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Building The Legacy of InsolenceWagging to Greatness? Some folks have greatness thrust upon them. Others struggle mightily, thrusting themselves upon greatness. Then, there’s Bill Clinton. It seems every time Bill Clinton faces the choice between genius and jackass, he chooses the four legged version. And we aren’t just talking girlfriends. The latest interview with Fox News’ Chris Wallace offered yet another chance for Clinton to appear Presidential. Wallace asked a simple question on the minds of about 300 million Americans: "I understand that hindsight is always 20/20, but the question is, why didn't you connect the dots and put him out of business?" At that point, Clinton had a choice. He could have offered a noble answer: “Could I have done more? Perhaps. Sure there were distractions. Every President has distractions. But all Presidents do our best with what we know, and we always act in the best interest of our nation.” Dignified. Classy. Presidential. Instead, faced with this opportunity to resurrect a legacy, Clinton showed his petty, paranoid and petulant personae with an embarrassing 15-minute red-faced rant, claiming: -ABC is now a right-wing network -well-discredited Richard Clark has THE definitive version of world events (Clark is mentioned 10 times) -he had a planned operation to attack the Taliban in Afghanistan but the CIA and FBI refused to let him go to war (CIA operatives have openly denied this entire story) -Wallace was “doing Fox’s bidding,” “making his bones,” and the interview was a “hit job” -another dozen or so paranoid accusations toward Wallace, Fox News and Republicans in general -he had “gotten closer than anyone ever has” in killing Bin Laden. -Wallace was trying to keep him from speaking out about the Clinton global initiative…then proceeded to storm off and yell at his personal staff. So much for dignity. You would have thought Wallace asked Clinton who he’d raped lately. And never mind that these claims are either outright lies or silly paranoia. The best part of the interview wasn’t the questions, the answers, or the huffing an puffing. It was the finger-wagging! We’ve seen it before, haven’t we? Oh, yes, investigated for molesting Kathleen Wiley, who came to ask for a job (as her husband was committing suicide), only to be greeted with groping and fondling. His misogynist history was exposed, and girl-pal Monica Lewinsky became public. Cornered, Clinton steeled his gaze into the camera, addressing the mere plebes of the American public, gritted his teeth, and the words spewed out like beef through a meat grinder. “I did not have sexual relations with that woman.” However, the words, anger and tone did not produce a lasting memory. But the finger-wagging did. That wagging finger became the single definitive symbol of the Clinton Administration. Not merely because Clinton was caught daring us to question his imperial rights on camera, but when we discovered the enterprising Ms. Lewinsky had saved that famous blue dress? The Clinton legacy was set: He will forever be known as the President who masturbated in the White House. And wagged his finger about it. Since then, the Clinton Spin Machine, along with Herculean efforts from an unrepentant sycophantic press, has fought magnificent battles to somehow create a respectable history out of pretty much nothing. They have their work cut out for themselves. It seems every time we discover something about that Presidency, it’s not good news. -attacked terrorism as police matter -gave rocket guidance technology to China via a sophisticated money-laundering operation -had Sandy Berger steal historic papers from the National Archives, which exposed the meager Clinton preparation for Millennium terrorism threats -Deputy Attorney General Jamie Gorelick erected the legal wall outlawing communication between the FBI and CIA, preventing our spy agencies from “connecting the dots” of the 9-11 hijackers. That’s not a good legacy. So here we are, eight years later, when another Clinton scandal has been exposed, allowing Osama Bin Laden to escape numerous times when US operatives could have taken him out, and even refusing an offer to deliver him into US custody. Once again, instead of acting presidential, we get rudeness, uncontrolled anger, blaming everyone else, and of course that same old wagging finger. So, the legacy building continues, even as the foundation crumbles. Unfortunately, instead of acting presidential, Clinton seems more like the guy who keeps adding a new wing to his outhouse. That’s why, no matter how hard his friends try, the Clinton legacy will always be that of the guy who only found one way to thrust himself to greatness: relieving himself on a fat chic’s blue dress. And then wagged his finger at the world. Except now, we know what the wagging finger means: “I’m guilty.”
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