Hillary Clinton Reveals She Left the White House "in Debt," Says She Wishes Monica Lewinsky "Well"

Former Secretary of State says her family was "dead broke" in 2001

Hillary Clinton fielded a variety of questions during her sit-down with Diane Sawyer Monday.

The former Secretary of State claims her family was "dead broke" and saddled with legal bills after she and Bill Clinton left the White House in 2001. "We came out of the White House not only dead broke, but in debt," she said. "We had no money when we got there, and we struggled to, you know, piece together the resources for mortgages, for houses, for Chelsea's education. You know, it was not easy."

By the end of 2000, the Clintons' debt totaled somewhere between $2.28 million to $10.6 million. They weren't in the red for long, however, as Bill earned more than $9.2 million speaking fees in 2001 and more than $9.5 million in 2002. Per CNN, the political power couple paid off their legal fees by 2004.

Hillary said Bill "worked really hard" to fix their finances. "It has been amazing to me," she told Sawyer.

The ABC News journalist also asked Hillary about former White House intern Monica Lewinsky, who resurfaced in May when she penned an essay for Vanity Fair about her '90s affair with the president.

"Monica Lewinsky is back in the news," Sawyer noted.

"Well, she's perfectly free to do that," Hillary said. "She is in my view, an American who gets to express herself however she chooses, but that's not something that I spend a lot of time thinking about."

The 66-year-old former First Lady explained herself, saying, "I wrote about it in my book, Living History. I dealt with it at the time, I have moved on, and that's how I see, you know, my life and my future."

Hillary was prepared for Sawyer to ask about Lewinsky's resurgence in the media. "I mean, it's somebody in the news," she said. "You have every right to ask and I have every right to tell you how I feel." Asked if she indeed called her husband's former mistress a "narcissistic loony-toon," the Hard Choices author replied, "I am not going to comment on what I did or did not say-back in the late '90s."

"She has said she has lived all of these years as a punch line," Sawyer said, referring to Lewinsky. "Is there anything you would say to her about her life?" As one might expect, Hillary gave a diplomatic answer. "Well, I would wish her well," the possible presidential candidate said. "I hope that she is able to, you know, think about her future and construct a life that she finds meaning and satisfaction in."

Today, Hillary and Bill are happier than ever together. "We make each other laugh," the grandmother-to-be-said of their 39-year marriage. "We support each other. It's really another one of my blessings."