Hillarysworld

It was Clinton who suggested sending former Ambassador Frank Wisner to Cairo to tell President Hosni Mubarak he should not seek re-election, an administration official told Politico.

She is said to have special insights into Mubarak's behavior from years of contact with him and his wife, Suzanne.

"Hillary knows Mubarak is a dictator, and they aren't close friends," a former top diplomat told Politico. "But she knows him well enough, well enough to know this guy isn't Saddam Hussein, and he's probably the one who told the army not to fire into the crowd."

Clinton is even closer to Suzanne Mubarak, supporting her efforts to reduce youth unemployment and to stop human trafficking and the genital mutilation of girls.

Clinton drew criticism for a 2009 interview when she said, "I really consider President and Mrs. Mubarak to be friends of my family. So I hope to see him often here in Egypt and in the United States."

"You need someone out there who understands the complexity of this situation," said former Ambassador Daniel Kurtzer. "And she's one of the only people who could step in."