Bill Clinton's Life: An Inside Look

New York Times:

Bill Clinton loves to shop. On a March day in an elegant crafts store in Lima, the Peruvian capital, he hunted for presents for his wife and the women on his staff back home. He had given a speech at a university earlier and just came from a ceremony kicking off a program to help impoverished Peruvians. Now he was eyeing a necklace with a green stone amulet.

Read the whole story: New York Times

Comments

[EducatedObserver]

This is for Angeltour and Roderick098,

I've really enjoyed reading your defense of someone I consider to be a hero - I think Bill Clinton himself would be overjoyed to know that there are still people around who feel so passionately about his life and presidency.

However, I think at some point, in the face of extreme negativity he would probably conclude that there are those who cannot - or refuse to - be convinced about his essential goodness. And he would walk away.

I think you might understand what I'm getting at.:-)

[Angeltour]

I do understand what you are saying EducatedOb­server...I hope Bill does know how many of us appreciate his Presidency and the inspiration he is to so many people for helping so many people...something tells me that he knows because he is not someone to let negativity stop him from accomplishing the positive...

I also enjoyed your supportive comments...

[RODERICK098]

You both give me faith that there are still sane people in the world who can sort through the lies of the Clinton opponents but also the so-called reporting of our `liberal `media

[partyofone]

what a happy trio.

[StopSexismNow]

Nah, make that four and there are lots more who feel the way we do. I know that revelation will likely give you a rash...so sorry about that.

[vsign]

Bill Clinton is my hero as a man and as an American President.

[partyofone]

vsign, what are your thoughts on the joint appearence Bill Clinton just made with George W. Bush?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/29/bush-clinton-appear-toget_n_209306.html

[wiseraven]

Shrub loves him like a brother...did anyone else get creeped out at how the Clintons fawned over the Bushes at the Obama Inauguration, but ignored and were ignored by the Carters. I know that politics makes for strange bedfellows, but what kind of bed do these families really share? Just wondering...

[EducatedObserver]

A question to my fellow posters:

Has anyone noticed that PartyofOne, KnowSomeSecrets and 2BFair, apart from sharing a curiously similar style of writing, also possess a seemingly infinite well of loathing for the Clintons?

[RODERICK098]

With you Educated Observer and their opinions are all based on lies.

[Angeltour]

Bingo! EducatedObserver... they are consumed with their tunnel vision of hate

[2Bfair]

Has anyone noticed that EducatedObserver seems to be aligning himself with a posse that swarms and attacks ad hominem when they see an opinion they do not like? Their collective purpose seems to be to stifle free expression by belittling and attempting to intimidate.

EducatedObserver might lead his group in reading and reflecting on a commonly accepted definition of opinion: "An opinion is a belief that may or may not be backed up with evidence, but which cannot be proved with that evidence. It is normally a subjective statement and may be the result of an emotion or an interpretation of facts; people may draw opposing opinions from the same facts."

The mere suggestion that another person's opinion is a "lie" because someone else disagrees with it and feels they have a monopoly on the truth is scary. I am offended by many of the things said on this website, but I do not attack the people saying them. Strong opinions don't damage a democracy, but concerted efforts to suppress them can.

[Ergon]

Bill Clinton:
Killed over a million Iraqis with his sanctions.
Bombed Serbian civilian targets.
Lied to the American people.
So did the Bushes, but we're taking about Bill.

[Angeltour]

and who is bombing the Pakistani civilians these days?

[RODERICK098]

Nothing the Clinton haters have said about Hillary have turned true. She has been a team player and speaks proudly of Obama as the President showing no signs of envy at all towards him and he has been gracious in return to her, And yet you want to keep holding on to a negative image of her which is false. Very Bizarre.

[partyofone]

I see Hillary's peformance very differently. She accepted a cabinet post structured as political pacification to help her save face after a bitter, embarasing, failed bid for president. It was Obama's olive branch to the Clintons and their bitter followers, in an effort to unite the party and the nation for some very hard work.

As a result, Hillary is a "smile and greet" SoS. Her primary job is to keep Bill Clinton out of trouble and out of the headlines as an Obama critic. So far so good.

Some in the foreign press are much more attuned to Hillary's ceremonial role, and less obligated to the Clintons, describing a 'first lady" redux. For example:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article5908281.ece

[Angeltour]

dream on PartyofOne...and you are a party of one, two or three...even Obama knows that Hillary cuts to the chase and knows all the issues inside out...she knows all the world leaders and they know, admire and RESPECT her...

Hillary rocks...

[Angeltour]

partyofone...what you claim to "see' shows precisely how uninformed you are...you see Hillary the way you want to see her...not the way she is seen by world leaders all around the world and by even Barak Obama...SOS, along with Treasury, are the two most important and relevant cabinet position...

your claim that:

As a result, Hillary is a "smile and greet" SoS. Her primary job is to keep Bill Clinton out of trouble and out of the headlines as an Obama critic. So far so good.

...it shows that you know how to reproduce a 'talking point' by here critics, but indicates that you are uninformed with what the State Department actually does...

but, we understand, it makes you 'feel good' to say it...

[2Bfair]

Bill Clinton squandered his presidency and the trust of the American people, sold his influence for lost of cash to anyone who would pay, and Mrs. Bill Clinton helped.

[Angeltour]

are you still at it? lighten up and learn about fairness...Bill Clinton forgives his enemies...

[partyofone]

every description of the Clintons 30 years of public life I have read say directly "they never forget and they get even." "Fairness" by your definition seems to mean agreeing with your blindly adoring spin for the Clintons. I don't agree with it and see them very differently from you.

[partyofone]

lost* = lots

[partyofone]

Bill and Hillary Clinton decided early in their adult lives that they were going to engage in hardball politics, have done it well, and have risen to the highest levels of power and wealth. They have done it for themselves, to serve their greed and egos, not to serve their nation. They have given as good as they get, hitting hard, but crying foul and playing victim when they get hit back. This nation can never move forward while the Bushes and Clintons have power. For 20 years they have used the poltiics of division to promote partisan warfare that keeps their corporate, profiteering cronies in control, because no national consensus can emerge.

[RODERICK098]

More lies by Party of ONE

[partyofone]

unfortunately, when you call a post "lies" it gives it more credibility. Thanks for the edorsement.

[miamia]

I wish he would have been as vocal in the instance of Gore v Bush or the run up to the war. He could have really helped his country....

[Angeltour]

too bad gore and brazile kept bill at a distance...if they had used Bill during the whole campaign maybe gore would have at least won his own state of tennessee...

if it were not for bill clinton the democratic party would have remained in executive wilderness through the end of the 20th century...bill did his part...gore and kerry were wimps next to the charisma, intelligence and communication skills of Bill Clinton

[partyofone]

too bad so many Americans concerned for their nation were so tired of the Clinton era embarrassments and distractions they did not give Gore a fair chance. For many of us, nothing would justify voting for George W. Bush. But for too many Americans, voting against the Clinton era was an important value statement.

[StopSexismNow]

So true and extremely well put Angeltour.

[imusintheevening]

Even my 83 year old father has a laptop and sends texts, but he is the only recent past President we can be proud of.

[Manchurian]

What about Jimmy Carter?

[partyofone]

good point. Jimmy Cater, the nobel peace laureate, who has served the nation and the world since he left office, and not sought to sell his influence to anyone who can pay.

[EducatedObserver]

A fascinating article about a truly fascinating man.

I remember his presidency well - the chaos, the drama, the compassion, the soaring successes and bitter disappointments, Clinton had an outstanding mind but governed from the heart.

As presidents come and go, it is becoming increasingly obvious that Bill Clinton - warts and all - was one of the most exciting, dynamic and yes, transformational, of the past hundred years.

[Angeltour]

wise words from an 'EducatedO­bserver'..­.bravo!

[Know-some-secrets]

edcatedObserver, for millions of Americans "it is becoming increasingly obvious that Bill Clinton" and his wife are self-serving. When it is convenient for them, they may well work in the interest of ther nation and the Democratic party, and even Obama, but often their interests sell the nation short.

[RODERICK098]

-Their interests sell the nation short?-can you give examples or are these more lies and innuendo from a Clinton hater.

[partyofone]

I hope EducatedObserver and fellow members of his Clinton fan club will each share their thoughts about Bill's new road show with George W. Bush.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/05/29/bush-clinton-appear-toget_n_209306.html

[StopSexismNow]

You nailed the TRUTH!

[Angeltour]

yesterday someone posted about three or four links to substantiate how much Bill Clinton had done to help Obama win after he secured the nomination...they were links to events and speeches, etc but somehow they were deleted

would that person repost that information...it was objective and honest and I would like to review the class Bill Clinton showed in helping Obama get elected

[partyofone]

Bill Clinton is a saavy political opportunist His efforts for Obama were ofen described as cool, half-hearted, reluctant., lackig enthusiasm and coverage ALWAYS revisited Clintons' harsh comments about Obama and praise for McCain during the primaries. Bill Clinton refused a joint appearence with Obama at the Convention, and did not appear with him until SIX DAYS BEFORE THE ELECTION, when projections showed a clear victory. That was about helping Bill Clinton helping Bill Clinton, not about supporting Obama.

"During the primaries, Mr. Clinton called the Obama insurgency 'the biggest fairy tale I’ve ever seen' and dismissively compared Mr. Obama’s candidacy to that of Jesse Jackson, prompting calls of racism. And he barely managed to conceal his dismay at the freshman senator’s wins over his wife.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/103008dnpolclintonobama.160b48fff.html

"In an interview that aired on ABC’s World News Tonight Bill Clinton denied that he is angry at Barack Obama, but offered very little in terms of an endorsement and enthusiasm for the Democratic nominee.... Clinton was asked if Obama is ready to be president, and said, “You can argue that no one is ever ready to be president." http://www.politicususa.com/en/Bill-Clinton-World-News-Tonight


What the Clintons and their followers do not yet grasp is that homemade videos, eyewitnees accounts, bloggers who research, put information online that is easily searchable. After the "bullets in Bosnia" fiasco, why isn't Billary inc. more cautious in its spin?

[StopSexismNow]

He could not have done it without the help of both Bill and Hillary Clinton. Hillary did far more to help her former opponent than any prior primary challenger in Democratic Party history. The Clinton haters will never admit that because they are just so bogged down in their own unfounded and blinding hatred, but it is true.

[partyofone]

actually, the Clintons were reluctant to a fault in their support of Obama, jumping on the Obama train only when it was increasingly clear he would win. That was the Clintons serving themselves, not Obama.

For the first time in history, a former president not only took sides in a presidential primary, but campaigned full time. Bill Clitnon could have fulfilled his obligation to his wife by campaigning enthusiastically FOR her, but he CHOSE to campaign AGAINST another highly qualified, populat Democrat with Rove-style, divisive, distorting, "kitchen sink" tactics. Those tactics did not win the primary, or prevent Obama from winning the election, but they alienated from the Clintons forever many progressive voters who had supported them in the past. Obama triumphed because of his vision and "the content of his character."

You may call this opinion "Clinton hating," I call it holding the Clintons accountable and trying to end their style of politics.

[nickypoo]

I read the article and now I'm confused as to why the headlines for the piece were: "Insiders: Bill Clinton Still Doesn't Forgive Richardson, Kennedy For Endorsing Obama," and "Still Pals Around With Canadian Mining Mogul Behind Controversial Kazakhstan Deal" when those issues comprised a very small part of the whole. It's almost like the HuffPost headliner for this article was picking and choosing in order to make a point about the former president with the understanding that most people wouldn't actually read the piece. This seems more like a Fox news move than a HuffPost one.

[marecek]

To quote Cheney, "So?" Like we are supposed to gvie a rodent's derriere.

[imsosure]

His feelings got hurt, no big deal. He's become and becoming more irrelevant with each interference of the new administration he asserts. Just try to behave slick.

[Angeltour]

for all you Clinton haters who remain in the dark...take a look at what Bill has been doing with his life since he left the Presidency­...educate yourself and see all the people he has helped all over the WORLD since he left his successful two term Democratic Presidency twelve years ago...

www.clintonfoundation.org/


www.clintonglobalinitiative.org/Page.aspx?pid=2356

[loucreattie]

I am not a Clinton hater....

however I do think its time for him to get over himself.

[Angeltour]

for some funny reason huff post does not take you to Clinton's good works sites

so for the Clinton haters who are open to educating themselves and seeing what this man has done with his life since leaving his successful two term democratic presidency 12 years ago
google

Clinton foundation

and Clinton Global Initiative

and then take the time to see how much positive value and effect Bill Clinton has had on the lives of people all over the world

[partyofone]

Bill's "philanthropy" is very self-serving. Can you post a link to the financial records of the Clinton Foundation and Global iniiative and what percentage of the Billions they claim are are true investments in doing good, and what overhead charges are made?

[dm92]

At the end of the day, politics is all about influence and being able to deliver the votes you or your candidate needs - he will take that to his grave.