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(William J. Clinton Presidential Library) |
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What Are We to Make of World Leaders and the Epstein Files? |
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By Roger Simon |
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Commentary The salacious accusations against former President Bill Clinton in the Jeffrey Epstein document dump brings up an old question. How much weight do we give the personal lives of politicians in their capacity for governance? In Clinton’s case, what we are hearing is, to say the least, on the extreme side. From (where else?) the Daily Mail: “One May 2016 document released Wednesday night - a request for permission from the judge to take more depositions - includes detail of testimony already taken by Johanna Sjoberg, who was recruited at the age of 20 to work as a massage therapist. “Sjoberg was recruited on a college campus, had no massage training, and said she was forced to perform sex acts on Epstein. “Sjoberg told the lawyers in 2016 that Epstein told her 'Clinton likes them young, referring to girls'. “Clinton has long sought to play down his association with Epstein, but admitted traveling on his private plane. He is mentioned 50 times in the newly-released documents, according to an analysis by Axios.” Mr. Clinton, needless to say, has issued the expected denials, but few are stepping forward to back him up. Rumors of the former president’s various proclivities abound on the internet. It’s hard to know what to believe but the Monica Lewinsky scandal is a strong indication that our 42nd president did indeed “like them young.” The winner of the day might be Juanita Broddrick, who has long accused the former president of having raped her in April 1978 when he was the 32-year-old attorney general of Arkansas. This was roughly two-and-a-half years (Oct. 1975) after Bill and Hillary Clinton were married. One other offshoot of the Epstein document brouhaha is that now whatever buzz there was about Mrs. Clinton replacing President Joe Biden on the Democratic ticket will undoubtedly diminish. Nevertheless, Bill Clinton, even if the most flagrant, was not the first president to break the Seventh Commandment against committing adultery. It’s again hard to know the truth, but the percentage of those who did could go over 50. Franklin Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, and Lyndon Johnson are just three relatively recent presidents said to have had paramours. This, unfortunately, would be par for the course, generally, because, according to a recent YouGov poll, “More than half of Americans who have ever been in a monogamous relationship say they have been cheated on—either physically, emotionally, or both.” Besides the obvious resource—the Bible—it’s time everyone should be required to read Leo Tolstoy’s “Anna Karenina” for insight into where this all leads. Meanwhile, in the parliamentary tradition, I “call the question.” Just how much weight do we give the personal behavior of politicians or aspiring politicians? |
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First, the easy part. Those, like President Clinton, whose behavior was “off-the-charts” should be disqualified not just for the despicable moral turpitude, but because of the inherent danger to our republic. Such people are prey to blackmail. President Biden finds himself in a similar situation because of his son Hunter’s behavior that includes not just adultery, but heavy drug use and a family business or who-knows-what level of corruption. It’s not surprising that those who have such an undisciplined personal life expand their nefarious activities outwards. Falsus in uno, falsus in omnibus. What of others? Like many things in this world, it’s situational. We are and always have been frequently faced with difficult decisions. We have to use our best judgment—to hate the sin without hating the sinner. But that doesn’t mean we have to vote for him or her. In fact, we are doing that person a favor by not, even though they are not likely to know it, at least at first. Former President Donald Trump is one of those on whom we must exercise judgement. He likely has not lived the most puritan life. (Neither have I, for that matter. You don’t write about things like this without opening yourself to inspection.) On the other hand, despite literally non-stop mainstream media allegations to the contrary, Mr. Trump’s connection to Jeffrey Epstein appears not to have been all that great and, thus far, he has barely appeared in the documents and has not been implicated in any negative way. Further, no one I can think of, almost throughout history, has been the object of more false accusations than our 45th president. I’m still voting for him, though I admit to being biased. Factor that in in my ability to excuse whatever behavior. Still, I would like to preserve my capacity to be shocked, not just for the sake of the Seventh Commandment and “Anna Karenina.” I remember many years ago I was on a balcony in Paris when a military helicopter suddenly arose from the Elysée Palace. “It's Mitterand [then President of France], the hostess of the gathering said matter-of-factly before I could ask. “He goes to see his mistress every day at this time.” “Where’s his wife?” She shrugged. “In the palace.” I didn’t like it then, and I don’t like it now. On a lighter note, there’s still time to order my book to be the first on your block to get it after official publication Jan. 9. (I don’t know why anybody should care, but I’ll try anything... well practically.) |
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From the email:
Alan Feldstein: “I agree with you that teaching is the strongest weapon we have. But for the future, not for the present. You have the privilege of living in a red state and of having friends and acquaintances who have a willingness to at least open their minds somewhat to the facts and arguments presented by you. I, on the other hand, live in New York. I am a red island in a sea of blue. I have attempted to have discourse with family, friends, and colleagues about the state of this country with absolutely no success whatsoever. I have been unable to budge their opinions an inch. When I do have the fortitude to bring up the topic, I am always met with ‘at least it’s not Trump’ or ‘Trump created the problem in the first place.’ End of conversation.”
Betty McCaskill: "I couldn't agree more, Roger. We're all teachers, one way or the other, but really need to be now, more than ever. Lately... I've thought I might go and take a few college courses in order to be around these young minds. Just thinking about it ... but it might be an interesting 'teaching' opportunity."
Raymond Claus: "While reading your essay today, I was reminded of an old joke about a recalcitrant mule, which, in order to get any work done, the farmer would smack between the eyes with a 2 x 4. According to the old farmer, this wasn't mistreatment, you first needed to get the mule's attention. And, I believe, before we can hope to achieve any teaching of today's mule-headed opposition, we'll need to incorporate some device that will be as effective as that 2 x 4 in order to first get their attention. I hope we will find it."
Katrina Mattei: "This is my first time seeing your commentary. I really enjoyed reading it and appreciate your perspective on everything. Very well written. I cannot say there are many that grab my attention to be able to stop and read through. As a matter of fact, to be honest, I can’t say there are any. Other than the Bible and Oswald Chambers and older some authors from the past. Wow, that leaves you in very good company😂🤗 |
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