Bill Clinton

Well, what happened between President Bill Clinton and his intern, Miss Lewisnki, is part of the public record. You’d have to be about brain dead not to have an opinion on this matter. I want to know how anyone can think that this is acceptable behavior. If we ignore all the rest of the scandals that dogged the Clintons… If we ignore the fact that they obviously lied their way around them… If we ignore the fact that we knew that Clinton was a womanizer before we elected him… Even if we ignore all of these things, how can we accept what happened in the Oval Office? It’s wrong. And it’s wrong either way you look at it.

1. Morally, the indictments themselves:
   What CEO in America wouldn’t be out of a job in 2 minutes if even half of the things the President is accused of were even half substantiated by circumstantial evidence? That the nation’s top officer had any kind of sexual relationship with any employee is reprehensible. That it was this or that kind of sex is absolutely immaterial. That it was a young intern – something like this man’s daughter’s age – only worsens this situation. We as a nation ought to have ousted Bill Clinton for this alone.
2. Legally, the cover-up:
   How many parents would be proud of a child that lied to them for months, and admitted to it only when proven to have lied? How many parents would be satisfied with the kind of admission we received, which contained no real apology, and, further, told us that it was none of our business? That this man used every resource in his control – other employees, friends in the press, political allies, the Secret Service! – to try to keep this secret only worsens this situation. We as a nation ought to have ousted Bill Clinton for this alone.

A outspoken liberal I knew around the time that this happened surprised me by whole-heartedly agreeing that we should have thrown him out of office. (Remember, he was impeached by the House, but the Senate refused to convict.) When I asked why, he said that if Clinton was so stupid as to have gotten caught doing this, he lacked the qualifications, like tact and discretion, needed to be the POTUS. I think he had a pretty good point in his own right!

Our forefathers turned in their graves. If the Founding Fathers were to come back today, they wouldn’t recognize this America. This is not what they had in mind. This is not what they gave their lives to found and foster. The fact that America’s figurehead not only lies, but stands on lying like it was a principle, bewilders me. How can anyone base their life on lying? Then we as a nation make that one bewildering person our leader? I can’t follow that. I am numb to that decision. It goes against everything that our nation was built on. One nation, under God, who still considers a “lying tongue” and a “false witness” to be abominable in his sight (Prov 6:16,17,19.) And who still considers sex outside of marriage fornication, and promises that all who do it will not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Co 6:9,10.)

Get this straight: I don’t care if other people are doing or have done it. The fact that it’s not public should not make it any less of a shame. God punishes sins, known or unknown. He will ultimately balance the scales with everyone, and He will deal with Bill’s indiscretions as well as mine. But we as a nation must deal with his crimes. We cannot punish crimes of which that we have no knowledge. And if we are to maintain an ordered society, truth must be paramount. Lying – in the form of perjury – must be tried and punished, else how will we judge anything? If people can lie to the Court, how can we find justice in any proceeding, be it murder, rape, or theft? We know that Bill Clinton has lied to the Court. By law, it simply must be punished.

However, let me respond to the most obvious problem with my discourse. I must say that I find it ironic that the man who first stepped up to to call for Clinton’s resignation was Dan Burton (R, IN.) A man who had an affair himself many years ago, and further, had a child from it. That is a shame just the same. But Mr. Burton has done what he could to make it right. He has protected the name of the mother and child, and paid child support all these years. And he didn’t lie to the Court about it.

We also now know that the man who leads the House Judiciary Committee, which drafted the Articles of Impeachment, one Henry Hyde, also had an affair, this time with a married woman. The five-and-a-half year affair destroyed a marriage and a family of three children. That is also a shame. I don’t know how it ended, so I can’t comment on how Mr. Hyde handled the mistake. But he didn’t lie to the court about it.

What is really interesting about all three of these cases (including Clinton) is that all three lied to their wives, hence they lied to me as a part of the public they swore to serve. I still maintain that most people don’t have affairs (they just get divorces and remarry), and I expect people in office to be a cut above the norm, not a cut below. In politics, a divorce is a heavy burden, so, I guess, legislators just stay married and have affairs. That makes them liars. When they got married, they promised to be faithful (at least, every set of vows I have ever heard include that sentiment), and they broke that promise, not just to their spouse, but probably to God as well.

I understand people make mistakes, and I can forgive them. But there is the matter of reaping what you sow, and our laws our clear. Who knows what skeletons other legislators have in their closets? I certainly have done things that I have regretted. But now I want desperately to live a life that God can be proud of. One thing I will do is admit when I am wrong and make every effort to right that wrong. Another is that I will not lie to the Court about it.

But ultimately, there remains a decision to be made on what to do with these Republicans who have admitted their own indiscretions. And I can’t say that I am swayed. I still think that the Republican party, overall, is the lesser of two evils. But this raises an interesting point. If I am willing to say that it’s alright that these men have done these things by voting for them, am I not saying that all that matters is how they do their job, which – I hope – is in line with their party ideals? But then, isn’t that the same thing that I am finding so repugnant in the polls? That we as a nation could still approve of the job that the President is doing?

So the bottom line for me is that we would all wear ourselves out fighting the moral battle with politicians. Who knows who is dirty? Most probably are in some way or another. At least, that’s what the trend would suggest. But we can fight what we know, and when someone has broken the law, it’s our moral obligation to try to bring that to justice. It doesn’t matter that anyone or everyone else is doing it. It doesn’t matter that the person involved might be the President. That’s how our society was built. Anything less leads to anarchy.

So while I find “the matter” reprehensible, and for many good reasons, I find myself in a tenuous position. One in which I could support a politician who has had an affair. That makes me a hypocrite, doesn’t it? Well, before I concede that, let’s take this discussion one step further. See I can forgive and forget on one condition, namely that the person who made the mistake admits it and repents. (For those unfamiliar with the term, to repent means to turn away from the wrong with a firm decision not to do it again.) God places the same restriction on forgiveness. To be forgiven, you must repent. That’s what makes God “sit up and take notice” of your situation: a change of heart.

I think I see a change of heart in Mr. Burton and Mr. Hyde, but I see no change in Bill Clinton. Nothing in anything he said to the public in all the time this was developing, and nothing he said after he had been caught, lead me to believe that he is truly sorry for what he has done or that he will not return to that lifestyle once this “matter” concludes. In fact, Linda Tripp told Larry King on his show that his philandering behavior continues to this day. (A point he dismissed as fast as it was raised. Time will tell.) I’m sorry, but no one can forgive Bill if he doesn’t think he’s done anything wrong.

Some would say that his family will correct him… that now that they know, now that he has been discovered, they will compel him to lead a life above reproach. I can’t buy that. We have to assume that rumors are true. We have to assume that Clinton has led this kind of life for many many years. That he has lied about it for the same length of time. And that might have worked for a liberal press who wouldn’t follow up the matter, but it would not have worked – for all these years – on a family who lived with him. You just can’t be that good of a liar. They knew. Hilary and Chelsea knew. That’s a simple fact that everyone must see. So I don’t think there’s any compulsion to change coming from his family, unless it’s just to be a better concealer of his indiscretions.

What I’m saying is that I could vote for Mr. Hyde or Mr. Burton, being Republicans, as they have shown a repentance for their actions. That’s forgiveness. If they came forward and said, “You know, I’m caught. I did it, but it’s none of your business. And you know, the people who found me out are evil too,” I wouldn’t vote for them, because those aren’t the words of someone who is sorry for what they’ve done. If I were a Democrat, and Bill had been truly apologetic, I would still want to vote for him. But I think a vote for him now is a vote for immorality and shame. Where there’s no culpability, there’s no change of action. I am absolutely certain that this behavior continues to this day.