M. Simon
Vietnam and all the reasons we lost that war has been a popular topic in this thread. Many reasons have been given, and most of them are relevant. One item, in my opinion a very important item, is missing.
Richard Nixon was hated by the Left to a degree beyond even that directed towards George Bush. Nixon was distrusted even by many who supported his policies. I think a lot of what W. is catching (not all by any means) is the anguish felt by a Democratic party that no longer holds power in the federal executive and legislative branches. The loathing for Richard Nixon was visceral and personal.
Bill Clinton’s lies and deceptions were many. His most dangerous were not lies about sex with an intern, but lies about his relationships with people like: James and Mochtar Riady, Maria Hsia, Mark Middleton, Ron Brown, Ms. Konchanaluk, Johnny Chung, and firms like Loral and Hughes. There’s more, a lot more, but the campaign fund-raising stuff is bad enough.
Transferring one’s ditzy paramour (after smearing her as a ‘stalker’) to the Pentagon, where said squeeze was given a SCI clearance under peculiar circumstances deserved impeachment and conviction, in my opinion.
I quoted part of David Schipper’s testimony to Congress in a post above. Mr. Schipper’s list of the deceived was incomplete.
On July 7 of this year, Jim Lehrer interviewed Bill Clinton during that evening’s Newshour program. Here is an excerpt:
JIM LEHRER: Now, you mentioned this in your book, about–just for the record, one final question, and then we’ll move in. If you had, in that interview with me, said, “Yes, I did have an improper sexual relationship with this young women. I’m so sorry I did it. It was a terrible”–and all the things you say now about it–”It was a terrible mistake in judgment. It’s an awful, awful thing,” what do you think would have happened?
PRESIDENT CLINTON: I think that people would have said, “He probably committed perjury at his deposition,” which I maintain to the present day that I did not.
JIM LEHRER: But the allegation is that you did.
PRESIDENT CLINTON: That’s correct. And I think with–given the media hysteria and the fact that people were saying all the things that were said one more time, I was dead as could be, I think the overwhelming likelihood is that I would have been forced from office, because I think the Democrats would have–some Democrats might have abandoned me.
I’m not sure that would have happened, but I think–I thought at the time it was a realistic possibility. I think today it still was a realistic possibility. At least I thought it could occur.
HA
I respectfully disagree. Clinton’s Party in July 2004 is exactly the same party it was in January 2001: It is composed of the same trial lawyers, union chiefs, grievance lobbyists, environmental advocates, etc. DNC chairman Terry McCauliffe is still on board as well. The whole bunch were ideologically just as far Left then as they are today. The ONLY reason we see a whiff of their true beliefs is that they are shut out of the leadership positions in the executive and legislative branches of government. Bill Clinton governed as far to the Left as the people of this country would allow him. For instance, he vetoed welfare reform twice before the approaching election forced him to sign the third version.
