Controversy Casts Shadow on Clinton's Party Role: Democrats Squirm at Damage Done in White House Exit
By John F. Harris
A few weeks ago, former president Bill Clinton's allies had big ideas for his role in the Democratic Party -- fundraiser, cheerleader and, in the view of some, kingmaker.
But those ambitions, if they were ever realistic, have been damaged for the near term and possibly longer by the controversies that shadowed Clinton's departure from the White House, according to Democratic leaders in Washington and around the country.
Several of these Democrats, in both public and not-for-attribution comments, describe a sense of weariness that Clinton, even out of office, is in such a familiar fix: in damage-control mode for behavior that most other leaders of his party find hard to defend. In Congress, there has been a near-total absence of Democrats defending Clinton's pardon of fugitive financier Marc Rich, and some leadership aides have complained that this and other controversies have interfered with their effort to craft a political message in opposition to President Bush.
Echoing the views of some state party leaders yesterday, Georgia Democratic Chairman David Worley said the controversies have reinforced a feeling among many Democrats that it is "time to look to new leadership." Worley, who said he was never eager for Clinton to play a prominent post-presidency role for Democrats, added: "If there was potential for that, it's now diminished. . . . At least in this part of the country, the voters we need to appeal to to win elections are just as glad to see Bill Clinton go."
Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), who defended Clinton stoutly during impeachment, said he found it "appalling" that Clinton's pardon of Rich was "so insensitive to what is right and wrong."
"It damages him, and that's going to harm his ability to be useful to the causes he believes in," Frank said.
Some others on Capitol Hill believe the problems are hindering the party more broadly. Clinton is in a less favorable position to help raise money and rally voters against Republicans in the mid-term elections.
A House Democratic leadership aide fumed that when the party's congressional leadership held a news conference last week to oppose Bush's tax cut, the event got scant coverage, while all-news cable networks provided gavel-to-gavel coverage of a hearing on the Rich pardon. "It doesn't matter what we do, we have this black cloud of Bill Clinton following us wherever we go," said this aide. "You learn to accept this when he's president, . . . but now he's out of office and we're still facing it. Members are sick of it."
Another political operative close to Democratic lawmakers said: "There's a real and justifiable sense of betrayal by people who went out on a limb to defend him in the past that the least they and the party were owed was a graceful exit."
Art Torres, chairman of the California Democratic Party, said many Democrats in his state "are very concerned that this came up, but there's also an awareness that this guy transcends everything. He's a phoenix of politics."
Yet the last few weeks have shown that Clinton's established responses to controversy do not work as well out of the White House. Whether the questions were about fundraising practices or sexual impropriety, Clinton had a ready arsenal of tools -- an announcement of good economic news, for instance, or an executive order on the environment -- with which he could change the subject and remind supporters of why they voted for him. As an ex-president who has yet to carve out his post-White House identity, or even make clear how he plans to spend most of his days, he cannot change subjects with the same ease. ...
[O]ne senior Democrat, who served in the Clinton administration and was close to former vice president Al Gore, said the problems have shown that the notion Clinton would remain the de facto leader of his party was always suspect. "It was always stupid, now it's impossible," said this operative. "He may be a draw for some, but it comes with a downside.
"As president, his problems were always personal, but he had the high job performance," the Democrat said. "Now all he has is the personal stuff."
[Full text: http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A1536-2001Feb13.html]
Carl
_________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com