| OCR Text |
Show The Salt Lake Tribune OPINION Tuesday, December 1, 1998 Truth in the Age ofClinton: 81 Direct Questions, 81 Evasive Answers Only Bill Clinton would respond to the direct question, “Do you admit or denythat you are the chief law enforcement officer of the United States of America?” with the-evasive answer, “The president is frequently referred to as the chief law enforcement officer, although nothing in the Constitution specifteally designates the president as such.” And so it went in a gameofcat and mouse through 81 questions asked of the president by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Henry Hyde. Question 17: “Do you admit or deny that on or about Dec. 17, 1997, you told Monica Lewinsky that her name was on the witness list im the case of Jones vs. Clin- ton?” The president responded that although herecalled telephon- ing.Lewinskytotell her that the motfitrof his secretary, Betty Currie*had died, “I do not recall other particulars of such call.” But a House Judiciary Committee “back- groiinder” notes the record indi- cates the president toid Lewinsky aboutthe appearance of her name CAL THOMAS stead of you?” This is a crucial question because it involves possible subornation of perjurybythe president. In response, Clinton on thatdate. In her grandjury testimony of Aug. 6, Lewinsky was asked, “Did you come to have a telephone conversation with the president on Dec. 17?” ky testified, “Yes, he told meLewins he had some more bad news, that he had seen the witness list for the Paula Jones case and my name was on it He told me that it didn’t neces. sarily meanthat I would be subpoe- naed, but that that was a possibility, and if I were subpoenaed, that I should contact Betty and let Betty knowthatI had received the subpoena, There are numerous such discrepancies between the president's latest responses and his previous responses, and the answers of others. Yet, throughit all, the presidentandhis attorney, David Kendall, repeatedlyassert that none of his statements is “false and misleading.” But in an “introductory statement” to his answers, the president admits “it was also said, “I may have talked about what to do in a non-legal context at somepointin the past, but I have nospecific memoryofthat conversation.” The record indicates something different. Monica LewinskytestiLOS ANGELES TIMES SYNDICATE fied on Aug. 6 that she and the wrong to mislead people about what happened.” So, Clinton mis- route of it was that Betty always presidentdid, in fact, have such a led the people who do not have the power to legally punish him (his family and the public), but he did not mislead people who do have such power(the grand jury and the House Judiciary Committee). Question 14: “Do you admit or deny that you discussed with Moni- ca Lewinskypriorto Dec.17, 1997, that Betty Currie should be the one to clear Ms. Lewinsky in to see you so that Ms. Lewinsky could say that she wasvisiting with Ms. Currie in- Geezers: Shake, Rattle and Roll Those Canes! If you want to know whyJohn lenf’s boringtrip into orbit was ROBERT RENO lation because there are so few ‘tea riveting national event, it's groups we'reallowed to make fun of anymore. Quite correctly, we is precisely what so many of us have wanted to do with a beloved elder who drives too slow or the hateful stereotypes about peopleof color, Asians, Arabs, the ed to have his or her dentures fixed been permitted, te portray the splendid Irish people as drunks se hurling one of them into trom readers accusing me of being a raving ageist. I don't know why but they usually comeafter I've written a column making reference o foolishold crones, drooling duffers, Staggering geezers who whine about their lumbago and forget their laxatives. I can’t imagine what making these readers solivid. ist’t reaching the decrepit age of 59-reason enoughfor meto start aughing at myself? We must neverlose our capacity for taking fun of people's ages. For me thing, no age is a permanent condition. And, after all, one f the reasons so many people don’t’See anypointin making President Clinton into the middle-aged anti-hrist of the millennium is those-veryadolescent qualities that Marty McGrory, that splendid old bidéy. has said make us think of him a bright teen-ager who vexes’ with never House? Tosay that these and many similar statements are not false and misleading is itself false and misleading. Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.) correctly referredtothepresident's responses as “torturedlegal reasoning and convenient memory lapses. It of fers no exculpatory evidence and does notcallinto question the accu. racy of the Independent Counsel's referral to Congress.” ‘Twentyyears ago, historian Paul neededtobe the onetoclear mein so that, you know, I could always sayI was comingtosee Betty. Question 43: “Do you admit or Johnsonobserved that “oneprinci- yourdepositionin the case of Jones vs. Clinton when you responded onceortwice’ to the question *has streamof our culture, the real infrastructure of civilization Words can be prostituted and de- deny that you gave false and misleading testimony under oath in Monica Lewinsky ever given you any gifts?” ” The president responded,“I give and receive many gifts.” True, but howcredible is it pal wayin which our civilization is rendered vulnerabletotheassaults of its enemies (and false friends) is by the undermining of linguistic truth. (Language) is the blood- Bill Clinton or intent, rendered untruthful or heads, or turned inside out So long as we have language, we cannot be wholly enslaved, or wholly uncivilized dized, stood, as it were. on their of Clinton. bauched, damaged by use, misuse treacherous, devalued or aggran- ‘That was written before the age JOHN GLENN THEN... Mediterranean groups. It is no longer allowed, never should have it's the sameinstinct that. when Anyway, for some reason I've Jeengetting a lot ofletters recently I think we — we dis- ed — you know, the backward was having an affair in the White have driven from accepted usage demandsto be instantly transport- Henry Kissinger waddles onto the TVscreen, makesit so satisfying to see him comeacross as silly old man whodoesn’t realize he nolonger runs the world andnever did. si that the president would forget gifts from a woman with whomhe and washerwomen. NEWsDAY Oneofthe reasons George Bush lost to Clinton ars ago was that he cameacross as a fussyold lady, almost inviting cartoonists to drawhimin adress with a purse So we must cling to what wehave left: geezers, upper-class Anglo-Saxons, the British in general, royalty, Canadi- ans, the Swiss, raving right-wing extremists, self-important TV pun- dits and insufferable peoplelike Bill Gates and Donald Trump, es- Jimmy Carter? A common scold of pecially when they step on a ba- well, he was exactly what we all tarian world we have become. Feel free to call me a doddering amaiden aunt. But Ronald Reagan, hope to be when we start falling apart. He never whined, andif he nodded off at a summit, he made people think he was snoring for America. Kenneth Starr? The quintessential old biddy And didn't we wheezing, drool- ing geezers have our revenge two weeks ago? Here wasthe talking, weeping, whining, giggling, conniv- ing, insipid. self-pitying, insufferably young Monica Lewins! What made us wince most? W did she most remindus of? It was how asinine most of us were when we were 21 andhad egos th size of aircraft carriers with the self- worths of gardentoads. Wemustcherish ouraged popu- nana peel. And what a more egali- old fool. Just don't patronize me with thatrepulsive euphemism, senior citizen. According to demo graphic trends in Japan, North America and Europe, we're gonna take over this Earth in the next century and we're going to make all the Monicas’ lives miserable. Even if Daniel Pat Moynihan, a geezer who's alreadylocked in to his lifetime benefit, puts over his schemetoprivatize Social Security and put our old ageat risk in the stock market, we're going to make Congress bail us outif the market the vapid young. We'll wave our canes, bare our dentures, flap our wattles and shake our dewlapslike avenging Methuselahs, and Con- crashes in 2005 and wipes out our nest eggs. We've got the numbers, gress will roll over and let us seratchits belly. But wewill never ers vote in higher percentages than about our flabbycondition see, and everybody knowsold tim. surrender our sense of humor Talk aboutsaving Social Securi ty. We're going to increaseit, Free chauffeurs for our trips to bingo nights. Discount drinks at all gin mills. Full Medicare reimbursementfor custom chromed walkers with jeweled mud flaps, raccoon tails, cowbells, racingstripes, loud mufflers, glow-i Christopher medals, Styrofoam dice and imitation leopard skin steering wheel covers for all who demand them. Thisis the agenda the American Association of Retired Persons will be pushing in the next century. knowing whetherhe’s going to win a National Mérit Scholarship or total the familycar. eyeVeewe STRETCH YOUR HOLIDAY DOLLARS Open St Sun 9400-3.00 pm REDWOODSWAP MEET Year Round For toteinformation call 3700 So. Redwood Road 97. 35-6060 Women's Timberland’ Great Values on Fall Hikers & Casual Footwearare<Z A. “ERIN” HIKER Dillard's Exclusive Residential, Mobile Homes, & Commercial Handsewnconstruction with antique eyelets and skid resistantlugsole. Available in brown andrust. Sizes 510M. Was 79.00. B. ‘BARI” LACE-UP OXFORD Waterproof moctoe construction on trekker sole in brown. Sizes 5¥-10M. Was 89.00. C. ‘ELZ" BUSH HIKER Padded ankle collar with d-ring eyelets andsteel shanktoes. In brownand black Sizes 5-10M. Was 85.00. TRADE IN YOUR OLD WATER HEATER SAME DAY ia INSTALLATION_ D. ‘DALE” SLIP-ON LOAFER Dillard’s Exclusive Rubberlug sole for bettertraction Sizes 5) 10M. Was 95.00. Install Quality, Install Energy Efficient Natural Gas) Glass Lined Water Heaters <a. BY DESIGN =Manvwill= Ptombing & Heating L.C. exe PeeteSeti SOPY Monday-Friday 9:30-9:30, Saturday $-9:30 and Sunday1 1-7 at all Dillard's locations. tn Salt Lake City: FashionPlace and South Towne Center, in Matt ‘edit Card. The Amencan Express” Card. Diners C Mastercard* Visa” and The Discover Can |
