Book Excerpts

On January 7, 1999 the 13 House impeachment managers, led by Henry Hyde, marched in procession across the Capitol from the House to the Senate. It was a short distance, but those steps were some of the heaviest I have ever taken. During my time in the House, I had never visited the Senate floor, even though we had privileges to do so (and vice versa). Walking into that chamber for the first time carrying such a heavy burden was truly an awesome moment. We were welcomed to the Senate by the late Strom Thurmond, who was 96 at the time. Throughout the trial, Thurmond was—paradoxically—one of the most alert Senators, never failing to wish good morning or good afternoon to “my friend from Georgia” if we encountered each other on the Senate floor. Henry Hyde then spoke the words, “Mr. President, the managers on the part of the House of Representatives are here and present and ready to present the articles of impeachment which have been preferred by the House of Representatives against William Jefferson Clinton, President of the United States.” From this point forward, like Marlow in Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, there was no turning back. After Henry read the articles of impeachment passed by the House, the lengthy process of swearing in the Senate as jurors—and Chief Justice Rehnquist as the judge—began. At that moment, I was still wondering whether this would be a real trial, or, as I suspected, a meaningless set of debates with a foregone outcome.

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Whether it was draft-dodging, marijuana smoking, questionable financial activities, or a parade of allegations of adultery, the one consistent thing was that another scandal was always waiting on the horizon. Perversely, the thing that seemed to save Clinton during the campaign is that the scandals were so sleazy and disgusting that many people simply didn’t believe the charges. After all, they reasoned, how could a serious presidential candidate be this out of control in his personal life?

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Virtually all of the bulwarks we had constructed since the Nixon Administration to limit presidential abuses were failing… The results of this failure were significant. Instead of being removed from office when it became crystal clear that he was neglecting his constitutional responsibilities and abusing the powers entrusted to him, Bill Clinton was allowed to remain in office for the remainder of his second term.

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At the time of the trial, Senate Republican leaders faced a dilemma. They badly wanted impeachment to go away, but they knew that if they summarily dismissed it, they would pay a political price; their conservative base would view them as gutless and weak, and their liberal opposition would beat them up for the same reason. Therefore, there would be a trial with at least the appearance of legitimacy. It remained to be seen whether it would be a show trial or a serious effort to uncover the facts pertaining to the Clinton Administration’s abuse of power.