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Show m axn c Should President Clinton face lawsuits while in office? Should the president of the United States face lawsuits while in office? That is the question being debated and discussed by attorneys and the public in the light of the most recent charge of sexual impropriety against President Clinton. Paula Jones has charged Clinton with sexual harassment. She claims the event took place before Clinton took office. The charge is just another in a long line of charges against President Clinton. To date his attorney has responded that the charge is groundless. Attorney Robert Bennett called Jones claim tabloid trash with a legal caption. The question remains, should a president be open to civil or criminal suits? The Justice Department has provided the White House research on past cases involving presidential immunity from civil suits on actions. The Supreme Court ruled in 1982 presidents cannot be sued in office or after leaving it for official acts, but that ruling does not cover suits for a presidents actions before being elected. It would be difficult to classify sexual harassment as an official act regardless of when it took place and White House attorneys believe if the case goes to trial it will be an unprecedented test of presidential immunity. But presidents should not be immune. One of the deterrents to crime is the fear of getting caught and getting punished for the crime. That same deterrent applies to presidents. If they know the laws of the land will be applied to them equally they will be more inclined to obey the laws. Being president doesnt give the right to commit crimes with no repercussions. Obviously the president should not be bothered with petty little suits that will tie him up. If Socks the cat knocks over the neighbors garbage Bill Clinton should not have to appear in court to answer the charge. If Bill Clinton is charged with a criminal offense, he should answer for that offense. Being president doesnt bring with it the right to break the law. If it did, Richard Nixon would not have resigned. There would have been no need. The laws would not have been applied equally. Similarly, if the immunity was extended 4o Vice President-Spir- o Agnew, he too would not have resigned his office. It is interesting that this question did not have to be resolved until Clinton took office. This, along with other questions of personal integrity, have become a common occurrence at the Clinton White House. When you come into the public eye carrying a lot of baggage, that baggage will be uncovered eventually. How many other overnight cases does Clinton have in his spacious, walk-i- n closet? cy Young entrepreneur stupidfied by city Like the officiating at NBA games, some things are difficult to comprehend. ..And Cyclops spied another prime example of the unbelievable in Davis County last week. officials were The boy The Close Encounter of the Stupid Kind occurred in Kaysville City where a zoning official shut down the roadside stand where a young man had been selling bedding plants from his nearby garden. The action attracted attention unwanted attention and city officials began falling over themselves with hastily-drafte- d justifications for putting the boy out of business. Technically, of course, the city correct. The Kaysville Junior High School lad was indeed operating a business in a residential zone. But were not talking about mass merchandising or a nuclear waste dump! Were looking at a selling $400 worth of plants he grew in order to earn a few bucks for a movie and a Big Gulp. wasnt doing much more than you and I once did when we erected a lemonade stand. In fact, anyone other than a knee-jer- k city official knows that business is conducted in residential zones every single day of the year. Avon saleswomen, Mary Kay Cosmetic reps, computer software consultants these folks generally do not move out of their homes and relocate to a business park in order to placate a zoning official. In fact, the last time I bought a package of Girl Scout cookies, I cant remember asking if that residential business practice was You probably wouldnt have noticed him. He was shy, but not painfully. He was quiet, but hed raise his hand. He didnt make easy to remember the outspoken students. They demand your attention. They act up. The act out. They They chatter. Energy clothed in jeans and sneakers and clown. chewing gum cannot be ignored. Its easy to remember the bril- liant students. They shine. They We'd like to hear J from you. What is YOUR opinion on many friends, but he didnt have any enemies. His penmanship was atrocious and he had trouble with times tables, but his reading was on grade level. There really wasnt any reason to pay much attention to Brian. And that was the problem. Its this subject? Mail your comments to: Bountiful, Utah 84010 1370 So. 500 W. The difference between the Avon sales rep and the was publicity. The editors of a weekly newspaper, impressed with kids initiative and, thinking the they were doing him a favor, featured the boy in a newspaper story. Amazingly, it turned out the zoning official could read. And once that story was published, the zoning official had no recourse but to look into it, said Kaysville Mayor Art Johnson. Oh, hogwash! The neighbors hadnt complained. There were no reports of increased traffic. The Kaysville Police Department had mot deemed the city streets less safe. Under these circumstances, the zoning official should rightly have assigned the investigation a low priority and if he were smart, he would have conveniently forgotten it. In typical bureaucratic style, the city official could have said, I dam boy, but due to more pressing problems I wasnt able to get around to investigating it. But the zoning official wasnt too smart. And neither was Councilman Steve Whitesides, a former elementary school principal, who rambled about how the laws were meant to be applied fairly to everyone. In my mind, Councilman Whitesides should stop his blubbering about the celestial nature of city statutes, laws and regulations. What he should do is congratulate the for getting off his rear and attempting to better himself. This summer, the boy grew more than bedding plants. He also grew in self-respe- And speaking of respect, I have lot more of it for Allen Whitaker than I do for the unelected zoning official who had nothing better to do than pounce on a newspaper article and harass an meant to do something about that Invisible children are falling through cracks Tcrys ECstd Clipper Publishing endorsed by the mayor!) positively glow. They radiate everything that made a teacher want to become a teacher. Its easy to remember the students in pain. They hurt and they cry for you. And you cry for them. Oh, but the kid who is simply there. The kid who is not too good, but not too bad. This is the child who presents our greatest challenge because he, I am terrified to admit, is the child most at risk of falling through those cracks. Theyre the ones so easy to ever-widenin- g overlook. I liked Brian, although he did tend to whine when he talked. And he did come to class five minutes late almost every other day. And he did draw pictures and daydream when I know he couldve done the work if hed only paid attention. He also hated P.E. He always had excuses why he couldnt play. Maybe thats why I noticed him that day. He tripped during the soccer game. He went down and got up with tears in his eyes. I offered to let him sit out. No, Im OK, he said. He continued to play. Twice more, he fell, but limping, he went on. Brian wasnt exactly Olympic material, but he got up easier each time, dusted himself off, and trotted toward the ball. He stayed in the game until I blew the whistle. A day later, no one remembered who won or whether they were on the blue team or the red team. Brian wasnt the hero of the game. Hed never made a goal in his life, but I remember thinking how hard it must have been for him to keep playing. And I remember the look on his face when he read the letter Id left on his desk that afternoon congratulating him on his courage and determination. Brian will never come to us the way other children will. Our eyes must be more keen to recognize his efforts and his triumphs. Our praise must be real so that he begins to understand his own value. We, his parents and teachers, must be ready to meet the demands that we will never hear him make. in Yt!F pfm51 c Bountiful City Council 3 I ask the City Council to reject the proposed pay increase. doesnt need a raise Editor, by Clipper Publishing Co., Inc. John Stable, Jr. publisher John Stahle, Sr. publisher R. Gail Stahle publisher Judy Jensen managing editor 1 370 South 500 West, Bountiful, Utah 84010 Published semi-weekl- y 1892-195- 1954-198- 9 4 1990-prese- ISSN: 1061-122- j i j 3 semi-weekl- on No. published (USPS 149-18at Bountiful, Tuesday and Friday except the week of Christmas and New Years Utah Second class postage paid at Bountiful, Utah. Address all correspondence Subscription rate: 50e per copy. to P.O. Box 267, Bountiful, Utah 84011-026$20.00 per year, Mailed: $30.00 per year. Publication News Advertising Circulation Classified 295-225- 1 292-205- 8 292'29?2 FAX 295-304- Office Hours- 8 DEADLINES y 30-- 5 30 Mon. TUESDAY thru Fri. PAPER Accepted Until Display Advertising Classified Ads POSTMASTER Send change of address to 11 am 5T Friday 5pm FRIDAY PAPER Bo 267 Bountiful Utah d, selves adequately paid, perhaps they should resign and let some of the other highly qualified citizens serve, for whom pay isnt such an Wednesday Noon Davis Counly Clipper PQ Last November, 45 citizens of Bountiful applied to serve out the unexpired council term John Cushing. Those of then Mayor-elec- t as prominent, were described applicants and like a Whos Who of Utah. For these 45 people, the present pay scale was apparently adequate. Many applicants mentioned a desire to serve Bountiful when they applied for the position. The existing rate of pay is hardly adequate to attract someone motivated only by money. They had a higher purpose. Mayor Bob Linnell said he was just bowled over, apparently by the number and quality of the applicants. If the members of the Council dont consider them- Thurs. 5pm If Proof Required and Color 24 Hours In Advance Articles & Photos DEADLINES tion. high-powere- 4 Classified Ads Display Advertising News Obituaries Public Notices Recently the members of the Bountiful City Council announced they are considering giving themselves and the Mayor a 20 percent pay increase. Justification of the increase, according to Tom Hardy, City Manager, includes time that everyone puts in, the complexity of the job, the exposure to criticism and litiga- 84011-026- issue. Jim Huefner Please dont desecrate grave sites this year children and grandchildren doing things that we do not approve of, perhaps they are just following our example. If there are flowers in the cemetery at any time and are not on your family gravesites, leave them there, they do not belong to you, even if no one ever returns to retrieve them. Joan S. Muir Bountiful Editor, I have something to say to the patrons of the Bountiful City Cemetery, since Memorial Day is approaching. During the past few years as our parents have passed away I have made special efforts to arrange something very nice to place on their graves and honor the sweet memories of them. I have purchased nice woven baskets to fill with potted plants and added pretty bows to enhance them. Our family gravesites are both close to the roads and as 1 have gone to the cemetery at the end of the week following Memorial Day I find that they have been stolen. This is not just one year, but year after year it has happened to me. I have even had large bows stolen from my wreaths at Christmas time. I wont be doing all the extra things this year, it just isnt worth the expense and effort, only to have them stolen. It is no wonder we have problems with our Violence opinion, cartoon hit the mark Editor, Thank you for the enlightening editorial cartoon and narrative found In Our Opinion in the May 10th edition of your paper. I consider it to be right on target in addressing the issue of violence facing todays kids. I was especially impressed that not only did you illustrate the problem but you also pointed out possible solutions. The premise of the piece was both sensitive and poignant. Government can never be the sole solution to meeting the needs of at risk kids. Thank you so much for your willingness to bring that to our communities attention. Stephanie Carter Administrative Officer Youth Parole Authority |