Hillary Clinton Says Putin Has 'Messianic Belief In Himself' And Hates Being Criticized By Women

Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Russian President Vladimir Putin cannot handle critics, and as a result he thinks of himself as a type of messiah.  According to the Guardian, Clinton said that Putin has a "messianic" self-belief. 

What Happened: Clinton told attendees of the UK's Hay Festival of Literature & Arts that when Putin served as Russia's prime minister and Clinton was Secretary of State, she witnessed "his almost messianic belief in himself and what he was destined to be."

"Putin does not like critics, especially women critics," Clinton said. 

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"Putin then became very adversarial toward me, with few exceptions. But, as we know, despite efforts to say to the contrary, he worked very hard to get Trump elected through all kinds of means," she said. 

Why It Matters: Clinton also mentioned her memos, during her tenure working with former President Barack Obama, which warned that Putin could become a "threat to Europe and the rest of the world".

She said that her personal dynamics with Putin went awry following his third presidential term in 2012 when Putin blamed Clinton for pro-Democracy protests.

"The Russian people, like people everywhere, deserve the right to have their voices heard, and their votes counted," Clinton said, suggesting Putin's election victory was fraudulent and didn't "meet international standards."

Photo: Courtesy of McConnell Center and ΝΕΑ ΔΗΜΟΚΡΑΤΙΑ on Flickr