Monica Lewinsky poked fun at her presidential cheating scandal past using the viral “you wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me” trend from Taylor Swift’s Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me song taken from her recently released The Tortured Poets Department album.
Taking to her X page (formerly known as Twitter) on Thursday (April 25), the 50-year-old activist shared a picture of the White House along with the “you wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me” lyrics.
Social media users have been using the Taylor Swift lyrics to humorously highlight different aspects of their lives, like countries they have been brought up in, past workplaces they struggled with, and more ironic examples.
In the case of Monica, the trend was an obvious nod to her involvement in a scandal with former President Bill Clinton in the late 1990s.
Monica gained notoriety in the media after working at the US presidential’s official residence and workplace as an intern at the time and subsequently having an affair with Clinton, who had been married to Hillary Clinton for two decades at that point.
The cheating scandal led to a high-profile investigation and impeachment proceedings against the former president, but it also resulted in sensationalized misogynistic scrutiny against Monica.
When the “Clinton–Lewinsky scandal” unfolded, Monica was in her early twenties and faced intense character assassination, as well as shaming, while much of the focus and blame was directed at her rather than on the powerful man involved.
This was exemplified by multiple headlines in the media, such as The New York Times’ 1998 Lewinsky, Not a ‘Vixen,’ Says Prof article or The Washington Post’s 1999 Lewinsky Asked for It, Even Asked For Your Imagination story.
Since 2014, Monica has been working as a social activist speaking out against cyberbullying, based on her experiences dealing with the media coverage regarding the scandal.
“You wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me,” Monica captioned the post along with a picture of the White House
you wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me. pic.twitter.com/hkhdRlBCkj
— Monica Lewinsky (she/her) (@MonicaLewinsky) April 25, 2024
More recently, the author appeared in a new campaign fronting for the LA-based apparel brand Reformation, CNN reported.
Monica has also reportedly become an avid public speaker on the topic of harassment as well as a strategic advisor to the anti-bullying organization Bystander Revolution.
The “you wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me” trend brought out many other funny stories from internet users.
Many people praised Monica for her “iconic” joke
