Sidney Stone Blumenthal (born November 6, 1948, in New York City) is an American journalist, author, political advisor/operative, and scholar of Abraham Lincoln. He earned a BA from Brandeis University in 1970 and built his early career as a journalist writing for publications including The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, and The Guardian, where he critically covered American politics, foreign policy, and conservatism. He gained prominence through books such as 'The Rise of the Counter-Establishment' (1986) and 'Pleased to Predict the Future' (1990), establishing himself as a sharp commentator on political trends. Blumenthal served as a senior advisor to President Bill Clinton from 1997 to 2001, assisting with communications and strategy during controversies including Whitewater and impeachment. A longtime confidant of Hillary Clinton, he advised her 2008 presidential campaign, worked for the Clinton Foundation until 2015, and consulted for her 2016 campaign, though he was barred from official State Department roles due to conflicts of interest. He has faced controversies, including allegations of promoting conspiracy theories about Barack Obama during the 2008 primaries and involvement in Benghazi-related emails scrutinized by Congress. Blumenthal is also an acclaimed author of a multi-volume biography of Abraham Lincoln titled 'The Political Life of Abraham Lincoln,' with volumes including 'Wrestling with the Angel' (2017) and 'Prisoner of Fortune' (2019). He continues to write on history and politics for outlets like The Nation and remains influential in liberal intellectual circles.