Leading article: Perks of the job

The mystery is solved. It was never entirely clear why Hillary Clinton accepted the job of Secretary of State in Barack Obama's cabinet after her narrow defeat in the Democratic primary elections. The salary was nothing special for someone with her profile. Politically it was a move sideways. And one presumes she did not take it in expectation of a stress-free life.

But now an explanation emerges. There are benefits that come with being the chief foreign representative of the last global superpower: the private jet, the easy access to world leaders, the 24-hour security detail. Yet one perk now stands out. How many other jobs would enable a woman to send her philandering husband to North Korea? Many women have fantasised about it. Mrs Clinton has actually done it. Take note Harriet Harman. Some sisters, at least, are letting their menfolk know who wears the (pantsuit) trousers.