to her staying with someone who lied to her and cheated on her. It's easy to judge other women who stay with cheating husbands, but not as easy when you face that situation yourself. The irony of course is that she had already faced it before she gave that '92 interview, so I guess she just said what she had to say to shift with the political winds through that decade. There's no doubt that she is a savvy strategist. Calculated but savvy. Some GOP pundit pointed out that a large majority of the candidates she campaigned for this year were (re)elected, while many of her husband's candidates were defeated.
Anyway, I wondered, in all seriousness, what you admire about Sen. Clinton. Clearly there are some positive qualities and it's only fair to point them out.
The main thing that I respect her for is that after those first few rocky years she has managed to confound and outwit her opponents, taking their best weapons and clubbing them over the head, using their blind hatred of her to generate sympathy and fierce loyalty (and the loyalty towards her does seem very personal, whereas with Bill it's part charm but also part nostalgia for some campaign gone by), and tailoring her message in a way that causes most of the easily distracted public to have no hard feelings towards her while her enemies are awed and outraged all at once. They really do seem to be in love with her. I think she's their ideal woman, whether they will ever say it out loud or not. The obsession with her is fascinating.
I also admire her vastly improved hair and fashion sense. No more headbands, praise Jesus! She should give Liddy Dole a few tips (never a good idea to wear clothes the same color as your dye job, Liddy, you look like a blood clot).