Bill Clinton and George W. Bush

I have respect for Bill Clinton. He managed to accomplish a few things during his eight years despite a very difficult political climate. I even like the guy despite his bouts of pseudo-Republicanism and episodes of rope-a-dope. But he puzzles me. I don't mind his efforts to build bridges across party lines with people like Bob Dole and the senior George Bush. There has to be some of that in our society despite the efforts of the Republican right-wing leaders who believe they cannot lead unless they divide the country. But if ever there was a dangerous and reckless right-wing president, it was George W. Bush. So I'm puzzled that Clinton seems anxious to make nice with him as well. Here's the Reuter's story that describes a joint event of the former presidents:

Former U.S. Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton traded jokes about life after the Oval Office and took turns defending each other as they shared a stage in Toronto on Friday to discuss global affairs.

I've read other accounts besides this one. What gives? Yes, I know, being president is a tough job, etc., etc. But the junior Bush stubbornly pursued policies in world affairs and economics that makes it clear that he's the most failed president in American history. Okay, given Bill's vanity, maybe he wanted to be the good president next to the bad president. But that's pathetic. Bill knows what a disaster Bush has been. Doesn't he? Do we really need to remind Bill what a failure junior was?

I recently wanted to check something about the Bush years so I went to the library and took out The Lies of George W. Bush by David Corn. Here are some of the lies that Corn mentions:

"I have been very candid about my past."

"I'm a uniter, not a divider."

"[The votes] have not only been counted, they've been counted twice."

"We must uncover every detail and learn every lesson of September the 11th."

"No one could have conceivably imagined suicide bombers burrowing into our society."

"The bottom end of the economic ladder receives the biggest percentage [tax] cuts."

"We must usher in a new era of integrity in corporate America."

"Intelligence gathered by this and other governments leaves no doubt that the Iraq regime continues to possess and conceal some of the most lethal weapons ever devised."

"The president has made no decision about the use of force."

"The president of the United States and the secretary of defense would not assert as plainly and bluntly as they have that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction if it was not true, and if they did not have a solid basis for saying it."

"We will prove that someone who is conservative and compassionate can win without sacrificing principle. We will show that politics, after a time of tarnished ideals, can be higher and better. We will give our country a fresh start after a season of cynicism."

"We will not deny, we will not ignore, we will not pass along our problems to other Congresses, to other presidents, and other generations."

That last quote is probably the most painful lie of all.

There were many more lies about Iraq, Abu Ghraib, torture, Gitmo, the 2004 election, Hurricane Katrina, the economy, the U.S. Attorney scandal and much more that are not found in the book. The reason? Corn's book was published in 2003. The lies were already going strong.

It should be noted that Bush made many comments against Bill Clinton in the 2000 election. I know, I know. Bill wants to be statesmanlike and likeable as well. With Hillary Clinton at State, he also has to keep a low profile and be on his good behavior. I just hope he doesn't work too hard at rehabilitating George W. Bush. There are better things he could do.

Hillary Clinton Says She Was Misled

Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton is doing well in the polls. In Iowa this weekend, the very talented former first lady was greeted like a rock star. Here's a story from Ray Quintanilla of of the Chicago Tribune:

DAVENPORT, IOWA -- On the second day of her campaign swing across the state, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) confronted her vote for the invasion of Iraq by saying she was misled, and she called on President Bush to end the conflict before leaving the White House in 2009.

"I live with this every day," Clinton told a standing-room only crowd in this Mississippi River community on Sunday. "The president is determined to move forward on a plan that won't succeed. He should extricate the country before he leaves office."

She doesn't quite say it, but I'm glad that Hillary Clinton essentially admits she made a mistake. When you admit that you have made a mistake, you get closer to the reality; that means you can get closer to the problem and do something about it—that's a lesson President Bush has not yet learned.

But the Bush Administration dragged us into a war in Iraq that we did not need and deliberately said things that were not true. And many Americans were misled and no one should forget that. But I have a question. It's not an idle question and sooner or later the Clinton campaign is going to have to address it. Bill Clinton was president for eight years; he dealt with Iraq several times. What was Bill Clinton's position on all this and what advice did he give Hillary, if any?