This is something I wouldn't normally bring up, but I am confused and angry about this whole ordeal.  First of all, I vote republican most of the time, so don't think my views are  because of  my political biases.  They aren't.

Of course I believe affairs are wrong for anyone.  I believe that if our military men are being court marshaled for having affairs, then the head of the United States and the military should have to abide by the same rules.  I also believe that although an apology was needed, and I am proud of Clinton for giving it publicly, that still doesn't take away the necessity for consequences.  But I also believe that it isn't just Clinton having an affair that is wrong.  I think it goes much deeper than that.

I AM DISGUSTED with our country's sensationalism.  Before the facts were all out, the media and public at large were taking polls and making decisions based on one-sided information and rumors.  People were speculating, and still are, on what Hillary will do, what really happened, etc.  There was no "innocent until PROVEN guilty" for Clinton.  He was tried and crucified in the media.  And I am disgusted and concerned that the media and the public would want to hear all the gory details of the affair.  I am shocked and upset by the release of documents on the net...x-rated at that, or so I've heard.  Do our kids really need to have access to these answering machine messages.   None of this had anything to do with Paula Jones case as far as I'm concerned.

But more than all this, I am concerned and upset that the courts are releasing the video of the statement Clinton made.  He made this with the belief it was confidential.  He was lied to.  He was misled.  He was betrayed by our system.  This isn't right.  He's already been dragged through the dirt, why do we have to do more.  It sounds like the kettle calling the pot black to me.  Clinton is under threat of impeachment because he lied.  So now the judicial system has also lied.  Where does it end?  For what purpose are they releasing the tape?  We aren't the jury, judge, nor congress.  We have no right to know intimate details.  We have no right to know what in the past we wouldn't have been allowed to know. 

It seems to me that were it anyone else...say President Kennedy, the tape would not have been made public.  In fact he would not have been made such a spectacle of.  I think this whole affair (pun intended) is a disgrace and an embarrassment for our country.  I will not watch the tape simply because I believe it is wrong to make it public.  I hope others will make the same decision, but already sales were skyrocketing before it even hit the market.

About his apology:  I have to applaud him for apologizing to the people, his family, and to Monica.  We've heard of so many pastors who have had affairs and been caught, yet which of them has apologized  to the people they hurt.  And which of them went to the person they had the affair with and apologized?  I think before we judge Clinton too harshly, we better look at our leaders in the church, as well as ourselves,  who should have even higher standards and see how we measure up in the area of  admitting our wrongs and righting them.  I want our leaders to be men and women we can be proud of.  I would like them to be above reproach.  But we live in the real world where people have problems and sin issues.  Even David, the king after God's own heart had an affair...with a married woman, too.  And he didn't stop with the affair.  He had the husband killed.  He covered up his sin big time.  He also paid dearly for it. 

My remedy:  Censure him...I say this because lesser men than he have been censured by congress for sexual misconduct and Clinton not only did that, but also perjured himself.  This way our country can get this over with and move on to other important issues and can do it without sending the message that this kind of behavior is fitting for a leader in our country.

I have to admit that I am a Republican and I hate Clinton. Hate is a strong word,...maybe not hate, but I dislike him very much.

I don't think the media gave too much coverage to the Clinton Affair. I think they gave too much of the WRONG coverage. I think the news media is liberal, sensationalist, and opportunist. Instead of giving us so much of the steamy details, they should have been reporting on the REAL problem. If they had reported in a more responsible manner perhaps more Americans would have taken this thing more seriously and withdrawn their support of that, and I use the term loosely, "President".

The real problem, in the context of holding office, was not Clinton's adultry, although I personally do not want a President that would soil that office in that manner. The real problem was what he did after it was discovered. The liberal news media would not even consider this could be the primary concern of conservatives. It had to be a moral issue for them. Why? Because it was the only way to defuse and confuse the issue of his real political crime. Coverup, coersion, bribery, blackmail, and lying!!

He broke the law when he lied and when he tried to coverup his sin. Laws that he took an oath to defend. He abused the power of his office for his own personal motives by blackmailing many Congressmen that eventually resigned their positions. He slandered Kenneth Starr, withheld evidence and lied to the American people on Nation television. He should have been impeached, not for adultry, but for abuse of power and the disgrace of the office of the Presidency.

You say that the media coverage outraged you.  Then why did you bring up the subject at all you why don't you just forget about it all by you bring it up you only add to the problem    Chris Guile

Hi Annie, I agree with you about the constant coverage of the Clinton scandals. It got to the point of not wanting to even hear the news or any other program. I do want to know why Clinton is still welcomed with opened arms, and Monica is the unforgiven. Yes, we have all sinned, and we would never want our sins to be tried in public the way Bill's were, However, when a country lets a man off for adultery and lying, and Lords knows what all, just for the fact that he has put more money in our pockets, (I have personally not seen any), I think that is the true crime. When Monica becomes the only evil particpant, and Bill becomes this country's savior, I get really nervous. It took the president several tries to apologize, and only when his staff insisted that he give it a more believable try, only then did he come out with something acceptable. Is it my place to damn the president? No! Is it my place to not support him. Yes. If the Pastor in my church kept lying, but apologized every time he got caught, I would not want to stay and support his position, but what if my family and friends stayed. What if they stayed because the Pastor had made their church a wealthy church? A man with that kind of power, leading Christians down the same path as his. NO. I would want him defrocked, and then be able to move on. He should be able to stay in the church as a member, but not as a leader. And that is all I mean about Clinton. When I see him on T.V. explaining why we are in Kosovo, I don't believe a word he is saying. I can barely stand to look at the man. Not because he has sinned, but because he doesn't think he has done anything wrong, Or that he knows he'll be forgiven for anything else he may want to do. He is a man of power, and now the sky is the limit.

I agree with you about prayer in school. I would not want my children praying to a mass of gods. However, my daughter is not allowed to even carry her bible on the school bus. There is no rule about wearing Marilyn Manson satanic clothes or listening to his music over the bus radio. Bill Clinton will not move to take porn off of the Internet due to freedom of speech. I believe in my heart that he won't so he can have easy access to his addiction. Mr. Clinton has enabled this country to live immoral lives. He has pushed for partial birth abortions. Pushed to keep porno on the Internet. Pushed to allow gays and lesbians to teach our children. And the list goes on. This man who accepted the slurs against christians by the media, has now had a taste of his own medicine. But now everyone is crying, "unfair". Why? When we had Christian presidents in the white house, did the media ever once mock christians? Would any of them dare to try and remove a nativity scene from the town square? Was freedom of prayer, ANYWHERE, ever denied? No. This country was lead by morals. There was a common wealth of standards for everyone. Leaders are to do just that, Lead. But now, where are we being lead? For those who say the Presidents job is not to teach morals, they are wrong. When my children leave our driveway, or the church parking lot, what are they facing? Rapists, thieves, liars, gays, gangs, drugs, murderers. I don't blame Clinton for all of it, I just know that I blame him for supporting it, and showing this country that morals are a thing of the past. I believe we are "throwing pearls to the swine" by not insisting that our leaders hold to the promises they make. To do good for this country, and to leave it a little better than when they came. When the Lord said we shouldn't judge, He did not mean we shouldn't use our judgment. So for me, the man that now holds the office of the President of the United States, holds it against my better judgment.

For all the children, and grown ups who don't have Christian homes, or don't know about God period, I pray for them the hardest. That their definition of "free will" means, If I want to do it, I will! Taught by Bill Clinton. That "sorry, sorry, sorry, means, oops, I got caught. The Lord says there will come a time when we will cry, "Lord, Lord," and he will no longer be listening.

Thanks again Annie for the space to air my opinions. I love your website. I was so happy to run across it. I was so tired of looking up simple subjects only to be thrown into porn. God bless you in all things. Murphy

You are right! I boycotted the tapes and all mention of them that day they were released. I think it was criminal! To say the least, a violation of his civil rights, (isn't grand jury testimony supposed to be secret?)  and morally wrong to hold our President up to the ridicule of the entire world on TV. I sent a letter to everyone I could find an address for in Washington to that effect. Does no good. They are on a witch hunt! 

I don't condone what he has done, but this has gotten way out of line.  I am neither a Democrat or Republican, I have always voted a split ticket most of the time, but it may be a long haul before I vote for another Republican. Democrats not much better, if it was the other way around, they would be just as bad, just happen to be right this time. It is the Party they serve, not the people, it has never been more obvious. Sad huh?   Bobbie 

Was looking over your site, which is very nice and run across your views on Clinton affair and prayer in school.  I am very pleased you have the common sense to see what the Republican hypocrites and the Religious Right people are up to.

The people of America had better wake up. Remember the Salem Witch Burning.  We have the laws of separation of Church and State because of the many views of religion. Our forefathers wanted all people to have freedom, which they did not have where they came from. 

These people are spitting on the Millions of men who fought and died for the freedom of this great nation.

The Republicans and Religious Right are also committing an act of Treason by trying to bring down the President of the United States.  Whether you like it or not, Clinton is the man the people of America selected to be our President. After 6 years and 40 million dollars of trying to hang him and finding nothing, something is bad wrong when they keep going on and on.   Uncle Vern
_______ 

Thanks for your response...I would like to add that the Salem Witch Burning memories works both ways.  As a Christian, I see the other side of it.  While everyone else is demanding their rights, ours are being taken away little by little.  And the media seems only too happy to print any news to show us in a bad light...such as when an abortion doctor is murdered, it is all too quickly assumed it is some Christian (a true Christian would never do such a thing), instead of being open until the facts are out.  It could have been some father upset that the doctor took his own child without his consent, or some parent whose child had an abortion or could have even died after an abortion, or just some crazy person out to make a name. 

It'll hit the papers when a hate crime is committed against some group such as the gay community and the assumption is that it's because of  religious beliefs (but I'd like to point out that I know many non Christians who feel anger and hatred toward gays and that certainly does not depict my feelings). Yet when things happen like a church being burned down by a militant group of gays, it doesn't get publicized.  It seems the message we get is that we are to accept everything anyone wants to do as okay, but we are not to have our beliefs that differ from the more outspoken.  I see the same patterns happening here that happened with the Jews before the holocaust, and that scares me.   annie