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No One Left to Lie to: The Triangulations of William Jefferson Clinton

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When Bill Clinton was President, people attacked him from both ends of the American political spectrum. The Right asserted that his policies were too liberal, citing his stance on issues such as national health-care and partial birth abortion, while the Left claimed the opposite, citing as examples his support of welfare reform and opposition to gay marriage. About Clinton's behavior--his frequent lying, his repeated adultery, his draft-dodging, and so on--the Right shouted in vain for eight years, with no consequences for the President's approval rating. When confronted with these issues, liberals and moderates usually either looked the other way or defended Clinton, fearing that anything short of full support could give credibility and maybe even the executive branch to the Republicans.

Christopher Hitchens, a man of the Left on most issues, was an exception. No One Left to Lie To: The Triangulations of William Jefferson Clinton is his 1999 attack not just on Clinton's policies but also his ethics. Hitchens blasts Clinton for enacting policies that are essentially Republican, such as "welfare reform," which stole from the Republicans a key election issue while stranding the liberals who had no alternative but to stick with the President. Clinton has such a conservative record, Hitchens says, that it's a mystery why so many people on the Right hate him as much as they do (81). The Democrats are used to dissent in their ranks about whether Clinton was liberal enough; after all, a significant number of Democrats in both houses of Congress voted against "welfare reform." But not a single Senate Democrat voted for Clinton's removal, and Hitchens objects strongly to this kind of unconditional Democratic/liberal support for Clinton's behavior. With harsh but witty prose, Hitchens trashes Clinton for his lies and abuses of power throughout his presidency (and earlier). He also attacks the liberals who turned into defenders of Clinton's reprehensible behavior during the Lewinsky affair, such as Arthur Schlesinger (who said "Only a cad tells the truth about his love affairs" (82)), playwright Arthur Miller (who wrote that the impeachment proceedings were literally the moral equivalent of a medieval witch-hunt (50)), and Gore Vidal (who wrote "Boys are meant to squirt as often as possible with as many different partners as possible" (83)). Hitchens also devotes a chapter to that famous intersection of Clinton's public and private life: his bombing of "training camps" in Afghanistan, a pharmaceutical plant in Sudan, and many targets in Iraq at the height of the Lewinsky scandal. Hitchens argues convincingly that contrary to the Clinton administration's claims, the attacks on Sudan and Afghanistan and the timing of the Iraq attack were almost certainly motivated by Clinton's desire to distract people from the Lewinsky matter.

Like Hitchens' later book The Trial of Henry Kissinger, No One Left to Lie to is a short, devastating attack on a prominent political figure, in which Hitchens makes no attempt to conceal his utter contempt for his target. Unlike The Trial of Henry Kissinger, however, which many on the Right simply dismiss, No One Left to Lie To will appeal to readers in several different areas of the political spectrum. Conservative readers will enjoy reading the usually left-wing Hitchens rip into Clinton as viciously as any right-wing author ever has. Some left-liberal readers will enjoy Hitchens' verbal assault on Clinton's relatively conservative political record. The only readers who may be upset are those liberals and moderates who turned into strident defenders of Clinton's lying, womanizing, and even his policies because they wanted to thwart the Republicans. They may have kept Clinton in power until the end of his term, but they paid for this achievement with their credibility, putting the Left into a "moral and intellectual shambles" (21). No One Left to Lie To is a must-read for anyone who thinks that to criticize Clinton's behavior is necessarily to be a vengeful right-wing nut.

In "No One Left To Lie To", Christopher Hitchens dissects Bill Clinton psychologically, laying his inner nature bare like an anatomist displays the internal organs of a prepared cadaver. Mr Hitchens provides an invaluable historical reference of magazine-style contemporary news essays. He deserves the highest praise for compiling his perceptive thoughts into a literate and coherent selection of meaningful essays.

Note, to left-leaning Americans: This book does not argue that Clinton "destroyed the country" from some sort of socially-conservative (i.e., Republican) point of view at all. These are not essays from the pages of The Wall Street Journal by any means. On the contrary, Hitchens testifies that Clinton destroyed American LIBERALISM, from the point of view of a committed socialist, which Hitchens most solidly is. At one point, Hitchens asks why, given the effect he had on both parties, Republicans hate Clinton at all. It is for this reason that this book is an unusual and highly recommendable perspective for anyone who has the slightest interest in the subject, as well as those who have the greatest revulsion.

Hitchens examines Clinton's record of war, his accusations of sexual abuse, his relationship with Dick Morris, his skill at "triangulation", and his relationship with his wife, Hillary. These are not new topics, they have been discussed at great length and in excruciating detail for the last ten years, but Hitchens handles them all with such skill and wit that his compendium deserves reading by even the most jaded partisan or news-weary person.

In a surprisingly brief volume, but one dense with information, Hitchens portrays in precise detail a man beholden to corporate interests, upper-class elitism, and big money influence-peddling. He accuses Clinton of adherence to an agenda which dismantled welfare, cut government regulation, increased the lot of America's wealthy, and did everything an American liberal is purportedly against. Hitchens even uses the Clintons' own words against them in making his case. Most interestingly, be believes Clinton won votes from Republicans because he gave them legislation they wanted, and from Democrats because he gave them the empty symbolism of the White House.

If you are a right-leaning American, you will either delight, or take horror, in the myriad sordid tales, page after page, of a man corrupt to the bone. On the other hand, if you are a left-leaning American, you truly owe it to yourself to read these essays, and ask yourself how the Democrat Party endorsed this man, and how they came to such abuse by him. I have the feeling that if more Democrats read this book, they would be more angry than the thousands of Republicans who already have.

Mr Hitchens has created an unimpeachable journalistic reference, objectively fair, and incisively harsh. Despite partisan arguments of the many who have read it (as well as many who have not!), nothing in his book can be denied, nothing can be disproven, and nothing can be dismissed. There is a true story on every page, confirmed by a glance in any modern source of news information. Even if someone were to accuse Mr Hitchens of subjectivity in some of his stories, or an impure agenda by collecting them all in one place, the simple fact is, there are so many stories inhabiting these pages, it is so thick with them, and Clinton's life is so comprised of them, the matter is out of Hitchens's hands. It comes with the territory. Clinton did, after all, commit the acts Hitchens describes. In any event, the net effect of Hitchens's brief is profound indeed.

As far as the writing itself, Hitchens is highly literate, clearly well-educated, and charmingly erudite, even when pejorating or cursing. He displays an impressive command of the English language, in both vocabulary and idiom, though never unreadably so. This book is a delight to read from cover to cover. Anyone interested in American politics, whether liberal, conservative, or moderate, will find it informative. Most readers will find it equally hilarious and horrific, but all will find it thought-provoking and entertaining.

It is quite refreshing to see that honest liberals still exist. Christopher Hitchens, no friend of Hillary's imaginary "vast right wing conspiracy," takes great exception to the Clinton Era. And no, it's not just about sex. It's about rampant dishonesty and corruption - the selling of Commerce Department travel seats for campaign donations, renting of the Lincoln bedroom for re-election cash, selling of nuclear technology secrets in exchange for Beijing assistance in the 1996 re-election campaign, bombing of a poor country's aspirin factory to divert attention from personal problems, illegally releasing private information on citizens in order to discredit them, intimidating and threatening witnesses, obstructing justice, etc. etc. Hitchens confirms what the Right had been saying since 1993 - this is arguably the most corrupt administration in American history. It is refreshing to finally hear from someone on the left who isn't in the business of excusing and apologizing for this rampant corruption - to call a spade a spade. This book is for those who are interested in more than just economic prosperity - who are concerned about the long-term precedents set by this administration, which will undermine American democracy for many years to come. Those who insist on acknowledge no fault in this president, don't bother wasting time reading this book - it won't give you the warm and fuzzy needed to maintain your illusion that this is the "most ethical administration ever."

If you're looking for a nonpartisan analysis of the Clinton presidency, this isn't it. It is, however, something almost as rare: an attack on the President from the left. Far from the usual liberal Clinton apologist who defends anything the President does simply because he's a Democrat, Hitchens sees him as a shrewd political opportunist whose pathological need for approval from the American people is exceeded only by his contempt for them. In this, he's absolutely correct.

The problem for readers who don't share Hitchens' left-wing ideals will be that he seems to have contempt for Clinton's "triangulations" only to the extent that they interfere with his own liberal agenda. Such readers will also find his liberal indignation a bit tiresome. Conservatives and libertarians will bristle at reading (yet again) how FDR saved us from capitalism. And I doubt whether hard-working, middle-class Americans of any political bent will share his outrage that New York's welfare system now has the audacity to "require the poor to search for jobs before receiving help" (the heartless bastards!).

The book is worth reading for a dead-on, acid-tongued portrait of a dysfunctional administration, for once by an author who can't be accused of a partisan hatchet job. Still, one can't help wondering if Hitchens' high-powered perception of Clinton's flaws would be so clearly focused if Clinton had pursued the liberal policies that Hitchens supports.

Conservatives will be shamed by leftist Chris Hitchens's ability to heap scorn on Bill Clinton. Few have been this effective in exposing Bill Clinton. Hitchens uses a clever and biting wit, elegant prose, and insightful analysis to lift the rock on the debauched Clinton presidency. Hitchens has a remarkable ability to dissect even the most innocuous Clinton statement or event and to show how it is illustrative of a grander tawdriness in Clinton's personal and political composition. The result is a well-reasoned, thoughtful and intelligent book which illuminates like a spotlight the dishonor of Clinton's reign of lies. One word of warning to conservative readers. Hitchens peppers his text with a fair amount of hard core liberal thinking that often seems highly self-righteous. This is especially true when it comes to the subject of welfare reform, for which Hitchens gives way too much credit to Clinton, or as Hitchens would see it, blame, for what was essentially a GOP initiative. Hitchens refuses to allow a role for personal responsibility among welfare recipients. He even expresses offense and indignation at the idea that single mothers who receive welfare should have to reveal the name of the father of their child that he might be made to relieve the taxpayers of some of the burden of raising his child. These diggressions aside, Hitchens's artful use of language and remarkable anayltical thinking weaves a stunning tapestry of indecency wrought by this president. Hitchen's adds richness to the portrait by delving into little explored territory such as the true benefactors and motives driving the failed Clinton health care takeover. More shocking still is Hitchens's exposure of Clinton's craven use of military strikes in 1998 to distract from key moments in the unfolding of Clinton's crimes of obstruction of justice and perjury. Hitchens makes clear that these strikes had little value other than to prop up in the polls a threatened Bill Clinton. This last chapter on Clinton's "Wag the Dog" strategy literally left me numb as I was given a clearer understanding of just what depth's Clinton is willing to lower to protect his political hide. I can't imagine that another book will come along that will as effectively, insightfully or concisely describe the grand indecency that has been the Clinton presidency.

I couldn't put this book down. Made me realize how much damaging information is out there that the major media ignores. Hitchens finds it, and reveals it in this short but hard hitting book. Interestingly enough, though it's been the political right attacking Clinton for 7 years, Hitchens attacks him from the left. I may not agree with Christopher Hitchen's politics (his thoughts on Welfare reform have been proven dead wrong) but I admire his character and his courage for standing up for what he believes. If you read this book with an open mind, you'll believe that Bill Clinton is pure sleeze who had disgraced the office of President and our whole country for far too long.

The great thing about Hitchens is that he's always on the front foot, always attacking. While this might occasionally lead him into overstatement, it's pleasing to see someone of the left unafraid to make an aggressive case against Clinton. His sobering -- but witty -- exposure of the President as a mendacious, hypocritical, and bigoted creep should be required reading for anyone interested in politics (which in a perfect world would be everyone). Despite what other reviewers say, Hitchens's ire is aroused not by the President's predilection for shady bedroom antics, but by his canting, offensive attacks on others when they engage in similar -- albeit less predatory -- activites. Although the book does display traces of having been composed a mite hastily, it's generally refreshingly vigorous, and always irreverent. Even those who disagree with Hitchens will be made to question their opinions about Bill.

Christopher Hitchens's work is devastating because he truly understands "where Clinton is coming from," politically, culturally and personally. He is courageous in taking on a leading political figure representing his part of the political spectrum, as well as his "baby boom" generational cohort. His writing style is spare, elegant, precise and lethal. Attempts to dismiss his work as that of someone who is somehow envious of Clinton, going back to Oxford, are ludicrous from anyone and far past presumptuous from those who should know better. Hitchens'work reminds all of us of the power of sustained argument, even in this time of sound bite political debate and Clinton-style propoganda exercises from our national government, backed by the financial and cultural power of Hollywood and New York City elites. One hopes that Hitchens receives moral support from people he respects in what must be a rather lonely venture, as he is the object of mendacious attacks from Clinton's propoganda apparatchiks, most notably Sidney Blumenthal (aptly considered an American Goebbels, limited not by his ambition but in having less to work with.)

I'm familiar with Christopher Hitchens from his columns in Vanity Fair and have always found his reporting eminently readable and enjoyable. Not to mention hilariously funny. More important, I've found that he's been able to change my mind about political and/or social issues by presenting arguments and points of view I've previously not heard and therefore hadn't considered. (On most issues I'm right of center; Hitchens challenges me to see the other side.) Further, I find that Hitchens has a knack for finding topics (issues) other journalists either steer clear of or simply lack the objective eye to even conceive. In this respect, Hitchens is fearless and merits a great deal of respect. (His book on Mother Theresa and his recent piece on the state of Washington D.C. beyond Capitol Hill are emblematic of this.) This book is Hitchens at his best. Many years from now, after Clinton is a distant bad memory to us all, historians will be referring to "No One Left to Lie To" to gain perspective on the most arrogant criminal to ever occupy the White House. If you're interested in the presidency, government, American history, politics in general, or in need of an ironic, albeit cynical, laugh, Hitchens is your guy.

You may have heard a Democrat member of Congress describe Clinton as an 'unusually good liar'. In '92, Spy Magazine documented 100 lies within the first 100 days of Clinton's first term. PBS aired a documentary on the 1992 election with behind the scences footage of both Clinton and Bush, showing Clinton promising the Florida Cubans that he was going to, 'drop the hammer on Castro.' The show revealed that for the first time since Kennedy, the Cuban population in FL voted primarily for a Democrat, due to Clinton's numerous promises to them (and an earlier Bush mis-step).

That Clinton was a liar should have been obvious to every citizen by '94, but amazingly, the media and many citizens continued to rabidly defend him against charges of lying. Of course, they jumped on charges that seemed easy to disprove, and ignored the others, unless they could short-circuit the proveable charges by attacking the accuser (i.e., Flowers, Jones, Tripp, and Starr).

The bias was and is excruciatingly irritating, but did liberals decry the pro-Clinton bias in the media? Of course not. He was 'their' man. His despotism and fascism has been almost completely ignored by liberals until Hitchens. A corollary to Acton's dictum is that "Moderate power, with no accountability, corrupts absolutely." Of course Clinton was pretty corrupt to begin with. (Few Americans realize the degree to which Clinton has perverted the Constitutional division of powers by issuing Presidential Orders and from the Oval office, under a flimsy claim of America being in a current State of Emergency. In fact, we are currently under about 13 states of emergency, including one declaring that the current unrest in Haiti is a danger to Peace and Welfare of the American People. The upshot is that law is created by the executive office with no input from the legislative branch. "Stroke of the pen, law of the land, kinda neat." -- Paul Begala)

Before I read this book, I knew Clinton was an empty suit, that he had no core values, that he would say whatever it took to get two different groups to vote for him, even if he was saying the opposite thing to each group. This is what Hitchens calls 'triangulation'. So one day he's promising Gays the World (and reaping excellent monetary support), the next he's careful to be seen going to church with the biggest black Bible he could hand-carry. One day he's preaching that Old-Time-Socialism to the liberal elites, and the next he's practically telling Cubans that Castro, who's the Left's last Living God, won't know what hit him when Clinton gets into office.

Most people cannot hope to succede at triangulation. They either have too much of a conscience or they just aren't a good actor. It also takes some finesse and a media that will help cover for your constant lying. No conservative or moderate can use triangulation with the predominately leftist media. George Bush is still painted in the media with the 'read my lips' brush, despite the palpable superiority of Bush's character over Clinton's.

It's not just Clinton's lies to the Left, but his turns to the Right that causes Hitchens to vomit his erudite wrath upon Clinton's nauseating, stomach-turning character. After encountering some of the lunatic leftist ideology that occaisionally oozes from Hitchens' essay, I realized that it may be the particular method of triangulation that Clinton employed that has provoked Hitchens' ire. Clinton tends to promise the World to the Left, but then fails to deliver and ends up governing to the Right in order to gain popular support.

Despite what Hitchens' severest critics may say, he says nothing about Clinton that has been proven untrue. Even the charge of rape against Clinton has yet to be denied by Clinton personally. This is a credible enough charge that at least one chapter of the National Organization of Women has finally broken their silence and officially asked Clinton to resign, and still Clinton remains silent!

Hitchens' harsh and relentless criticism of Clinton is frankly deserved and long overdue. But it provides his critics with an opening to attack. Lacking the ability to disprove Hitchens' accusations against their hero, critics resort to the tried and true: ad hominen assaults. They worked pretty well on Flowers and Jones for a while, why not try them again? And of course, the accusation of 'hate' is also useful in marginalizing the undesirable truths contained in Hitchens' essay.

Let's get something straight. Hate is not automatically bad. Supposedly it is a good thing to hate racists. Hitchens has a particulary virulent hate of racists, unable to use the word without matching it with 'sick' or 'despicable'. It's healthy to hate Hitler, right? It's apparently socially acceptable, or at least politically correct for Gays to hate Christians. Churches are vandalized and harrassed by gays, but nothing much is said about these hate crimes. As far as the media is concerned, I don't think they care who hates Christians.

And if a person can't at least be understood if not applauded for hating a liar, adulterer, rapist, felony purgurer, and Wag-the-Dog-and-bomb-some-factory-worker-for-poll-numbers-murderer, then who can ya' hate, huh? No, the fact is that Clinton deserves every bit of vitriol Hitchens dishes out and probably a lot more, if China-gate is pursued at all.