Bill Clinton implores historians to treat him fairly

Speaking at a Hofstra University three-day conference devoted to his presidency, a feisty Bill Clinton tonight implored historians to treat him fairly when they assess his legacy. Earlier in the day historian Douglas Brinkley had told a reporter that Clinton would have been judged a great president but for his impeachment. Clinton, quoting Brinkley by name, said it was a mistake to let his presidency be defined by impeachment since impeachment was wrong. As he has in the past, he charged that his impeachment was an abuse of power. Therefore, fighting the charges in Congress was one of his proudest achievements, he argued.

He devoted most of his address to his successes, citing a familiar list: the expansion of the Earned Income Tax Credit, the balancing of the budget, multiple free trade agreements, the Children's Health Care Program (the largest expansion of health care since Medicare), and dozens of other domestic and foreign initiatives.

He admitted to less than half a dozen failures, chief among them, his failure to send a few thousand soldiers to Rwanda to prevent the massacres there, which he called "unconscionable." He took responsibility for the disaster at Waco, which he simultaneously blamed on bum advice from the FBI.

He counted among his failures the decision to approve the appointment of an independent counsel to investigate Whitewater, a land deal on which, he noted, he lost money. Alluding indirectly to his sexual indiscretions, he admitted that he had made mistakes, but insisted he had not obstructed justice and had not lied to the grand jury, the two charges that led to his impeachment in the House of Representatives. He said that if you want to "hold it against me that I did something bad then how many other presidents do you have to downgrade?"

He admitted that several initiatives should receive an A for effort even though they did not end in success: his 1993 health care program and his attempts to achieve peace in the Middle East with a settlement between Israel and the Palestinians.

He said he was tired of hearing people wonder how his presidency would have turned out if he hadn't been impeached. Thanks to his staff and cabinet, he said, the business of the people was attended to throughout the ordeal. He reeled off a list of accomplishments in his final year to demonstrate that he had remained a productive figure: Congress had repealed the Social Security earnings test, China gained entrance into the WTO, child care was expanded, the number of children in after school programs doubled, and free trade agreements were signed with Jordan and Vietnam.

How should historians judge presidents, Clinton asked? First, they should decide if he met head-on the great challenges facing the country. Second, did the president offer the country a vision. Third, did he properly execute his vision. Fourth, did he respond to unforeseen crises. And five, were people better off at the end of his administration than they were at the outset.

Judged by the reaction of the crowd of thousands listening to him at Hofstra's university arena, Clinton would have received a glowing report tonight if they had been polled. He had started his address by saying he planned to discuss policy and might be boring. But he was constantly interrupted by applause. Sitting in the audience among the students were scores of Clinton-era officials including Madelaine Albright, Robert Rubin, Sidney Blumenthal, and Michael Waldman.