Hillary Clinton Sent ‘Veep’ Star Julia Louis-Dreyfus Note Encouraging ‘Gun Control’ and Immigration Reform — But Email Dump Reveals Aide Wrote It

Julia Louis Dreyfuss VEEP
HBO

HBO’s Veep is the kind of television show that Beltway politicos would love: It stars Seinfeld alum Julia Louis-Dreyfus as former Senator-turned-Vice President Selina Meyer, who over the course of the show’s run finds out just how thankless, and ultimately, impotent, the vice presidential job really is.

So maybe it wasn’t a surprise when Louis-Dreyfus, who to date has won two Emmys and five Golden Globe nods for her role as Meyer, received an expertly-crafted fan note from none other than then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

“Dear Julia,” the note read, according to the Hollywood Reporter. “Hope you get everything you want as Veep — gun control, immigration and education reform.”

The 55-year-old actress told THR that for her, Clinton’s heartfelt note was confirmation that political pros were watching her show, and that perhaps it was having an influence beyond the realm of simple entertainment.

But Louis-Dreyfus would learn the story behind the note a couple of years later, in an email Clinton sent to an aide that was made public as part of the State Department’s order to the Secretary to release tens of thousands of emails in its investigation into her alleged use of a private server for government business.

The email, sent to former Clinton aide Robert V. Russo, revealed that Clinton didn’t know much about the show.

“A friend wants me to sign something for Julia Lewis-Dreyfus for Veep. Any ideas?” Clinton wrote, misspelling the actress’ name.

“Let me brainstorm on this one/do some research,” Russo replied. “I confess I haven’t seen the show!”

To her credit, Louis-Dreyfus took the new information in stride. The actress told THR that she currently has both the note and the email framed side-by-side in her office. The episode is also unlikely to affect the way Louis-Dreyfus votes in the upcoming election; just last week, the actress told Vanity Fair that she will vote for “whoever the Democrat is. Period. End of story.”

If anything, the episode may be more embarrassing for Clinton, who has had celebrity names pop up in her dumped emails before. In October, an email released as part of the State Department’s order revealed that actor Ben Affleck had sent Clinton a message to her personal account. Just a few days prior to that email being released, Clinton testified that the late Ambassador Chris Stevens, one of four Americans killed by terrorists in Benghazi, did not have Clinton’s personal email address.

Follow Daniel Nussbaum on Twitter: @dznussbaum

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