Hillary Clinton, in her usual regal posture,  answered questions head on involving the controversial use of her private email while sitting as secretary of state.   She said she used her private email address in doing official business because carrying two phones simply wasn't practical.

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"I saw it as a matter of convenience," Clinton said.  "It was allowed."

She further explained, using her private email address during her stint at the State Department seemed not a big deal at that time. 

"Looking back, it would have been better if I'd used a second email account and carried a second phone, but at the time it didn't seem like this was an issue," she said.

The email controversy had been hounding her in recent weeks, threatening her possible run in the 2016 U.S. presidential elections.  It also sparked sharp comments from critics who said Clinton placed the security of her communications at risk, as well as questioned her intent for skirting the law.

But Clinton insisted there were no security breaches.  She pointed out, the server system was set up for her husband, former President Bill Clinton.

Last week, Clinton sent out a tweet saying she wanted the public to see her emails and had instructed the State Department to release them as soon as possible.

Clinton's personal email account contained a total of 62,320 sent and received emails from March 2009 to February 2013.  She turned over more than 30,490 emails to the State Department, but set aside nearly 31,830 which she said were personal. 

She also explained that the server she used stored personal non-work-related emails which she had deleted on the belief she had the right to keep them private.  Examples of these email exchanges include those in connection to her daughter Chelsea's wedding, her mother's funeral and yoga routines.

"No one wants their personal emails made public, and I think most people understand that and respect their privacy," Clinton said, stressing the fact that she already went beyond what was asked of her by the government, which was merely to provide emails.

Clinton's decision to speak on the issue and face reporters at the United Nations drew flak from critics who had been questioning her sincerity in the past. 

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Clinton's emails will be posted online, as soon as the department is done reviewing them, which could take months.

TagsHillary Clinton, email scandal, politics, US selection