Archive [December 1998]

“There is something about your style, your grace, about your strength, about your motherness, about your wifeness, about your maturity, about your patriotism, about your strength of reasoning. Hillary, you’ve walked through the rain and you’re not wet. You’ve walked through the fire and there’s not a singe on your clothing” — JESSE JACKSON, TO HILLARY CLINTON, QUOTED IN THE NEW YORK TIMES

St. Hillary: the comeback.

“When you’re in her presence, you feel a little bit of a tingle. I do.” — REP. CHUCK SCHUMER (D, NY), ON HILLARY CLINTON, QUOTED IN THE PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER

Also known as fear of an IRS audit.

“In Matthew, Jesus says to render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s. Now, back then that didn’t mean too much because Caesar was an emperor and all the people had to do to render unto Caesar was to pay their taxes and obey the law. But thank the Lord there is no Caesar in this country.” — BILL CLINTON, IN REMARKS AT BALTIMORE’S NEW PSALMIST BAPTIST CHURCH, U.S. NEWSWIRE

Noted.

“I felt that it was a part of my job as President, my mission as a Christian, and my personal journey of atonement.” — BILL CLINTON, ON MIDDLE EAST PEACE TALKS, AT THE METROPOLITAN A.M.E. CHURCH IN WASHINGTON, D.C, U.S. NEWSWIRE

Can you imagine if Ronald Reagan ever said he conducted foreign policy as part of “my mission as a Christian”?

“Thank God we have a warrior for peace working in Washington.” — ART TORRES, CALIFORNIA DEMOCRATIC PARTY CHAIRMAN, ON BILL CLINTON, AP

A Caesar for peace, even.

“We’d all be worshiping him as ‘Christ returned.’ That’s who he’d be!” — ROOSEVELT MILTON, PRESIDENT OF THE OKLAHOMA CITY BRANCH OF THE NAACP, EXPLAINING THAT PRESIDENT CLINTON IS HUMAN, BECAUSE IF HE WEREN’T HE’D BE DIVINE, IN AN EDITORIAL FOR THE EBONY TRIBUNE, QUOTED BY CONSERVATIVE NEWS SERVICE

And the media is all worked up about the religious right?

“I want them to say that I helped to take America into a new era, that I really prepared America for a global economy, a global society … I want them to say that I did create an America of dramatically increased opportunity for all people.” — BILL CLINTON, ASKED HOW HISTORY WOULD JUDGE HIM, AP

The answer to our dreams.

“I would love to have better options for President … I never thought Bill Clinton was the answer to our dreams.” — PATRICIA IRELAND, NOW PRESIDENT, ON CNBC’S “HARDBALL”

There’s always Ted Turner…

“I am very serious about running for President. But Jane doesn’t want me to do it.” — TED TURNER, QUOTED IN THE NEW YORKER

You could always put her in charge of health care.

“Wherever Ted goes, I go.” — JANE FONDA, LEAVING THE DOOR OPEN TO A TURNER CAMPAIGN, QUOTED IN THE NEW YORKER

Fun couple!

“We just came from the marriage counselor in Santa Monica. Jane wants me to become a saint — but I’m not.” — TED TURNER, WHO “APPARENTLY ASTONISHED 300 DINNER GUESTS” WITH THIS NEWS, QUOTED IN THE LONDON TIMES

Saint; President; what’s the difference?

“If I was doing it over again I wouldn’t have done it, but I can’t shoot them now that they’re here.” — TED TURNER, ON HAVING FIVE CHILDREN, CALLING FOR A WORLDWIDE ONE-BABY-PER-FAMILY POLICY, REUTERS

Fun dad!

“They will still be going after Social Security. They will be against major health care reform. They’ll still be going after environmental laws. The difference is … it will be a little less of a personal snake pit here.” — REP. DAVID OBEY (D, WI), ON THE GOP UNDER A NEW SPEAKER, QUOTED ON THE CBS EVENING NEWS

Don’t count on it.

“It’s probably better for us because he was too easy a target, too easy a foil for us. Now we’ll have to go after issues.” — JAMES CARVILLE, ON NEWT GINGRICH’S DEPARTURE, QUOTED IN THE HOTLINE

Don’t count on it.

“One goes and another one pops up. I mean, as long as they got Republicans, I’ll always be able to find somebody.” —JAMES CARVILLE, ASKED IF HE’LL MISS GINGRICH AS A TARGET, ONE WEEK LATER, ON CNN’S “LATE EDITION”

Count on it.

“I asked somebody [at the White House], ‘Well, how are you going to demonize Bob Livingston’ and he said only half in jest, just watch us.” — MARA LIASSON, WHITE HOUSE REPORTER, FOX NEWS SUNDAY

Count on it.

“He certainly has been blacker than many of our past presidents … [especially after] those twelve years of tyranny … under Reagan and Bush…” — TAVIS SMILEY, BLACK ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION HOST, AFTER INTERVIEWING BILL CLINTON, ON MSNBC’S “INTERNIGHT”

Has been. Uh-oh.

“We say legislate. They say investigate. We say educate. They say interrogate. We say illuminate. They say instigate. We say unify. They say vilify. We make the tough decisions. They take depositions. We find real solutions. They launch prosecutions. We know our future’s nearing. They want to hold more hearings. We want to heal our nation. They want more investigations.” — AL GORE, DELIVERING, ACCORDING TO THE NEW YORK TIMES, “ONE OF THE BEST VERSIONS OF THE RAP SECTION OF HIS SPEECH … NOT EXACTLY PUFF DADDY, BUT THE PEOPLE CHEERED LOUDLY”

Our first black Vice President?

“I’d like to kick his butt across the White House lawn.” — REP. LEE HAMILTON (D, IN, RETIRING), QUOTED IN LONG PIECE BY SALLY QUINN ABOUT ESTABLISHMENT WASHINGTON’S DISTASTE FOR BILL CLINTON, IN THE WASHINGTON POST

We say Constitution. They say kick his butt across the White House lawn.

“We don’t like being lied to.” — DAVID BRODER, WASHINGTON POST REPORTER, ON CLINTON, QUOTED BY SALLY QUINN IN THE WASHINGTON POST

Since when?

“There are lies and there are lies … He should never have been asked the question he was asked in the first place. He was trapped into perjurious territory…” — BARBRA STREISAND, FROM HER AOL “TALKING POINTS” ONLINE CHAT, QUOTED IN THE HOTLINE

In other words, you like being lied to.

“I just didn’t want to believe he had the capacity to deceive.” — MIKE MCCURRY, FORMER WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN, WHO ALSO CALLED CLINTON “EXASPERATINGLY STUPID IN HIS PERSONAL LIFE,” AP

Hic!

“Shouldn’t someone tell President Clinton that one of his archenemies, Rush Limbaugh, actually said the following … speaking in defense of Bill Gates and Microsoft? ‘It’s OK to lie, everybody lies in business, especially in a civil case.’ Apparently to Rush, lying is ok about business but not about sex.” — LARRY KING, IN USA TODAY

Go ahead and tell him, Larry. He probably won’t get it, either.

“If he does get impeached, he always has a job with me. He can be my tour manager, test-drive the girls for me.” — MARILYN MANSON, ROCK SINGER, QUOTED IN ROLLING STONE

What makes you think the girls haven’t been Clinton test-driven already?

“When those early Americans came across the Atlantic to this new country, just imagine two boats. One boat said…, ‘Join us. We can better educate your children. We’ll get better health care for you. We’ll find some retirement. We’ll keep the economy good.’ The other boat said, ‘Come join us … we’re going to investigate the captain, and we think we can get enough on him to throw him overboard during the cruise’” — ROY ROMER, DNC CHAIR, ON CNN’S “LATE EDITION”

No, the other boat says, “Come join us, because you’re on the Titanic.”

“What damn credibility has he got as Governor of Colorado? He just should shut up.” — REP. CHARLES RANGEL (D, NY), “UNUSUALLY BELLIGERENT” IN COMMENTS ABOUT DNC CHAIR ROY ROMER, QUOTED IN THE NEW YORK TIMES

Ditto.

“Chairman Hyde, I think people are misreading his species. You may think he’s a sheep or an old grandpa but he is really a carnivore.” — GERALDO RIVERA, ON CNBC’S “RIVERA LIVE”

And what species are you, Geraldo?

“The V-est of the VIPs.” — DAN RATHER, ON THE CLINTONS ATTENDING THE JOHN GLENN SHUTTLE LAUNCH, ON THE CBS EVENING NEWS

V clever.