New Clinton official tells it like it is

She got "no" for an answer, but continued to phone the Minneapolis firm's director for months. Eventually, he told her he would be in Washington -- for 15 minutes to change planes -- and would see her then. Williams met him at the airport, made her pitch and sealed the deal. The firm worked pro bono for the organization for the next five years, until Williams left.

One time that Williams was forced into public was as a witness during congressional hearings into the Clintons' Whitewater real estate venture. In front of TV cameras, she was riddled with questions about whether she had hidden documents from the office of White House Deputy Counsel Vince Foster after he committed suicide. She was also implicated in a scandal over President Clinton's fundraising practices.

Williams was not charged with wrongdoing in either case, but she was left with $350,000 in legal bills. Newly married, she followed her husband to Paris for a few years to earn the money to pay her bills and let her psychological scars heal.

She returned to the United States after the Clintons left the White House, serving as chief of staff to Bill Clinton when he set up his foundation in New York. More recently, Williams has worked in public relations, as president of Fenton Communications, and made a study of how to structure and manage nonprofit groups.

A problem-solver

In 2005, she started a management consulting company with Patrick Griffin, an old friend from her White House days. She has been a fellow at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government and currently serves on the board of its Institute of Politics.

"Her strong point is helping people with internal organizational problems, often operating in political environments," said Griffin, who served as director of legislative affairs in the Clinton administration.

Griffin expresses impatience with those who wonder why Hillary Clinton has turned to Williams now, with her campaign struggling and her presidential ambitions hanging in the balance. The real question, he said, is: Why would the senator call anyone else?

"She ran her office as first lady. She ran President Clinton's foundation. I don't think it's a big reach," he said.

Williams has taken a leave of absence from Griffin-Williams Critical Point Management, the firm she runs with Griffin. No one is saying how long she will run the campaign.

But her return has already made a difference. Said Caputo: "Morale is up."

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maura.reynolds@latimes.com