A well written, brief and entertaining attack on Clinton from a mainstream leftist. Richard Reeves, a long time President watcher (starting with JFK) provides an excellent explanation of the forces swirling around the Clinton administration that helped form the policies of the President, but he seems to have missed the truth about the man himself. Reeves suggests that Clinton was unaware that he was signing up with the conservative mainstream elements of his party, in fact Clinton has always been a leader of those very forces. Needless to say, Reeves seems a bit naive, largely because he seems to have accepted Clinton's claims to be a 'liberal' (in the misused American meaning) based on Clinton's own protestations. In fact, Clinton has acted just as one would expect a 'new democrat' to act, as an unapologetic big business toady. Still, the errors of interpretation do not mar the analysis of what happened, nor the excellence of the writing. Like any book by Reeves, it is a must for serious President watchers and a great brief for those with a passing interest in Bubba. All in all, a five star book that will strain neither your checkbook nor your calendar. I was disappointed by the lack of an index. Highly recommended.

It's been interesting, especially today, the final day of thecongressional impeachment hearings; to be able to look up thesespecific items on this book and of course, the starr report. Objective interpretation, is not as difficult as you would think, if you considered the $MONEY$ involved. Interesting as it may be to some, and equally exciting or disgusting to others, I know in my heart that no REPUBLICAN is going to walk away clean. They have been the ones to force me to lock out news channels (i.e. Fox) because I didn't appreciate my young sons watching cartoons in the afternoon, with newsbreaks busting in with "B*'s" and the like. In order to throw dirt, you must get dirty; the Republicans have wallowed in it for too long and it is obvious they are not concerned with the conduct of the OIC, our opinions, our hard earned dollars, or the supposed conservative people they represent, like me. If you don't like a dog, fine. If the dog is down, don't be seen kicking him. You look worse than that bad dog. Remember folks, someones watching.

This terrific book challenges the assumptions of white male patriarchy, and does so with such inventive, eagle-eyed perspicacity. Fedwa Malti-Douglas is of course absolutely right when she observes that the assumptions about gender in the Starr report betray and dis/cover chilling aspects of the United States. Especially important is her analysis of the Clinton-Vernon Jordan relationship, and the thoughtless deployment of Betty Currie as a recording device unable to speak for herself. As a radical who empathizes with the Other, I am combatting the criminalizing of independent thought in this country, of which the Starr Report is a typical and, alas, familiar example.

Do I recall incorrectly or were quotes from this book used in chicago at the democratic convention to re-elect Clinton? Regardless of your political offiliations or your personal feelings about this President,Clintons record is 'His record' and it's layed out for you about his first four years, in this book. This is a useful tool for our children and their schools. The report format makes the process and Clintons accomplishments easier to understand. This is also a useful tool for our new americans learning the process. Buy this and pass it on to a young person.

Unlike the author--who consulted with Clinton on his State of the Union speeches--most of us are too embarrassed to admit we were seduced by Clinton's intellect. Through the vehicle of memoir, Prof. Barber is at once candid about his expectations of the President, his own ambition, his seduction, and his ultimate disappointments. The best parts of this book are Prof. Barber's discussion about the way that language shapes our understanding of civic life; and how Clinton's inability to use language effectively left his legacy empty.

The creators of this book did a great job. I especially liked the photo of Hillary with the North Vietnamese AA gun . . .

Alex Cockburn and Ken Silverstein hold a clinic on how to interpret Washington DC, boldly naming names, citing specific incidents, invoking histories those less familiar with the subject leave out. Terrific job on how the New Boss is Same as the Old Boss -- and will be until we stop getting fooled again.

Most of the volumes in the Our Presidents series that are about two-term Presidents usually follow the same pattern for the four chapters, looking at the youth of the future president, the career that took him to the White House, and then devoting one chapter to each term in office. But for her juvenile biography of Bill Clinton, author Ann Graham Gaines does a slight variation for the last half of the book: the third chapter is devoted to President Clinton and the final chapter to his impeachment trial. Of course, few would be surprised that this is the initial perspective of history regarding Bill Clinton.

However, in the first three chapters Gaines does a nice job of showing how Clinton's childhood, influenced by a troubled step-father and a meeting with President John Kennedy at Boy's Nation, helped to create his political views. Gaines tells of the Young Politician who was elected governor of Arkansas at the age of 32, lost re-election, and then was returned for four more terms. Along with the story of his run for the Presidency in 1992, Gaines makes it clear why Clinton was nicknamed "The Comeback Kid" by reporters. However, when it comes to talking about the successes of the Clinton administration, this book has to talk more about intentions rather than accomplishments. The final chapter devotes only two pages to the actual impeachment trial, and ends with the revocation of his law license because he lied under oath, but makes it clear this topic dominated his final term of office.

This book is illustrated with photographs, mostly black & white, from Clinton's life and political career (including the photo of him shaking hands with JFK). Most of the chapter include side-bars devoted to key topics such as the Vietnam War, Hillary Rodham Clinton, and What Is Impeachment? Reading this book about the Forty-Second President, young readers will probably be surprised that Clinton accomplished very little of all his lofty goals. However, I think that with the current balance of power between Congress and the Presidency, this will be a continuing theme of the biographies of most presidents. The "Our Presidents" series is an excellent set of concise biographies for younger students.

In setting the tone for this juvenile biography of William Jefferson Clinton for the Profiles of the Presidents series, Ann Heinrichs highlights Clinton's reputation as the "Comeback Kid," who never quits. This is used to explain why Clinton defeated an incumbent Republican president who enjoyed the highest popularity rating of all time, became the first Democratic president to be re-elected since Franklin Roosevelt, and survived an impeachment. The key question for most teachers or parents before recommending this book for young readers may well be what does this book have to say about the impeachment and the circumstances around it. Heinrichs explains that Clinton was accused of having improper relations with a young female White House intern and that when questioned about it, Clinton did not tell the truth. With regards to the resolution, she makes two points. First, that most Americans apparently cared more about the booming U.S. economy than about Clinton's personal life. Second, that the Clintons were cleared of any wrongdoing in the six-year, multi-million dollar Whitewater investigation. That is certainly even-handed enough and it is reasonable that a volume that is perfectly suited to being a young student's introduction to the life of this particular President does not get into the sordid details.

This book does provide some indication of what it meant to label Clinton a "New Democrat," but most of the emphasis is the key events in his political career. Young readers might have a hard time distinguishing between those things that Clinton wanted to do, such as provide a major overhaul of the U.S. health system, and what his Administration actually did accomplish during his two terms in the White House. But given that the Profiles of the Presidents series is ideally suited to be the first juvenile biography students read about Clinton or any other President, emphasizing biographical details over political philosophy makes a certain amount of sense. One of the signatures of this superb little series is that these books are profusely illustrated with historic and contemporary photographs (including a photograph of the Clinton birthplace in Hope, Arkansas, taken in a pouring rain, and the famous one of young Clinton shaking hands with President Kennedy), most of which are in color. In the back of the book you will find a glossary, fast facts about the president, a parallel timeline of world and presidential events, an index, and other resources that young readers can use to help them understand the life and times of William Jefferson Clinton better.

This guy really nailed the awful (and funny) truth about Bill Clinton, his mendacity and pandering, long before anyone heard of Monica Lewinsky. The book humorously makes it clear Clinton was full of it and himself from the earliest days of his presidency.