There was nothing tragic about RMN. He was a wheeler-dealer who used anything or anyone to further what he perceived to be his own self-interest. Interesting tid-bit about his tax dodges, though, Ted.

I think that any residual sympathy I may have felt for him being hounded out of office dissipated when I read All The President's Men. Not because of the "plot", which was sordid enough, but because of the transcriptions of the White House tapes which were quoted. Regardless of whether the snippets were taken in or out of context, the man's language and voiced thought processes suggest someone who has absolutely no day-to-day awareness of morality at all.

Contrast that with Clinton, who although he may not be a tragic hero is certainly tragi-comic. Love him or loathe him, in his day to day work as president he appears to have had a real sense of duty to the country. I actually completely dismiss the Monica Lewinsky incident and subsequent impeachment as a media witchhunt. JFK - and for all I know, many other presidents - had his bit on the side (and what a bit!). The media left them alone. Perhaps Bill thought that rule would also apply to him, which was poor judgement rather than a criminal action. But then, of cource, impeachment has damn-all to do with the law, does it?



The idiot also known as Capfka ...