After he was impeached, the conventional wisdom was that Bill Clinton would be remembered by history as the president who had an affair with Monica Lewinsky and then lied about it. Not so fast. On the official website of the White House, which provides short histories of every president, Mr. Clinton is remembered in a far more flattering light. You'd almost swear the Democratic Party had a hand in writing the summary, though it was actually produced under the auspices of the Bush administration:

During the administration of William Jefferson Clinton, the U.S. enjoyed more peace and economic well being than at any time in its history. He was the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second term. He could point to the lowest unemployment rate in modern times, the lowest inflation in 30 years, the highest home ownership in the country's history, dropping crime rates in many places, and reduced welfare roles. He proposed the first balanced budget in decades and achieved a budget surplus. As part of a plan to celebrate the millennium in 2000, Clinton called for a great national initiative to end racial discrimination.

The site goes on to applaud Mr. Clinton for seeking legislation"to upgrade education, to protect jobs of parents who must care for sick children, to restrict handgun sales, and to strengthen environmental rules."

Was Al Gore last year ever as generous?

Not until the ninth paragraph does the page finally get around to L'Affaire Monica. The treatment is discreet. Here is what is said in its entirety:

In 1998, as a result of issues surrounding personal indiscretions with a young woman White House intern, Clinton was the second U.S. president to be impeached by the House of Representatives. He was tried in the Senate and found not guilty of the charges brought against him. He apologized to the nation for his actions and continued to have unprecedented popular approval ratings for his job as president.

Maybe President Bush really means it when he says he wants to be bipartisan.