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The Clinton Baby Has Arrived!

by Nuzha Nuseibeh

Okay, so it's not quite the Royal Baby, but for the moment, she's the closest thing we've got: on Friday, Chelsea Clinton gave birth to a baby girl, Charlotte. She only announced the happy news on Saturday, though, writing a post on Twitter and another on Facebook — where, as might be expected, the social media world went crazy, cause GAWW HILLARY'S FIRST GRANDCHILD.

Of course, the world has known about the Clinton baby since April, when Chelsea first publicly said that she was pregnant at a forum on female empowerment in New York. But until this weekend, the sex of the baby had been kept secret. Both Chelsea Clinton and her husband, Marc Mezvinsky, had decided to wait until the big day to find out the gender of their child, telling CNN recently that "there are so few mysteries in life... in which any answer is a happy one."

All was revealed Saturday at 12:32 a.m., though, when Chelsea Tweeted: "Marc and I are full of love, awe and gratitude as we celebrate the birth of our daughter, Charlotte Clinton Mezvinsky." According to Kamyl Bazbaz, the Clintons' spokesman, baby Charlotte was born on Friday. By Saturday morning, the Tweet had been favorited over 8,800 times, and retweeted another 7,400. On Facebook, the post had gotten 61,418 likes, with users saying things like: "I bet your parents are over the moon!!! Can't wait to see Charlotte playing in the yard when she goes to see her Grandma at the White House!!!"

Just last year, the 34-year-old Clinton had told Glamour magazine that 2014 would be the "year of the baby." She'd added:

I just hope I will be as good a mom to my child and, hopefully, children as my mom was to me.

It's certainly true that the build-up for the birth has been exciting, with everyone from President Obama to former President George W. Bush getting in on the joy. Just under a month ago, one of the most gaw-inspiring moments in presidential history occurred when Bush was caught giving Clinton some grandparenting advice, telling him what an “awesome” experience it is. He said:

Get ready also to be like the lowest person in the pecking order in your family. Be prepared to fall completely in love again. You’re not going to believe it. You’re just not going to believe the joy and the fun. And I’m looking forward to talking to you after that child is born. … It’s going to be an awesome period for you.

Now, though, apart from "What does baby Charlotte look like?!," the burning question on everyone's mind is: will Hillary Clinton (finally) announce a run for the Presidency? She's been saying for a while that she wouldn't be making any decisions until her first grandchild was born and, well...