Buried Treasure
If you're one of the few who took the time to read the papers on Thanksgiving day, you might have seen a review of the Clinton Presidential Museum/Library in the New York Times.
The headline says it all: "Political Self-Celebration in a Library Guise."
Reviewer Edward Rothstein juxtaposes the Clinton Library with the Truman Libary, and the result is a smoldering rebuke of a monument to propaganda.
The simple difference between the Truman and Clinton libraries, says Rothstein, is "Truman's library, that is, makes the president an actor within history. Clinton's library makes him the focus of history."
To see such a review in the ordinarily fawning New York Times truly warms the soul.
The headline says it all: "Political Self-Celebration in a Library Guise."
Reviewer Edward Rothstein juxtaposes the Clinton Library with the Truman Libary, and the result is a smoldering rebuke of a monument to propaganda.
And browsing, in this case, means hearing Mr. Clinton's voice every few feet, speaking from multiple monitors, delivering State of the Union addresses or making stump speeches, his voice punctuated by historical films and comments from admirers and staff members... Every object, every piece of text, every sound is harnessed in service to an almost relentless message about Mr. Clinton's achievements... And each alcove highlights a specific Clintonian credit, including: "Putting People first," "Building a Global Community," "Preparing for New Threats," "Protecting the Earth," "Making Communities Safe" and "Restoring the Economy."
The simple difference between the Truman and Clinton libraries, says Rothstein, is "Truman's library, that is, makes the president an actor within history. Clinton's library makes him the focus of history."
Historical background is presented only to show accomplishment. Crime graphs drop. Economic graphs rise. Terrorism is fought. Evidence numbingly repeats itself (as do exculpations). There seems nothing - from community policing to tax cuts to fighting terrorism - for which credit is not claimed. Even a stock ticker heralds the climactic prices of stocks in 2000, taking no notice of the imminent collapse. As for the administration's scars, if all else is a record of social improvement, moral vision and consummate governance, then doesn't any attempt to challenge that record or its claims have to represent extraordinary villainy? Perspectives of serious critics are nonexistent. And the discussion of challenges to Mr. Clinton's positions is restricted to an alcove, "The Fight for Power." These challenges become part of a series of "Ideological Battles" in which Republican Congressional leaders engaged in "Politics of Personal Destruction" and endorsed dangerous beliefs in "Isolationism and Unilateralism."
To see such a review in the ordinarily fawning New York Times truly warms the soul.
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