Hillary Clinton could have printed the Bible and then some with all of the paper she used to print out fawning emails, news coverage, and shopping lists, according to a Washington Free Beacon analysis.
Clinton ordered underlings to print out more than 500 emails and articles during her four-year tenure as secretary of state. On a typical day, staffers, friends, insiders, thought leaders, and activists, including Gigli star Ben Affleck, would send emails about their pet issues, offering analysis, or giving Clinton praise. The frontrunner for the Democratic presidential nomination would then forward the message or article to an underling with orders to "Pls print."
On April 6, 2010, the advertising executive in charge of rebranding Hillary 2.0 for the 2016 campaign emailed Clinton to share his thoughts of her performance as secretary of state. The email—the subject line of which was "Hi sis. My name is Roy Spence and I love you and"—reads as follows:
I miss you a lot. And I have no idea how you keep on keeping on doing whatever it takes to lift people-everywhere up- championing your Core Purpose of Fighting and digging deep for the opportunity for each person to be able to live up to their God Given Potential. Here and Around the world. The struggle for an Iran that is more concerned about its people than false power. The relentless quest to stabilize the un-stable. The never give up journey to inspire and empower women and young girls to have a seat at the table of full opportunity. The pursuit for opening doors of happiness for those who struggle with the unimaginable. The steady. The Steadfast. The unwavering commitment to the dream-not the hope-but the dream of a better USA and world for all. The tough and uncompromising ‘pretend leaders’ whom you have negotiate with. The opinion rich and caring poor arrogance of the mean spirited. The stuff that is on the news but is not really the real news. The love and respect you give freely to all whom love life and liberty and opportunity for all. The raw respect that you have earned in the trenches of real fears, real love and real longing for a village that is Dedicated to raising a village and its children. So I say to a beloved and dear love one-that be you-I love you. I respect you. I miss you. I cherish every moment of our remarkable journey together. God Speed. Dear Sis. We shall cross paths soon. And until then. Onward in all things.
"Pls print," Clinton said in an email to an aide three days later. She left the same instructions for staffers when Spence emailed one month later to start up "HRC University," a knock off of famed world class Trump University.
"To empower people everywhere with knowledge, purpose and passion so that they are destined-not lucky-to fully develop their God-given talents. We are in the Full Potential Business-here and around the world," Spence said.
A Free Beacon review of every "Pls print" email by the State Department estimates that she would have used 1,849 pieces of paper to print out all of the materials requested—enough paper to print out a standard Bible and Clinton’s second memoir, Hard Choices.
Those estimates come from the page breaks in the emails, as well as the Print pages of news articles linked therein. The list is not yet complete, as the State Department has only released over 60 percent of the 55,000 pages of emails she delivered—in paper form—to the State Department.
The 1,849 pages are the minimum amount of paper needed to handle Clinton’s frequent requests. Many of the messages were cut off because they contained classified material, while others contained reading material with missing links or attached documents, which were not disclosed in the State Department releases. In some instances, staffers responded to her printing instructions by acknowledging that they printed out back-up copies, as well.
The analysis also does not take into consideration whether Clinton, 68, required larger print in order to spare her eyes the strain of reading.
On Feb. 21, 2011, Clinton’s 2008 speechwriter Lissa Muscatine forwarded her a Salon article offering tips on how Clinton can argue that she is a real pro-life politician while continuing to support abortion up to the point of birth. Clinton forwarded the email to an underling, saying "Pls print in bigger print."
Clinton’s habit of printing out emails, notes, inspirational Maya Angelou and Ruth Bader Ginsburg quotes, supportive memes about "the Bosslady," supportive tweets, and articles may put her at odds with the environmentalist movement she is championing in her 2016 run.
On June 24, 2011, President Bill Clinton Chief of Staff Thomas "Mack" McLarty emailed Hillary Chief of Staff Heather Mills to alert her to an invitation from The Nature Conservancy. "Pls print," she said the following day. The conservancy was a featured guest at the 2011 Clinton Global Initiative months later and continues to support CGI and the foundation. It also recommends that employers go green by cutting back on their paper use and printing.
Clinton’s own emails had reminders of the environmental damage caused by printing. Retired Navy Admiral Bill Owens, the Guardian newspaper, and representatives from the Yemeni and UAE embassies sent messages to Clinton saying, "Please consider the environment before printing this email." Printing out all of those pages left a sizable carbon footprint. Printer company HP’s online calculator estimates that Clinton used 405 pounds of energy and CO2 emissions, enough to drive a gas-guzzling Hummer H2 more than 275 miles. The 148 kilowatt hours required to print all of that paper would be enough to power Al Gore’s Tennessee mansion for almost six hours.
Clinton staffers sparred over the secretary’s reading materials. In March 2011 former senior adviser Anne Marie Slaughter emailed Clinton a link to a story about a notorious Army "kill team" accused of executing Afghan civilians with the subject "Abu Grahib-like pics from Afghanistan." Chief of Staff Heather Mills replied curtly accusing Slaughter of not caring enough for Clinton’s self esteem.
"You HAVE to give her a break from these kinds of emails - if you knew what she has been doing you would, given who you are and how protective of her to be her best self - you would in context not send this to her," she said.
Clinton asked for the emails to be printed.
Clinton did not limit the printouts to foreign policy articles and effusive emails from underlings and staffers. She also printed out lists of expensive China patterns, restaurants, and shopping destinations overseas.
"Sorry for the delay in getting a shopping list together. It has been a busy week. Do you have an advance person here? Do you need me to make any arrangements for you? I know many of the shop owners/designers I am recommending (but not all of them.)," Nancy Hernreich Bowen said in an email to top Clinton aide Huma Abedin, the beleaguered wife of Anthony Weiner, in an email subject-lined, "Hong Kong shopping."
Bowen works for Teneo Holdings, a company tied to the Clintons and former White House counsel Doug Band. Abedin drew a $355,000 salary from Teneo while she was working at the State Department. A department inspector general report found that she had been overpaid by thousands of taxpayer dollars, findings that are now being reviewed.
A Clinton campaign spokesman called the Free Beacon a "tour de force" but otherwise declined comment on her printing habits.