The Nonpatriotic President: A Survey of the Clinton Years is a collection of essays covering Bill Clinton's years as president, starting with his inauguration in 1993, and ending with the 2000 presidential campaign. The book examines, sometimes with humor, a wide range of Clinton-centered issues: the role of the media in his presidency; the cult of celebrity that surrounded him - and which he encouraged - while in office; the conflicts crested by his wife's status as an unelected wielder of power.
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Editorial Reviews
About the Author
In her 20 years as a professional writer, Janet Scott Barlow has addressed a range of topics, including adoption, elective politics, country music, and feminism. In addition to her magazine writing, Mrs. Barlow publishes a monthly column on her website. She lives in Cincinnati, Ohio.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Superb Character Study,
By MediaSkeptic "JG" (Rural, South Carolina United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Nonpatriotic President: A Survey of the Clinton Years (Paperback)
This is a short, enjoyable read that reprints a series of essays written by Ms. Barlow during the course of the Clinton presidency for a magazine called Chronicles. Each article is essentially another analysis of the character manque of Bubba and his First Lady Macbeth spouse, Hillary. Ideally these essays were better read at the time, because the political events that inspired each are only mentioned in passing. What compensates for this lack of context is the astonishing psychological insight into the personality of our worst First Couple that came as a revelation even to this long time observer of the Clinton years. This is the best description of the personality flaws and dynamics of Bill and Hillary that I have ever seen in print. Even if you think you understood these two, as I did, you will find nuances and hidden dimensions to their motivations and methods that you probably have never thought of or read elsewhere.<>My only criticism of this book is that it is too much of an intimate character study, brilliant as it is. These essays beg to be rewritten and expanded, to take into account how the flaws in the Clintons' character (and marriage) translated into specific missed opportunities and lousy political decisions for our country. This is a story that has not yet been properly told, nor has the full damage of the Clintons to our political institutions and the respect for the rule of law been made clear to the public. If Ms. Barlow would connect her personality insights to what was actually done - and not done - at the time, this would have been a world class political book.<> One example, on "gun control" will suffice. The Clintons ran the most antigun administration in our nation's history and even some gun owners have yet to realize how far they were willing to go to nullify the Second Amendment and defang the Bill of Rights. In 1995, Clinton signed the Safe and Drug Free Schools Act which outlawed the possession of a loaded firearm within 1000 feet of any public school receiving federal funds. Prior to this capstone of Sen. Diane Feinstein's legislative career, we had exactly two school shootings in our nations history or one every century or so. After turning our schools into gun-free zones, we had over a dozen schools shootings, of which the one at Columbine High in April 1999 became the most lethal. Was it possible for an avowed policy wonk like Clinton not to recognize that this law was producing the exact opposite of its intent, that it was making our schools less safe and more dangerous? Yet when Wayne LaPiere of the National Rifle Association tried to point out that Bill Clinton may have been willing to have people killed in order to further his antigun legislative agenda, he was vilified by the media. This kind of cold-blooded political ruthlessnes is possible only in a President who has something missing in his own humanity. This is only one example where Ms Barlow would have done her readers greater service by connecting the dots for them, particularly since the national television media scrupulously avoided any mention of the clear pattern of failure associated with the Safe and Drug Free Schools act or how an American President sat in the Oval Office while we had shooting after shooting in our schools and made no move to amend a clearly counterproductive law. And this is only one example on one topic; the Clintons' inaction during the breakup of Yugoslavia would have been a book in itself, resulting in a far greater loss of human life, all of it preventable by a President with the courage to act early on. It would be a great service to the public to have developed the pattern of how the Clinton Presidency took a pass on such missed opportunities and how the pattern is explainable only as a complete lack of character in the incumbent. This is what Christopher Hitchens tried to do with his book, No One Left to Lie To, but I believe Ms. Barlow could do an even better job if she would concentrate more on the Clintons' policies and how these grew out of their mutually flawed personae. It is my hope that she will go back and turn these insights into a full fledged analysis of the Clinton admininstration and how these two sociopathic parvenues dragged the Presidency and the Federal Government down to the level of a small, failed Southern state, both ethically and politically. Now that would be a read.
18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Clintons Reconsidered,
By Alan Fister (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Nonpatriotic President: A Survey of the Clinton Years (Paperback)
Even as a life-long democrat, I always knew Bill Clinton was a phony, but I didn't think he was the low-life his critics claimed he was. So, I was reluctant to read this book. I'd heard enough Clinton-bashing. A friend of the author convinced me to read the last chapter, and I ended up reading the whole thing. Mrs. Barlow does her share of bashing here, and, as a collection of essays written over several years, the book seems a little uneven and disjointed in spots. But, having seen from Bill and Hillary what we've seen during the last several weeks, I think Janet Barlow has said something unique and accurate about these people. For all the good they have done, I believe they don't have any real concept of patriotism. Which isn't to say that they are unpatriotic, just nonpatriotic. It's all about them, in the end, no matter what wreckage they leave behind. It's kind of sad, really. Barlow's sense of humor keeps you chuckling along the way, however, and the book is a quick read. I recommend it to other Clinton supporters out there who are ready to take a fresh look at these two people we've defended so steadfastly since 1993. Not every observation in this book is original, but many are, and the author writes beautifully.
23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Vindication,
By Travis Pike (Cincinnati, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Nonpatriotic President: A Survey of the Clinton Years (Paperback)
I am a Clinton hater. At least that is what I have been labeled by the mainstream, Clinton worshiping media and the many people I know or have spoken with who seem to believe that if you disapprove of anything either Bill or Hillary have ever done, either professional or personal, then you are simply a narrow minded, judgmental, basically evil person who can't come to terms with the fact that the Clintons are brilliant, dynamic, and...cool. According to these people we should feel lucky that the Clintons have graced us with their wisdom, and if we're not, then we're simply out to bash them for no good reason. I mentioned the word judgmental earlier. This is a word that, in recent years, has become synonymous with evil. It seems like there used to be a time when it was okay, even expected, to disapprove of a man compulsively cheating on his wife with women young enough to be his daughter. The reason this is no longer accepted is because the Clintons have created the "everybody does it and if you say you don't then you're lying" mentality. In this book, Mrs. Barlow perfectly describes and disects this mentality, poking giant holes in the glowing media coverage of both Bill and Hillary, and yes, even weighing in with her own personal (some would even say judgmental) opinions. Eight years ago I knew quite a few people who were very supportive of Clinton. They were thrilled that he had been elected and were more than ready to defend his sleazy personality, which, if you think back, had already fully exposed itself even before he took office. As the years wore on and the scandals and lies piled up, these people stopped defending him on a personal level but remained firmly behind him from a professional standpoint. Now that we have reached the end and Bill has left office in a storm of pardon scandals that embarrass even his most dedicated supporters, these people have grown very quiet. They don't even talk about "moving on" as so many people are fond of doing when it comes to Bill and Hillary. They are simply quiet, too smart not to realize that this man is indeed a monumental phony. There were many arguments I had with these people in which I got confused and tongue tied, unable to fend off the creative wordplay that Clinton himself had perfected in his own defense. I only wish I had had this book then, so I could hand it to them and say "this is what I mean." The writing is quick, concise, and most of all, funny. All those thoughts you "Clinton haters" had (or have) swimming in your heads that you can't quite articulate are articulated here. This is not to say that Mrs. Barlow simply bashes away at her subject. She is analytical and intelligent, showing not only why Bill and Hillary are a uniquely awful cultural phenomenon, but also how the mainstream media essentially played the fool for these people. It is amazing to read some of the quotes from columnists that the author responds to. It is also amazing to read some of the quotes from Hillary's speeches. We have been told so many times that she is basically the most brilliant woman ever tht we are quick to accept it. This book very specifically takes these assumptions apart. My only complaint would be that the book is too short. I want more!I don't pretend not to be a "Clinton hater". Almost everything they have done over the past eight years and beyond has disgusted me. Therefore I am predisposed to liking this book. That being said, the book is useful for anyone who is even the least bit skeptical about these people and what they stand for. It says exactly what I have been trying to say for eight years, and it says it calmly, precisely, with dignity and restraint. This book gets to the point. If some people think it is judgmental, I wouldn't call them wrong. Maybe it's just time we all realized that that isn't necessarily a bad thing. Read this book.
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