Hillary Clinton on Barbara Walters 10 Most Fascinating People of 2012

Welcome back. In all the years that we have been doing this special, no one has been on the show more than our next guest. She made the list in 1993, in 2003, and now in 2012. I guess that means that every decade or so, Hillary Clinton has shaken up our preconceptions and redefined herself. She resigns from her post as Secretary of State shortly, but anyone who believes that she will just ride off into the sunset hasn't been paying attention. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is visiting the African nation of Malawi. And overseas now in Egypt, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met for the first time. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has arrived for meetings in Turkey. Hillary Clinton went on a few foreign trips this year, 67 to be exact. She worked to empower women around the globe. The United States will continue to stand strongly by the women of Afghanistan. She broke at a high-profile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. And she even did a little dancing. It's a unique record, and it has made her one of the most acclaimed Secretaries of State in modern history. You have said that you will not stay on as Secretary of State for President Obama's second term. You're leaving at the height of your career. Why are you leaving? I've been, as you know, at the highest levels of American and now international activities for 20 years. And I just thought it was time to take a step off. I wanted to take some time and just really collect myself. Are you exhausted? I am. To be honest, I am. Because when I do something, I really want to do it. I want to do it to the best of my ability. That means I pretty much work all the time. How many miles have you traveled? How many places have you visited? Have you figured that out yet? Well, someone told me the other day it's, I think, 112 countries and close to a million miles. What most people are asking now about you is, will you consider running for president in 2016? Would you just like to make your declaration now? And we could conclude this interview. Well, that would be fascinating to me as well as everyone else. You know, I've said I really don't believe that that's something I will do again. You know your husband wants you to run in 2016. What do you say to him? He wants me to do what I want to do. And he has made that very clear. And some of what I want to do is just kick back. I mean, it sounds... Yeah, but after you have slept. Well, but I haven't had the chance to do that yet. So let's give you three months. Oh, no. What would it take to convince you to run? You know, that's all hypothetical because right now I have no intention of running. I just want to, I want to make a contribution. I always feel that's who I am and what I want to do. Will it be political? I don't think so. I think it'll be philanthropic. It might be academic. It might be business. I mean, there's a lot of things. All doors are open. You know, you will be 69 in 2016 if you ran. If you won two terms, you would be 77. Is your age a concern to you? It really isn't. I am, thankfully, knock on wood, not only healthy but have incredible stamina and energy. I just want to see what else is out there. You know, we look at the Middle East and it's still such unrest. So what worries you the most? Iran. Iran worries me the most because it's not only the terrible prospect that they might have a nuclear weapon, which we are committed to prevent. They're already engaging in terrorism all over the world. So if you could do one thing before you left, maybe it's the Middle East, maybe it's something in Iran, what would it be in your dreams? Oh, in my dreams, it would be Middle East peace. Two states for two people living side by side. Israel would be a democratic Jewish state with security living with their Palestinian neighbors. Do you think President Obama can do this in a second term, create that kind of? Well, I know he would very much like to play a role in that, but the fact is that it's become even more difficult in the last several years. So I have to ask you this very personal question. Your hair. I know that it's one of the great fascinations of our time, much to my amazement. People said to me, you're interviewing the Secretary of State. I said, yes, what should I ask about her hair? Well, I, you know, I do not travel with any hairdresser and I'm not very competent myself. I've been admitting that for years, which should be obvious to everyone. It just got to be really burdensome to try to find a hairdresser in some city, somewhere. So I've said enough. We're just going to try to go with as simple as possible. Nobody asked the men that. Have you noticed? Yeah, nobody asked the men. Do you have a philosophy by which you live? I think it's very simple. I try to live by the golden rule. I try to make my best efforts at all times and try to treat people as I would like to be treated. I go into places where people are lying to me, where people are doing terrible things to their own people. You know, you have to keep finding ways to connect with these people, try to move them somehow toward, you know, better behavior. It's it takes a lot of thought, but you have to be rooted yourself to have any chance of doing it. Madam Secretary, it's always a great pleasure personally and an honor to be with you. Thank you so much, Barbara.