Scouring Books: The Final Days

The Final Days
by Barbara Olson

originally published in 2001

One of the reasons I describe myself politically as an independent is that it's often extremely difficult to tell the two American parties, the Democrats and Republicans, apart, especially when they're engaging in essentially the same behaviors while taking opposite positions on strategic issues. The one thing I can agree on is when their sniping against each other actually rings true (this is not always the case, though it's the gristle on which they invariably feed at election time). Bill Clinton's presidency was one of the more controversial ones in recent memory, not because of his policies, but because of his personal behavior, which at one point led to a sensational congressional impeachment due to his philandering, but actually ran much deeper, something that was parodied in the famous Primary Colors satire, his insatiable need to be the consummate politician, at any cost. Unfortunately, what this meant in a practical sense is that he felt obligated to engage in every political game, both the visible and invisible variety. Olson, who died on 9/11, wrote about how he concluded his presidency exactly as he'd operated all along. This is the man who is currently advocating a return to ethics, mind you...

Bookshelf status: unread