She sees herself as the realist vs the snake oil salesmen who were pitching you on a false vision of what's possible.
I agree. to a point. But a big part of leadership is not just getting the wonky details right, it's also about setting a vision and mission that inspires people to reach for something grander. Even if that ideal is never actually met.
That being said, it's true that the media would've held any aspirational vision of hers to a higher standard of scrutiny both because of her gender and because of her deep experience.