This Is Why Hillary Clinton Wants To Hug Meghan Markle

Hillary Clinton, an apparent hugger, expressed her support for Meghan Markle after the Duchess of Sussex candidly revealed her struggles with being in the public eye as a new mother.

“Oh my God, I want to hug her!” Clinton told BBC Radio 5 Live host Emma Barnett on Tuesday. “I feel as a mother I just want to put my arms around her,” she added. “I want to tell her to hang in there, don’t let those bad guys get you down. Keep going, do what you think is right.”

The former secretary of state and historic presidential candidate in the 2016 election is no stranger to being lambasted for both her personal and public choices. So, the fact that she defended Markle's relationship with Prince Harry makes sense.

“She has made her own way in the world,” Clinton said. “Then she falls in love, and he falls in love with her, and everybody should be celebrating that because it is a true love story. You can just look at them and see that.”

Clinton — who is currently on a promotion tour for The Book of Gutsy Women, which she co-wrote with daughter Chelsea Clinton — added some time-tested advice for Markle: “You know, it’s not easy. And there are some techniques that can be learned along the way, some humor, some deflection, whatever, which I’m sure she will come to. But it is tough what she is going through. And I think she deserves a lot better.”

In October, Markle opened up about the vulnerability of being a new mother under the intense scrutiny of the tabloid spotlight. “Any woman, especially when they’re pregnant, you're really vulnerable, and so that was made really challenging,” Markle said in the documentary Harry & Meghan: An African Journey.

Prince Harry and Markle recently announced their lawsuit against British tabloids for spreading “relentless propaganda.” Days after announcing their plans to sue the publisher of The Daily Mail, the royals announced they had filed a lawsuit against The Sun and The Daily Mirror over “the illegal interception of voicemail messages.”

“As a woman, it’s a lot. So you add this on top of just trying to be a new mom or trying to be a newlywed," Markle said in the documentary interview. “Also, thank you for asking because not many people have asked if I’m okay, but it’s a very real thing to be going through behind the scenes.”