The Clintons and Documents: A Touch of Deja Vu

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The National Archives is withholding from the public about 2,600 pages of records at President Clinton's direction, despite a public assurance by one of his top aides last month that Mr. Clinton "has not blocked the release of a single document."

The 2,600 pages, stored at Mr. Clinton's library in Arkansas, were deemed to contain "confidential advice" and, therefore, "closed" under the Presidential Records Act, an Archives spokeswoman, Susan Cooper, told The New York Sun yesterday.

An official who oversees the presidential libraries operated by the federal government, Sharon Fawcett, said in a recent interview that the records were withheld in accordance with a letter Mr. Clinton wrote in 1994 exercising his right to hold back certain types of files and another letter in 2002 about narrowing the scope of his earlier instructions. Asked by National Journal whether Mr. Clinton had "total control" over the closure of records under the confidential-advice provisions of the law, Ms. Fawcett said he did.

At a Democratic presidential debate in October, Senator Clinton was questioned about language in the 2002 letter that discussed the possibility of withholding some records about the former first lady. Mr. Clinton later called the questions "breathtakingly misleading" and complained bitterly that his wife had been sandbagged.

"Bill Clinton has not blocked the release of a single document," the former president's official representative on records issues, Bruce Lindsey, said in a written statement last month aimed at defusing criticism in the press and by one of Mrs. Clinton's rivals for the Democratic nomination, Senator Obama of Illinois. Spokesmen for Mrs. Clinton's campaign and Mr. Clinton's office did not respond to requests for comment.

Seems like only yesterday.


by RidesAPaleHorse
[graphic: RAPH]
Source: NY Sun: 2600 pages of Clinton records withheld



Death by 1000 Papercuts Front Page.

Bill Clinton: 1992-2000 in His Own Words

14 Bill Clinton Quotes to Start the Day Right

Bill Clinton, variously referred to as "Bubba", "Boy President" and "The Man from Hope", has recently been traveling the country stumping for his wife, Hillary.

Bill, fondly recalls the 1990s as a time that the country was at peace and all was right with the world. We understand his views: we're natural optimists ourselves.

However, we also understand fuzzy memories, so here's a look at 1992-2000 in the words, spoken at that time, from our 42nd president, Bill Clinton.

On the Importance of Time: "It wasn't my finest hour. It wasn't even my finest hour and a half." -–Bill Clinton, after giving an endless nominating speech for Michael Dukakis at the 1988 Democratic convention On Archeology: "You know, if I were a single man, I might ask that mummy out. That's a good-looking mummy." -—Bill Clinton, looking at "Juanita," a newly discovered Incan mummy on display at the National Geographic museum Progress in Housing and Urban Development: "Last year, the vice president launched a new effort to help make communities more liberal." -—Bill Clinton, during his 2000 State of the Union Speech. He meant to say "more livable," and then made the same slip-up in a subsequent sentence, drawing uproarious laughter from Republicans "I don't know whether it's the finest public housing in America or the crown jewel of the American penal system." -–Bill Clinton, on the White House On the position of First Lady: "You'd think he was running for First Lady." -–Bill Clinton, on George H. W. Bush's criticism of Hillary Clinton On Drug Policy: "When I was in England, I experimented with marijuana a time or two, and I didn't like it. I didn't inhale and never tried it again." -–Bill Clinton On Regulatory Reform: "I asked him to do it because he was the only person that I could trust to read all 150,000 pages in the Code of Federal Regulations." -–Bill Clinton, on asking Vice President Al Gore to tackle federal regulatory reform On Media Matters: "Look, half the time when I see the evening news, I wouldn't be for me, either." –-Bill Clinton, in 1995, on a pre-campaign swing through Montana and Colorado "What's a man got to do to get in the top fifty?" -–Bill Clinton, reacting to a survey of journalists that ranked the Monica Lewinsky scandal as the 53rd most significant story of the century On the English language: "It depends on what the meaning of the words 'is' is." -–Bill Clinton, during his 1998 grand jury testimony on the Monica Lewinsky affair "It depends on how you define alone…" –Bill Clinton, in his grand jury testimony On Pimping his Ride: "It was a real sort of Southern deal. I had AstroTurf in the back. You don't want to know why, but I did." -–Bill Clinton, reminiscing about a pickup truck he once owned On Fashion: "Usually briefs." -–Bill Clinton, asked during a 1994 MTV town meeting whether he wore boxer shorts or briefs On Summing Up His Presidency: "I may not have been the greatest president, but I've had the most fun eight years." –Bill Clinton

Some may have forgotten, some may be too young to remember, but that was the Clinton Presidency, in Bill's own words.

Couldn't have said it any better.

by Mondoreb

ALSO:
HRC's Platform for Dummies: 10 Hillary Quotes

[image: Cox & Forkum]
Source: Funny Bill Clinton Quotes



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