Bill Clinton #4

In this section of Bill Clinton's My Life, Clinton is now running for the nomination to become the candidate for the presidency. With the New Hampshire primaries approaching, a woman named Gennifer Flowers said that Clinton had carried on an affair for twelve years with her. In order to defend himself of these charges, Bill and Hillary Clinton accept an offer of a televised interview. Clinton writes that they "wanted to defend against the scandal coverage and get back to the real issue without demeaning ourselves and adding fuel to the fire" (385). This choice shows how Clinton addressed the ethical as well as social dilemma of answering personal questions truthfully but without compromising the support he needed. During the session, the interviewer asked Clinton if he'd had any affairs. Clinton responded that he "acknowledged causing pain in my marriage, that I had already said more about the subject then any other politician ever had and... the American people understood what I meant" (385). Clinton's response to the personal attacks shows thought about his actions as well as remorse and reflect his ethical beliefs.

As the New Hampshire primaries closed in, questions about Clinton's character were still being raised. In a speech in Dover, Clinton addresses these concerns by saying "I'll tell you what I think the character issue is: Who really cares about you? Who's really trying to say what he would do specifically if he was elected president? Who has a demonstrated record of doing what they're talking about?" (391). Bill Clinton knew that people were wary of him but despite this he met the allegations head on because he felt he was the best candidate for the job. Clinton's opponent, Paul Tsongas disgreed and while campaining in the Midwest, Tsongas questioned his character concerning the middle-class tax cut Clinton wanted to introduce. The attack did not seem to hurt Clinton's numbers, however, for on the next day "we won in Illinois, Hillary's home state, with 52 percent... and in Michigan with 49 percent" (397). The numbers dont lie and instead tell us that Clinton's character seemed to be good enough for the voters and was good enough to lead him to victory.