A CNN interview taped Friday shows a subdued Democratic Party presidential nominee Hillary Clinton repeatedly taking unnatural breathing pauses mid-sentence.
The subject of the interview with Chris Cuomo was Clinton’s recollections of the 9/11 terror attacks. Clinton was a newly elected U.S. senator from New York at the time having started her term in January 2001.
Screen image from CNN interview.
Clinton is wearing the same outfit she wore at a Friday press conference on national security where her listless demeanor caused alarm in a seasoned campaign reporter concerned about her health. Toward the end of the press conference, Clinton cut her remarks short and walked behind a pillar to hide a coughing fit out of camera range.
CNN posted Clinton’s interview in two parts to You Tube.
A subdued appearing Clinton looks like she plopped down in the chair for the interview. As the interview opens she is leaned back in the wooden chair with her legs kicked out and crossed at the ankles, her hands clasped on her stomach. In contrast Cuomo, sitting in a similar chair, is sitting straight and leans in for emphasis when questioning Clinton.
Clinton speaks in a soft voice, and in addition to normal pauses to formulate a thought Clinton continually pauses mid-sentence in unnatural places in order to get enough breath to complete the sentence.
Clinton’s breathing is not labored as she is careful not exert herself. Clinton is not seen coughing in the pre-recorded interview. She is seen speaking slowly and in a low voice that allows her to speak without gasping, but still not in her normal speaking style. Several times her voice suddenly gets softer as she is speaking.
Clinton is a little more animated in the second part of the interview, but still takes unnatural pauses and drops her voice unexpectedly. Clinton rallied to close out the interview in an energetic (for her) fashion.
Clinton collapsed two days after this interview while she was attending the commemoration at Ground Zero in New York City marking the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
