Hillary Clinton Explains Famous Osama Bin Laden Raid Photo
EmailABC News' Huma Khan reports: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says she has "no idea" what she was watching with President Obama and his national security staff when the photographer snapped a picture showing her with her hand on her mouth and a tense expression. As of Thursday morning, the photo had been viewed nearly 1.9 million times and is on its way to becoming the most popular on Flickr, according to Wired. "Those were 38 of the most intense minutes. I have no idea what any of us were looking at that particular millisecond when the picture was taken,” Clinton said of the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. "I am somewhat sheepishly concerned that it was my preventing one of my early spring allergic coughs. So, it may have no great meaning whatsoever." The photo, taken by White House photographer Pete Souza, shows an anxious president and staff receiving updates on the mission taking place in Pakistan. It has garnered much speculation but the White House has remained mum on the details of what exactly was taking place when it was taken. Vice President Joe Biden was also reportedly holding his rosary ring. The White House released eight behind-the-scenes photos on Monday, illustrating the intensity of the situation. The photos show Obama making phone calls throughout the day to keep up with the developments, and meeting with his staff in the Situation Room. This is an updated version of this post.
Biden Reflects on Grief, Suicidal Thoughts 
Is Congress Sounding Dumber?
Jake what’s the results on jobless claims today…any news?
Can you tell us anything on the Obama plan to tax the middle class on how far they drive their cars?
Any word yet out of ABC on waterboarding that helped locate Osama?
Any quality reporting will be appreciated thank you
Posted by: Just wants to know | May 5, 2011, 11:12 am 11:12 am
This is a sexist article through & through. The men in the picture all have expressions of concern. When in God’s Heaven is this bigotry going to stop! Shame on the author for writing such ignorance. Disgusting!
Posted by: Portia A. Boulger | May 5, 2011, 11:15 am 11:15 am
It is quite obvious that Hillary never watched any of the al qaeda beheading videos.
I suggest any bleeding heart to google them and watch. That will remind you just who these animals are/were.
Posted by: Kate | May 5, 2011, 11:23 am 11:23 am
Hooray for sexism!
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | May 5, 2011, 11:32 am 11:32 am
High gas prices are eating into the economic recovery, diminishing the political boost President Obama has received from the killing of Osama bin Laden. A range of polls show Obama’s approval rating has jumped, but the president continues to get dismal ratings for his handling of an economy dragged down by gas prices, which averaged $3.98 across the country on Wednesday, according to AAA. The high gas prices limited gross domestic product growth in the first quarter, and have taken a bite out of jobs, the most important economic indicator for the White House.
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | May 5, 2011, 11:33 am 11:33 am
Biden…Gates….Air Force Gen….All cool…The rest look like they are going to throw-up……
Posted by: Parallex View | May 5, 2011, 11:38 am 11:38 am
What is a rosary ring?Ring around the rosary?How can we trust anything in this article if you can’t get it right about a religious object familiar to 100 million Americans?
Posted by: Nephron | May 5, 2011, 11:38 am 11:38 am
Hillary was probably reliving the gunfire she took in Bosnia.
Posted by: MayBee | May 5, 2011, 11:43 am 11:43 am
Of all the big, rich Group of Seven economies, America has the lowest share of “prime age” males in work: just over 80% of those aged between 25 and 54 have a job.
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | May 5, 2011, 11:44 am 11:44 am
Seriously, though. I think the look on Hillary’s face is quite compelling and I’m sorry she felt she had to explain it away.
Posted by: MayBee | May 5, 2011, 11:44 am 11:44 am
OF POLLS, POLLS & LIARS
OBAMA APPROVAL
AVERAGE 51.3 Approve 42.6% Disapprove Obama+8.7
Rasmussen Reports 49% Approve 50% Disapprove Obama-1
Quinnipiac 52% Approve 40% Disapprove Obama+12
Newsweek/Daily Beast 48% Approve 49% Disapprove Obama-1
CBS News/NY Times* 57% Approve 37% Disapprove Obama+20
Gallup 50% Approve 42% Disapprove Obama+8
CNN/Opinion Research 52% Approve 43% Disapprove Obama+9
SurveyUSA 46% Approve 42% Disapprove Obama+4
Wash Post/Pew/SRBI 56% Approve 38% Disapprove Obama+18
Posted by: STEVE_NJ | May 5, 2011, 11:51 am 11:51 am
Steve,you better look at the new job data today.We are heading into a double dip recession;with gas going to $5 a gallon Obama will not get re-elected.
Posted by: Nephron | May 5, 2011, 11:56 am 11:56 am
Temporary Bounce…The Economy is where the action is..
Posted by: Parallex View | May 5, 2011, 11:57 am 11:57 am
I am a diehard Republican and I would like to say Thank you Mr. President!
Posted by: bates71074 | May 5, 2011, 12:01 pm 12:01 pm
“Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says she has “no idea” what she was watching with President Obama and his national security staff when the photographer snapped a picture showing her with her hand on her mouth and a tense expression.” – ABC News
Maybe The Lewinsky Tapes?
Posted by: Noz | May 5, 2011, 12:01 pm 12:01 pm
I am guessing most of us would have the same look as she did. I bet it was a look of concern for our Soldiers. Job well done to all involved.
Posted by: bates71074 | May 5, 2011, 12:06 pm 12:06 pm
GM sales jump 26 percent on small car sales gains…
-Business Week
News sources are reporting significant increases in sales of fuel efficient vehicles……it seems many Americans are making appropriate choices instead of just foisting blame.
Posted by: Skip | May 5, 2011, 12:08 pm 12:08 pm
I think they’re watching “Dancing With The Stars”!
Posted by: Wow | May 5, 2011, 12:09 pm 12:09 pm
“News sources are reporting significant increases in sales of fuel efficient vehicles……it seems many Americans are making appropriate choices instead of just foisting blame. ” – Skip
Hey Americans aren’t dumb, they can see $5 a gallon gas over the horizon.
They will continue to buy fuel efficient cars in greater numbers and then drive them to the polls in November 2012 to vote NoBo out of office.
YeeHaa!
Posted by: Noz | May 5, 2011, 12:18 pm 12:18 pm
The photo is not real and has been greatly retouched to look like something it is not. Look at the large pixels on edge of paper resting on laptop. That paper came from a smaller photo that was enlarged.
Posted by: photowatch | May 5, 2011, 12:18 pm 12:18 pm
Uh, PhotoWatch, it has already been reported that the document on the laptop was deliberately pixelated because of it’s sensitive national security nature. Fail.
Posted by: puppyfeet217 | May 5, 2011, 12:29 pm 12:29 pm
Nephron, dear, a rosary RING is designed for men to wear. YOU may feel comfortable carrying around a string of beads but many men do not. Just because you don’t know about something doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.
Posted by: puppyfeet217 | May 5, 2011, 12:32 pm 12:32 pm
Sexist? Just stop it with the racist, sexist, gender sensitive, whiney flaky liberals– offended by this picture.
No one forced Hillary to put her hand over her mouth., and, she certainly doesn’t have to make excuses for it either.
Maybe Hillary can give us the real story of what she saw…
because the liberal media is certainly giving us all kinds of stories, censorship, whatever it is!
Posted by: Paul | May 5, 2011, 12:38 pm 12:38 pm
well i am sure she about sneeze even if she panicked she would’t show it, because public image
Posted by: handa | May 5, 2011, 12:39 pm 12:39 pm
What’s the picture sitting top of her laptop?
Posted by: Casey | May 5, 2011, 12:42 pm 12:42 pm
“…The photo is not real and has been greatly retouched to look like something it is not. Look at the large pixels on edge of paper resting on laptop. That paper came from a smaller photo that was enlarged.
Posted by: photowatch | May 5, 2011 12:18:52 PM
…”
The photo IS REAL..the picture on the laptop was pixelated to blur whatever is on the paper for security reasons…
Posted by: john | May 5, 2011, 12:44 pm 12:44 pm
…now for taking credit…if Obama made the call to get bin laden say 4-6 months after taking office…then Yes, Bush should get some credit…but sorry..all credit goes to Obama…its common sense and I’ll dumb it down for everyone:
Say my friend buys some great tools to fix a door, and tries to fix the door. he doesn’t…even after trying for a whole day because he just doesn’t know how to properly use the tools. Now I come in and take the tools and use them correctly and I fix the door….do you give credit to my friend or me?
ME!!
If you can’t undertand that…then you should just buy a one way ticket to La-La Land and retire with Elvis, Hitler and the Easter Bunny!!
Posted by: john | May 5, 2011, 12:49 pm 12:49 pm
The CIA has reported that just before the SEALS entered the compound there was a 25 minute video blackout. Apparently they weren’t watching anything in this photo.
Posted by: JOE | May 5, 2011, 1:00 pm 1:00 pm
Reply to bates71074
Or maybe she was watching Bush’s Mission Accomplished Speech. The conservatives like you once again show their true colors.
Posted by: drake | May 5, 2011, 1:08 pm 1:08 pm
Just heard Ms Preston’s suggestion that Secretary of State Clinton use kleenex for her Spring allergies. Ms Preston is out of line–sounding like a talk show host trying to make news.
Posted by: Guest | May 5, 2011, 1:09 pm 1:09 pm
Well our egomaniac Obama assassinated Bin Ladin for photo opt look he is doing the 9/11 memorial thing today but snubbing the victims family…this photo opt was meant to show Obama and crew were fully involved in getting Osama the madman that firing back and using his wife as a shield……but since this story has turned out to be a huge poorly orchestrated lie of Obama and it is now known he assassinated this old feeble terrorist without offering quarter or “rights” that Obama was for given terrorists during non campaign seasons has alienated the UN and they are saying CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY, Hiliary is intelligently distancing herself. Yeah sure, Hiliary, you didn’t pose for the photo opt to show how involved you were and now you don’t want to be involved.
Posted by: Football | May 5, 2011, 1:35 pm 1:35 pm
Dear John, your analogy is very lacking. Did you use the tools bought by your friend to fix the door? Could you have fixed the door without the use of those same tools? Elvis, Hilter and Easter Bunny is calling your name.
Posted by: marty | May 5, 2011, 1:37 pm 1:37 pm
does he mean something more ominous than
raising the gas price on everybody
including the middle class.
Posted by: Neil Farbstein | May 5, 2011, 1:38 pm 1:38 pm
Maybe she was watching a Sarah Palin speech – that would certainly explain the pained expression.
Hillary was probably thinking how empty-headed, dim- witted, know-nothing Sarah has set women in politics back about 50 years.
Hillary Clinton is a brilliant, poised, confident and highly respected national leader.
Sarah is NONE of those things!
Posted by: sh | May 5, 2011, 1:45 pm 1:45 pm
This photo makes me dislike Hillary all the more. It is very clear that the last thing she is doing is coughing. Why does that bag continue to tell lies.
If she would just state the truth, she just might get an ounce of respect.
She also lied about Pakistan. With each passing day, one thing becomes obvious. They were helping bin laden.
Posted by: Kate | May 5, 2011, 1:47 pm 1:47 pm
The people in the very back of the photo look like they were badly photoshopped into this picture. The lighting on them is way off from everyone else pictured. Just doesn’t look right.
Posted by: JOE | May 5, 2011, 1:47 pm 1:47 pm
This Picture is just as exciting as watching Jerry Jones’ Box during a Super Bowl.
Maybe just slightly less exciting than watching people watch a movie in a theatre.
Definitely a bit more exciting than watching Corn Grow though.
What’s the point of this picture?
Oh yeah, that’s right, it was put out to “inflame” the Islamic world.
A picture of our President watching the Terrorist Hero Osama getting killed.
Posted by: Noz | May 5, 2011, 2:06 pm 2:06 pm
She seen the new unemployment numbers !
Posted by: hardatit | May 5, 2011, 2:13 pm 2:13 pm
It wasn’t Osama Bin Laden whom was killed on Sunday; it was his son Kahlid Bin Laden. This is why the DNA matched and why they will not release the photos. The White House said they killed his son and took his son to the USS ship but the media failed to ask “where is his body?” This is because Osama Bin Laden died of kidney disease years ago – fact – Osama needed routine dialysis to live. No dialysis equipment was located at the compound. This is why they will not release the photos; because they killed the son.
Posted by: Peter King | May 5, 2011, 2:22 pm 2:22 pm
Seeing Hillary in this picture only confirms one thing to me. That she is in no way CIC material.
Posted by: writing on the wall | May 5, 2011, 3:00 pm 3:00 pm
I have been wondering why there is so much focus on who should get credit for Bin Laden killing: Obama or Bush. This particular event is a clear blueprint of the right wing thinking: never acknowledge Obama, because that will legitimize his presidency. In the aftermath of the killing, which might be a murder/assassination (but not a war crime or a crime against Humanity), some people can’t just acknowledge that what happened under Obama’s watch is good and some credit should be given to him. The operation could have turned badly like in Iran under Carter, or Obama could have chosen to blast the place (with no evidence left). It’s interesting to note that you consider Bush presidency to be irrelevant for the lengthy war in Iraq and the Afghanistan war, to the national debt and to the state of the economy.
Just wants to know | May 5, 2011 11:12:12 AM. Indeed, the number of unemployement benefits claims went up, against the predictions. I guess the GOP should take credit for it as they were taking credit for the drop in the unemployement rate back in December. Hopefully, after voting on aborption related bills (yesterday), they might find difficult not to adress the job issue and to keep their promise to focus on that creating JOBS.
Posted by: picooz | May 5, 2011, 3:21 pm 3:21 pm
No men had the same expression in the room because none of them are gay.
Posted by: em | May 5, 2011, 4:17 pm 4:17 pm
A piture is worth 1000 words. They may not be the correct words, however.
Posted by: Wayne | May 5, 2011, 5:26 pm 5:26 pm
It is plausible that killed a Bin Ladin family member instead of OBL…show the photos and tape of the assassination.
Posted by: Football | May 5, 2011, 6:12 pm 6:12 pm
It’s a great photo, very historic, and Obama, Biden, and Hillary look like respectable and honest civilian leaders. The photo makes me like Hillary and the president even more.
We don’t need to see any gruesome footage, we have more than enough info.
Posted by: satisfied | May 5, 2011, 6:49 pm 6:49 pm
So Osama was 54 years old and that makes him old a frail. There were rumors of kidney failure that were never substantiated so could it be that he was not a frail or previously dead as the conspracy types project?
Posted by: John S | May 5, 2011, 8:02 pm 8:02 pm
Release all the evidence if you have any.
It wasn’t Osama Bin Laden whom was killed on Sunday; it was his son Kahlid Bin Laden. This is why the DNA matched and why they will not release the photos. The White House said they killed his son and took his son to the USS ship but the media failed to ask “where is his body?” This is because Osama Bin Laden died of kidney disease years ago – fact – Osama needed routine dialysis to live. No dialysis equipment was located at the compound. This is why they will not release the photos; because they killed the son.
Posted by: Peter King | May 5, 2011 2:22:05 PM
Posted by: Obama_ WagTheDog | May 5, 2011, 8:14 pm 8:14 pm
If this were BUSH, he would have been sitting at the head of the table in the situation room. Obama is non of that pomposity
Posted by: what667 | May 5, 2011, 8:15 pm 8:15 pm
I am a yellow dog Republican. I am very proud of the president and Hillary. Thank you for your service. I do not need to see the photo of this piece of waste. I thank every president, except for Carter. Let’s get on with it folks and stop this bickering. The USA pulled off a good one and these Navy seals are American heroes.
Posted by: Damram | May 5, 2011, 8:22 pm 8:22 pm
Why release a picture of osama? presedential wana-be’s will just say it was photo shop Obama released his birth certificate and people still didn’t believe. the conspracy nuts wouldn’t be satisfied unless divers pulled up his body.
Posted by: tom | May 5, 2011, 9:13 pm 9:13 pm
Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, you looked very concerned and with anticipation of an extremely serious event. Please do not not justify or minimize it was a perfect picture. When I looked at the faces of President Obama then you and Vice President Biden I felt the intensity of what was happening.
Until I heard and then looked at that picture I was unsure but please believe your normal reaction is as it should have been.
Posted by: Mary Jenkins | May 5, 2011, 10:46 pm 10:46 pm
Joe – Your anology is very flawed in my opinion. If you spend years drawing up blueprints, obtaining permits, buying materials, hiring and managing a labor force, and overseeing the construction of a 3 story building….and then I come along in the last week and simply hammer in the final shingle on the roof….does that mean I get the credit for building that structure?
Also, it is very clear that Hillary shat her pants-suit in that picture.
Posted by: Jason | May 6, 2011, 5:47 am 5:47 am
I love this picture.
It is if the events on screen are being seared in their brains forever.
So here then comes the troubling part.
Why lie about what went down?
How does an administration get the hard part right (killing OBL) yet fail at the easy part? I don’t get it and won’t forget it.
Posted by: Just a voter | May 6, 2011, 8:46 am 8:46 am
They were watching the walking hot dog and popcorn during the 25 minute intermission!
Posted by: Voice_Reason | May 6, 2011, 10:45 am 10:45 am
I actually like the idea that when our leaders are watching a snuff film that they are a little troubled and shocked. I don’t think I would be comfortable with a blazay or happy reaction. A goal was accomplished and a life was taken. No matter the justice I don’t think happy or blazay would have been a comfortable reaction to watch.
Posted by: Dan | May 9, 2011, 8:10 am 8:10 am
Personally I think that OBama should show the entire film that the staff watched in real time—Hey if you don’t want to see the leader who killed so many US citizens THEN DON”T Watch–If its gonna bother you!!!
Posted by: Steve | May 9, 2011, 8:29 am 8:29 am
For the first guy to comment on this page, let me just say…. you are the reason that newspapers always report the negative, and sensationalize. I am sure you would have been there asking that you see the pictures of sensitive material in the Clinton case too. Lets see the evidense no matter what it does to the innocense of our children, and tarnishes the good name of your own damn country. I am sick of people who are waiting with a can of gas for the first spark they can find….
Posted by: Rupert | May 10, 2011, 10:38 am 10:38 am
President Obama and his national security staff when the photographer snapped a picture showing her with her hand on her mouth and a tense expression
Posted by: bullet express | August 27, 2011, 4:55 am 4:55 am