-Caveat Lector- from: http://www.aci.net/kalliste/ <A HREF="http://www.aci.net/kalliste/">The Home Page of J. Orlin Grabbe</A> ----- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Impeached POTUS Bubba Goes to Trial Censure offer scorned BILL CLINTON is sliding inexorably towards a New Year trial in the Senate as only the second American President to be impeached. Washington is convulsed by constitutional crisis after a weekend vote in the House of Representatives to recommend that the President be removed from office for perjury and the obstruction of justice. Senior politicians from both parties agreed that Mr Clinton could not now avoid standing trial in the upper house of Congress over the Monica Lewinsky sex-and-cover-up scandal. He called for a deal at the weekend in which he would accept harsh censure, but Republicans are in no mood to compromise. One, Senator Arlen Specter, said: "Censure is not worth a tinker's damn, and we're going to be listening to evidence and decide what to do in a fair, impartial, judicious way." The prospect, therefore, is of a full-blown trial - with William Rehnquist, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, presiding - in which Monica Lewinsky, the President's lover; Vernon Jordan, his confidante; and Betty Currie, his personal secretary; will recount their roles in a scandal that has stained Mr Clinton indelibly. Despite his vow to stay in office "until the last hour of the last day" of his second term, no one dismisses the possibility that he could eventually be forced to resign by Democrats terrified of the damage he might inflict on the party as a President so shorn of credibility that he cannot lead. Indeed, the "dirty little secret" being whispered on Capitol Hill is that the Democrats would like Mr Clinton to step aside and so allow Vice-President Al Gore to run for the presidency as an incumbent in 2000, rather than to have the party limp on towards polling day with a lame duck as the leader. The converse is that many Republicans would like him to remain, crippled, in office, tarnishing the Democrats right up to election day. Publicly, Democrats urge Mr Clinton not to resign, and he is determined not to, regarding the impeachment as an illegitimate, partisan semi-coup d'�tat by an ideologically motivated Republican Party. Yet one of the few things on which analysts in Washington can agree in these tumultuous times is that anything could happen. The props of Mr Clinton's defence have one by one been knocked away. The subject matter is no longer Miss Lewinsky and the seedy details of her sexual services. Kenneth Starr, the independent prosecutor, is out of the picture and Democrats can no longer conjure him up as a bogeyman to turn the focus away from Mr Clinton's alleged assault on the rule of law. The issue of impeachment has moved up the ladder, out of the ideologically-split judiciary committee and out of the House of Representatives, with its reputation for raucous, sometimes rabble-rousing debate. Mr Clinton's fate has reached the top rung. The Senate is regarded as an Olympian body, judicious and deliberate, lofty and responsible. It will focus exclusively on Mr Clinton's conduct, ignoring the side issues with which the White House and Mr Clinton's defenders have muddied the waters. Senator Joseph Lieberman, a Democrat who excoriated the President in the summer for his immoral conduct in office, said yesterday that "Senate rules oblige us to begin the proceeding". Today, the Senate will formally adjourn the trial until a date, as yet unknown, early next year. Until then, Mr Clinton will work to win backing for a compromise. In the Senate, with 55 Republicans and 45 Democrats, if six from the majority voted with the President's party the trial could be shelved indefinitely. At present, that is seen as a remote possibility. Most people agree that the trial will have to start, even if it is not allowed to run its course. Despite embracing a censure deal in theory during his appearance on the White House south lawn at the weekend, Mr Clinton made it less rather than more likely by again admitting only to wrongs in his private life. He implicitly rejected what even most Democrats accept, that he lied under oath as a defendant. The White House has put down a marker, said one official, that Mr Clinton is willing to go "only so far" in seeking a censure deal. The implication is that he will not admit lying under oath, and the Senate is unlikely to aree a censure motion without this. One small spark of hope pierced the gloom hanging over the White House yesterday. An NBC poll found that the President's approval rating has jumped since impeachment from 68 per cent to 72 per cent, and support for his resignation has fallen by 10, to 34 per cent. Yet, with the focus now removed from any forum in which the President's enemies can plausibly be portrayed as out of control and vindictive, Mr Clinton's actions are expected to erode his support. That could put pressure on senior Democrats to go to the White House, just as senior Republicans did in 1974, and tell the President to resign. An impediment, however, is that Mr Lieberman has said the Senate may not be allowed to offer Mr Clinton immunity from prosecution. The London Telegraph, Dec. 21, 1998 Impeached POTUS Clinton Speak: What Bubba Really Means The post-impeachment drivel decoded Text of President Clinton's statement after his impeachment on December 19, with a little help fromTAS in deciphering that complex tongue the nation calls Clintonspeak: Let me begin by expressing my profound and heartfelt thanks to Congressman Gephardt and the leadership and all the members of the Democratic caucus [minus five] for what they did today. [Checks from the First Bank of China are in the mail.] I thank the few brave Republicans who withstood enormous pressures to stand with them for the plain meaning of the Constitution [like Article III, Section 1: "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish, unless this Supreme Court allows a Suit to be brought under a Law I passed by a white-trash Hussy who laughed at my Distinguishing Characteristic."] and for the proposition that we need to pull together [That's the line I used on Monica] to move beyond partisanship, to get on with the business of our country. I thank the millions upon millions of American citizens who have expressed their support and their friendship to Hillary, to me, to our family, and to our administration during these last several weeks. [With especial thanks to Salon, the New York Times, and Larry Flynt -- who, by the way, has one damn fine mag -- but not to Newsweek, who hounded my little Lolita lapdog from me and just published a poll saying 45 percent -- "millions upon millions" -- of American citizens want me to resign.] The words of the members here with me and others who are a part of their endeavor in defense of our Constitution were powerful and moving, and I will never forget them ["I don't recall;" "I have no specific recollection;" "I honestly don't remember"]. The question is, what are we going to do now? [Light up a cigar and have a pizza party!] I have accepted responsibility for what I did wrong in my personal life [I said "sorry." Doesn't that count?], and I have invited members of Congress to work with us to find a reasonable bipartisan and proportionate response [oral sex for everyone!]. That approach was rejected today by Republicans in the House [a bunch of hard-up, sexually frustrated fuddy-duddies], but I hope it will be embraced by the Senate [Oops, wrong word]. I hope there will be a constitutional and fair means of resolving this matter in a prompt manner. [No cuddle time?] Meanwhile, I will continue to do the work of the American people. We still, after all, have to save Social Security and Medicare for the 21st century [Something I keep talking about but have yet to come up with anything more than "Save the children"]. We have to give all our children world-class schools. [I vetoed the popular and bipartisan Education Savings Accounts bill]. We have to pass a patients' bill of rights. [Vetoed that, too.] We have to make sure the economic turbulence around the world does not curb our economic opportunity here at home. [Who's this Greenspan, anyway?] We have to keep America the world's strongest force for peace and freedom. [I also slashed the Defense budget. "Make love not war."] In short, we have a lot to do before we enter the 21st century. And we still have to keep working to build that elusive one America I have talked so much about [Workers of the world, unite! Free healthcare for all!]. For six years now, I have done everything I could to bring our country together across the lines that divide us [Like poverty lines. Memo to Bubba: Need to raise taxes again], including bringing Washington together across party lines [#$@#%!]. Out in the country, people are pulling together. But just as America is coming together, it must look -- from the country's point of view -- like Washington is coming apart. I want to echo something Mr. Gephardt said. It is something I have felt strongly all my life. We must stop the politics of personal destruction. [Gotta talk to Hillary about Terry Lenzner, James Carville, and her pal Sid]. We must get rid of the poisonous venom of excessive partisanship, obsessive animosity and uncontrolled anger [Like when Hillary tossed the lamp at me in the residence, and when she orchestrated the attack on Gingrich and Ken Starr]. That [She] is not what America [I] deserves [So I'm ditching this cold stiff. Monica -- come to papa, baby!]. That is not what America is about [Free love, man]. We are doing well now. We are a good and decent country [Hmm...] but we have significant challenges we have to face. In order to do it right, we have to have some atmosphere of decency and civility, some presumption of good faith, some sense of proportionality and balance in bringing judgment who are in different parties. We have important work to do [Like saving my toosh]. We need a constructive debate that has all the different voices in this country heard in the halls of Congress. I want the American people to know today that I am still committed to working with people of good faith and good will of both parties to do what's best for our country, to bring our nation together, to lift our people up, to move us all forward together. It's what I've tried to do for six years. It's what I intend to do for two more until the last hour of the last day of my term. [Kiss my grits!] So with profound gratitude for the defense of the Constitution [which?] and the best in America that was raised [by Mr. and Mrs. Lewinsky] today by the members here and those who joined them, I ask the American people to move with me -- to go on from here to rise above the rancor, to overcome the pain and division, to be a repairer of the breach -- all of us -- to make this country as one America what it can and must be for our children in the new century about to dawn. Thank you very much [Mr. Gephardt, Mr. Conyers, and Geraldo]. The American Spectator Online, Dec. 20, 1998 Post-Impeachment Fire Damages Congressman's Office The perils of voting for impeachment FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. (AP) -- An arson fire damaged U.S. Rep. Joe Knollenberg's campaign headquarters Sunday, and police are investigating whether it was revenge for his votes on impeachment. ``If it is determined that this was retaliation of some sort because of Knollenberg's position yesterday, there could be a domestic terrorism charge,'' said Police Chief William Dwyer. No one was injured, and the office suffered minor fire and smoke damage, Dwyer said. The fire was started with plywood political signs. Knollenberg, a Republican, voted for all four articles of impeachment Saturday. He said his office received hundreds of calls concerning the impeachment and the attack on Iraq last week. ``Given the gravity of these issues and the contentious nature of the debate surrounding them, some of the individuals calling my office were very passionate in expressing their views,'' Knollenberg said in a statement. ``That said, there were no threats made against me or my staff that would have given me reason to be concerned.'' Dwyer said witnesses provided a possible vehicle description and suspect information. The Associated Press, Dec. 20, 1998 Nostalgia Last Dance at the Rainbow Room [Note: the Living section of the October 24, 1988 issue of Time Magazine carried a picture of myself dancing in NYC's Rainbow Room with Pam, my girlfriend at the time. (There are three couples in the picture. We are the couple on the left.) I always enjoyed myself at the Rainbow Room, and I'm sorry to see it go.--Orlin] NEW YORK (AP) -- It was a place so classy that Keith Richards wore a necktie. A place so full of stars that one evening Bob Dylan and Frank Sinatra came separately for drinks, and the maitre d' sat down next to Bob Hope at Rosemary Clooney's wedding. But on Saturday night, the Rainbow Room danced its last dance. For the first time since a big remodeling in the 1980s, there won't be a stroke-of-midnight conga line snaking through the club on New Year's Eve. ``It's on to someplace else, I guess, which is sad because it was such a classy way to start the year,'' said 33-year-old Caroline Capelli of Cleveland, whose Dec. 31 visits to the Rainbow Room were the centerpiece of her family's winter trips to New York. Last week, even Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter dropped by for a couple of martinis and one last dance. After 64 years, the gilded, glass-walled supper club that boasted breathtaking views from the 65th floor of the old RCA Building, high above the NBC studios in Rockefeller Center, closed because of a dispute over a new lease. ``It's very sad, very nostalgic,'' said Dale DeGroff, the club's longtime head bartender. ``It's been a great run here,'' he said wistfully, a few days before the closing. ``Anybody you can name has been up here.'' Since 1985, Tishman Speyer Properties, the co-owner of Rockefeller Center, has leased the landmark place to Joseph Baum and David Emil. They spent $20 million to update its look and emphasize its 1930s glamour, and made the restaurant the second-highest grossing eatery in the nation. But when the Tishman group sought to raise the rent from $3 million to $4 million a year, and update the room's image, the partnership bowed out. The sticking point was that the new agreement would not allow for a rent reduction in case the economy soured. The new leaseholder is the Cipriani family, which plans to open a smaller space similar to Harry's Bar in Venice, which the family also owns, and turn the rest of the multiroom complex into private banquet rooms. There was no comment Sunday from representatives of the Cipriani family; calls to other New York restaurants operated by the family were not returned. More than its decor, the fancy cocktails, world-class food and entertainment, the spectacular view was what kept them coming in. That view includes the Chrysler Building to the east, the Empire State Building due south, Central Park straight north, and farther off to the World Trade Center, the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge. ``It's magical up here,'' said Bismark Irving, the club's head maitre d'. ``It's very theatrical. Every night is a gathering of New York's finest people.'' And the stories: Of the night President Clinton danced with actress Rita Moreno and said it fulfilled a lifelong dream. Remarked Moreno to the nearby first lady: ``Sorry, Hillary.'' Of the night Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richard put on a tie to see Marianne Faithful perform. The tie lasted until the middle of her show, when he tossed it on stage and broke into a frenzied dance. Of Sinatra, passing through one evening several years ago with his entourage and demanding that a bar be set up tableside so his own man could mix his drinks. Nothing complicated. ``Jack Daniel's, with a couple drops of water,'' remembered DeGroff. The Associated Press, Dec. 20, 1998 ----- Aloha, He'Ping, Om, Shalom, Salaam. Em Hotep, Peace Be, Omnia Bona Bonis, All My Relations. Adieu, Adios, Aloha. Amen. Roads End Kris DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance�not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
