This weekend I was totally captivated by the 700+ page new release by Taylor Branch. The Clinton tapes: Wrestling History with the President provides a perspective of presidential character and decisions (what was he thinking?) that has never been available before. Very early in his presidency, Bill Clinton arranged for Taylor Branch to interview him for hours at a time. The President kept the two tape copies of the 79 different interviews, but Taylor Branch maintained written notes and also dictated into a recorder while driving home from the White House. (Apparently former President Clinton used these tape recordings while writing his memoir.)
Oh my gosh! I had forgotten what a turbulent time Bill Clinton had from the very beginning. Remember Gennifer Flowers, Paula Jones, and the Whitewater controversy? Remember the Arkansas troopers who continued to provide new allegations? And all of this was before Monica Lewinsky began an internship at the White House in 1995.
But that is only one narrow perspective. Conversely, if you created a list of qualifications and conducted an exam for the Presidency instead of an election, William Jefferson Clinton would outscore any other candidate. He has an off-the-charts intellect and a knowledge of history, second to none. The man is brilliant and he understands diplomacy.
In this book, Taylor Branch allows then-President Clinton to explain his decisions about Supreme Court justices, staff assignments, domestic and foreign policy, even personal decisions. In honest confession, he tells of Hillary's family gathered around the bedside of her father, Hugh E. Rodham. At the time Hillary was attempting to reorganize health care for all of United States, she was confronted with the decision of whether to remove the respirator of her father.
Branch quotes Hillary from a private interview, "You know, I always get my revenge in dreams, but never in real life." In the midst of discussion about what to do about Haiti, the President mentions his 30th high school reunion. Doesn't that echo our own lives? The interviews constantly remind us that Presidents are people, and although they may not stop at the quick-market on the way home from work, they are very, very, human.
I had forgotten the Republican response to Bill Clinton was, 'Just say no.' Full disclosure - I am a conservative, not a liberal. Bill Clinton had to battle Bob Dole and Newt Gingrich who politically opposed any program proposed by the President. Remembering back with recollections from the book, there is plenty of precedent (not justification) for the political brouhaha we currently witness.
The book explains the deals and promises that makes government possible. What politician is re-elected that explains to his voters someone else better deserved a government hand-out? Sheesh - in some ways, the discussion is akin to visiting a sausage factory. We may enjoy sausage, but we don't want to see how it is made.
The Clinton Tapes is obviously not for everyone. I am however, enthralled with the glimpses of humanity, decision making, and eventually history's consideration of William Jefferson Clinton. Enveloped in history, his Presidency reads like an adventure novel. The protagonist is very human, and you wonder why flaws that we can shake off, ensnare him.
Mmm. As you can discern, I admire the man - I am a student of leadership and Bill Clinton is worthy of study.
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