Customer Reviews

High Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Case Against Bill Clinton

5 star:		(90)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(35)

 

 

The author, and the publisher, are aggressively conservative, and if you've seen Coulter on the talk show circuit recently (how could you not?) you have no doubt where she stands on the Clinton administration (firmly against). What we get here is more of the same. A lot more.

Coulter's forceful argument for impeachment is unlikely to leave any reader sitting on the fence. It will harden those convinced he has to go, and even his most ardent supporters would be hard-pressed to ingest this 300+ page indictment and continue to insist that Clinton's detractors have "nothing" on him.

The first third of the book covers the Lewinski affair; the remainder--Whitewater, Filegate, the travel office firings, IRS audits, campaign finance issues, *ad nauseum*--take up the remaining 200 pages, with varying degrees of persuasiveness. But even the weakest arguments, frequently compared directly to the articles of impeachment drafted against Richard Nixon, nonetheless demand thoughtful consideration. Her book isn't the last word, but the issues it raises belong in the debate.

The rhetoric here is at times irritatingly repetitive and unrepentantly abrasive, and nobody is likely to agree with everything she says. But love her or hate her, Coulter has done her homework, her notes are copious, and her conslusions damning.

It's a quick read, ably written and extensively documented. It's important to consider both sides of an issue as wrenching as impeachment, and this book asks questions that the U.S. Congress may be asked to consider in the days and months ahead.

Even so, this book is to the presidency what "Saving Private Ryan" is to war--at times graphic, brutal and hard to stomach. I came away from this book feeling more than a little queasy. It's not a pretty read.

But as the scandalous headlines show no sign of abating and the sound-bite debate on the talking head shows produces more indigestion than understanding, this book demands not only awareness, but consideration. Read it, read the arguments of Clinton's supporters, then make up your own mind.

"High Crimes and Misdemeanors" are grounds, per Article II of our Constitution, that provide for the impeachment of civil officers of the government. In this age of moral relativism where "truth is lies", Ann Coulter gives a much-needed background to the historical meaning of these words, from the days of the British monarchy where they originated, through their inclusion by the Founding Fathers, to the day when they were used to frame articles of impeachment against President Nixon.

The bulk of the book is dedicated to applying this standard to the catalog of misbehavior of the Clinton Administration. Written as it was when the question of removal from office was still open, the book has a passionate tone which in hindsight feels somewhat futile now that we know Congress was unable to live up to its responsiblity. Nonetheless, that tone demonstrates a certain credibility of someone who cares deeply about our government and the presidency.

And on reading this book, one cannot but feel saddened to realize how low the stature of the Presidency has sunk under that administration. Barely palatable even when spread out over its full eight years, the sheer volume of muck concentrated in one volume is almost too much to swallow. Bill Clinton abused his positions as governor and president to procure and then pay off women at taxpayer's expense, and to cover it up lied countless times, perjured himself under oath, and suborned perjury of others. But all that is only the beginning.

In Travelgate, the White House travel office staff was fired at the behest of Mrs Clinton so that she could fill those "slots" with "her people". Filegate had nine hundred FBI background files on Republican officials illegally in the possession of the White House. During Fostergate, White House officials obstructed an FBI investigation into the suicide of White House counsel Vincent Foster. In the Whitewater affair, taxpayers were defrauded of millions of dollars while the White House obstructed the investigation every step of the way and paid off the silence of indicted counsel. The White House was rented off like a common bed-and-breakfast and coffee house. The Clinton Administration used IRS audits as an instrument of threat and vengeance on its enemies. Perhaps worst of all, in what comes horrifyingly close to treason, the Administration permitted the release of CIA briefings and classified missile technology to China in return for staggering campaign contributions.

Since the book was written while Mr Clinton was still in office, it does not even mention the later scandals that plagued the last years of that administration, such as the eleventh-hour pardoning of fugitives and felons who made large contributions to the Democratic Party in Pardongate.

It is hard to say whether it is worse that this person served as our president, or his apologists' astounding insistence that the perfidy of his presidency somehow doesn't matter. It wasn't always like this. The Rodino report, which laid down the reasoning for proceedings against President Nixon, noted that "the scope of impeachment was not viewed narrowly" as a purely criminal matter but also considered maintaining the prestige and respect of the office. Fascinatingly, party to the Rodino hearings was none other than Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Ann Coulter is a knowledgeable, deliciously sharp, and unquestionably intelligent writer-- I would recommend any of her books, as well as the syndicated column which appears also on her Web site. High Crimes and Misdemeanors is well researched and annotated, and leaves me asking rhetorically about those eight dark years: what in the world were we thinking?

I followed Watergate very carefully and I thought that I understood the impeachment process. Ann Coulter's book disabused me of this notion and informed me about the role of the impeachment process envisioned by the founders as understood at the time of the creation of the constitution and by the Rodino committee as applied to Richard M. Nixon.

The founders never envisioned that a sitting president would have conducted himself in such a manner that he would not be allowed to appear before the Supreme Court because of his perjury. However, this book clearly shows how and why the impeachment mechanism that the founding fathers designed as an integral part of the structure of our republic should have been applied to Bill Clinton. That this remedy was not used is a great tragedy for our country. The scope of this failure is clearly and forcefully chronicled by this book.

I strongly recommend it to those who seek a broader perspective on the Clinton legacy.

Ann Coulter does a good job describing every scandal that has plagued President Clinton. Her book also devotes a large portion to describing exactly why his crimes should be considered impeachable under the 'Crimes & 'Misdomeaners' section of the Constitution. If anyone wants to have a clear and concise summary of the Clinton Administration, this book is a good start.

Sure, Billy Bob, sure. Call me a Right Winger (You're a Right Winger, Steve) but this guy dragged the Presidency through its lowest trough since Watergate.

As if the pitiful "tried Pot but didn't inhale" fiasco didn't tell us what kind of man, or was it lying toad, we were dealing with, he tops it all off by betraying his wife and disgracing his Office by obtaining Executive Relief from a cheap tramp in the dang White House itself.

The shameful lack of condemnation from various Liberal factions speaks volumes about their collective integrity. Coulter quite rightly nails Billy Bob on this issue, which was a double moral outrage, but also on major concerns such as Whitewater.

Her case for impeachment is unassailable, especially given her own Legal background, and the limping dog denials by the Clinton Right Or Wrong brigade do nothing to diminish the strength of Ann's arguments.

This is a very important book, but the ultimate Coulter Classic is Slander: Liberal Lies About The American Right, which was understandably an Amazon best seller. There's not much to stand up and cheer about in this world, but Ann Coulter's books certainly fill the bill.

Coulter lays out the more visible aspects of Clinton's corruption, lies and loathsome character in this well-written and well-researched book that is both snappy and substantive.

Her discussion of the history of impeachment is highly informative, and something that was never conveyed in the media. Guess what? Historically, almost any sort of bad behavior was considered justification for impeachment.

Coulter also does an excellent job of clearly laying some of the major scandals for which Clinton was not impeached. Her discussion of Whitewater, for example, was the first place I'd seen a succinct and coherent discussion of what that was really about. Hint: it was not just a land deal gone bad. Same for Chinagate, at least as it stood at the time she wrote the book. In case you forgot who John Huang is, this book will remind you and give you key facts to help you appreciate that we have a traitor in the White House.

The book also does an excellent treatment of serious abuses of power which everyone should know about and for which Clinton should be ejected from the White House, but which are largely unknown except by political afficianados. For example, a huge number of conservatives, conservative organizations and other enemies or perceived threats to Clinton have been audited by the IRS. As Coulter points out, one of the most serious charges against Nixon was that he thought about using the IRS to audit his political enemies (though he never actually asked anyone to do it). Clinton has clearly done it in spades. The book is filled with enlightening comparisons of Nixon and Clinton that show Nixon was a cherubic angel compared to Clinton.

Part of what made this book so enjoyable to read, besides it being highly informative, is that Coulter is very funny. Her witticisms spice the book rather nicely, in my opinion.

I've heard from good sources that the House Judiciary Committee staffers and Henry Hyde were reading the book when impeachment was getting underway. If it's good enough for them, it should be good enough for you.

Luckily, I read this book two days before the Starr Referral on the Lewinsky Affair, and the President's Rebuttal (Kendall et al) were released. Ann Coulter's book provides a good measure of sanity to the craziness of the Clinton White House on the slide towards impeachment or resignation.

Coulter's detailed outline and commentary provides context of where Clinton has been, and where Starr is headed, by combining history, facts, law and some pounding on the table. As with all Clintonian era books, one must apply critical thinking skills and exercise great caution so as not to confuse correlation with causation.

Of the numerous Clinton White House books written, this is on the "must have" list along with such notables as Aldrich UNLIMITED ACCESS, Coltis' THE COMEBACK KID, and Hillary Clinton's IT TAKES A VILLAGE. The readability falls short of the prose of Kurtz' SPIN CYCLE and Woodward's THE AGENDA. However, the shear weight of organized material covering the numerous incidents and indictments so far make this a required reference, a great background book for scorekeeping whether listening to the White House spin du jour, reading the Starr report(s), or filtering sound bite news.

HIGH CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS is the program to the numerous acts of the tragic comedy play we have learned to love and to loathe, The Clinton Presidency,

Can you carry on a cocktail party conversation regarding Whitewater? Do you have any idea what the underlying charges were in Filegate? Travelgate?

Do you believe that the impeachment investigation was justified?

If you answered no to any of the above, YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK. If you want an account of the Clinton Administration scandals without the conventional hyperbole and political spin, READ THIS BOOK.

Ann Coulter, often accused of being a "Clinton Hater" by Democrats, cogently supports her conclusions with an abundance of facts and law (ironically UNLIKE the arguments of her political opponents). Amidst a tone that is notably humorous and bitingly sarcastic, High Crimes is concise, readable and highly entertaining.

This book is an absolute must-read for anyone that desires a broader perspective regarding the Clinton Administration.

It's amazing how many people have given this book a one-star rating without having even read it--dismissing it as "drivel" or "claptrap" or whatever. Are these the same imbeciles who are always giving out one-star ratings to any and every book by a conservative author in order to steer potential readers away from these books (and thus prevent them from being exposed to the truth about the "Looney Left")? Are these the people who feel the need to blindly defend a president whose actions were called "indefensible" by members of his own party (although many of those Democrats still defended him anyway--go figure)? William Jefferson Clinton and his entire administration left a huge stain on the Presidency and the history of our country, from Travelgate to Filegate; from Whitewater to the suspicious deaths of Vince Foster, Ron Brown, etc.; from Paula to Monica, and the perjury that followed (you see, it was NOT all about sex). "High Crimes" is well-researched, and Coulter backs everything up with extensive facts and footnotes. "High Crimes and Misdemeanors" is a fascinating read, and it will also make you angry when you realize just how far one man was willing to go just save himself and stay in power.

This book clearly shows why Bill Clinton never should have been elected or even considered for president. There were things in the book I did not even know Clinton did. Illegal and immoral things. Coulter shows Clinton has done nothing worthwhile for America while committing his own high crimes and misdemeaners. It's a shame Clinton was allowed to wreak havoc on this great country, but it's better that people like Ann Coulter expose people like him. If you want a chapter by chapter account of Clinton's immoral activities and schemes, get this book.