This is Ken Starr8217;s Clinton

For months, it has been apparent that Kenneth Starr does not like the President of the United States. Now it is apparent why. The Bill Cl...

For months, it has been apparent that Kenneth Starr does not like the President of the United States. Now it is apparent why. The Bill Clinton portrayed in the Independent Counsel8217;s report is a man of unnerving appetites and odd philosophies part Rasputin, part Machiavelli and part leering adolescent. His world is one where words have no fixed meaning, treacheries come easy, and truth is so slippery it cannot be seized.

Clinton as Employer:
On several occasions, the president asked his secretary, Betty Currie, to come in to work on a Saturday or holiday. The purpose of these requests was to ensure that Currie, 59, was at her desk to admit Monica Lewinsky to the White House, so no suspicions would be aroused.

Clinton on Sex:
Clinton8217;s views on the nexus of sex, guilt and propriety are complex and not entirely consistent. 1. One may be justifiably proud of one8217;s fidelity to one8217;s spouse over a period of many months if one engages only in repeated phone sex. 2. When one is attemptingto terminate an illicit sexual relationship, it is permissible to kiss one8217;s former lover. 3. Only rape or sexual assault can strictly be defined as willful sex.

Clinton on Friendship:
In explaining why he permitted his attorney Robert Bennett to assert at a deposition that there 8220;absolutely is no sex of any kind,8221; Clinton initially said he wasn8217;t paying much attention to what Bennett was saying. In any event, he elaborated, he had no duty to prevent Bennett from making an incorrect statement to the court: 8220;Mr. Bennett was representing me. I wasn8217;t representing him.8221; Clinton did not even tell the truth to his dearest friends, Vernon Jordan and Harry Thomason. He held his tongue when his wife went on national television and made the following statement, wich would turn out to be unintentionally prescient: 8220;Some folks are going to have a lot to answer for.8221;

Clinton on God and Family:
On Easter Sunday, 1996, Clinton attended services at the church of one of the young victims ofthe plane crash in Bosnia that also killed Commerce Secretary Ron Brown. Then the president, his wife and daughter had brunch at the Four Seasons hotel. Then, the president went to the White House. Then, he telephoned Monica Lewinsky and invited her over for a tryst.

Clinton on Life8217;s Priorities:
Clinton8217;s conversations with Congressmen, lawyers and other advisers tend to last only minutes. He appears to conduct business quickly and decisively. Similarly, tete-a-tetes between the president and Lewinsky tended to be brief affairs. But there was at least one dramatic exception. On October 10, 1997, after Lewinsky complained that Clinton was reneging on a promise to help find her a job, Clinton phoned her, at 2 o8217;clock in the morning. By Lewinsky8217;s account, she and Clinton talked for an hour and a half. He invited her to the White House the following day. On this day, he was preparing for a major trip South America. But first, Clinton and Lewinsky met for an hour to discuss her jobsearch.

Clinton on Romance:
After sexual encounters with the president on two different occasions, Lewinsky says she suspected that Clinton did not remember her name, and so she reminded him. Lewinsky testified they did not have a meaningful conversation until after their sixth sexual encounter.

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Clinton on Honesty:
Explaining to Starr8217;s grand jury why his lawyer said at the Jones deposition there 8220;is absolutely no sex of any kind8221; between Clinton and Lewinsky, Clinton reportedly testified: 8220;It depends on what the meaning of the word is8217; is. Actually, in the present tense, that is an accurate statement.8221; This led his questioner to ask sardonically: 8220;Do you mean that because you were not engaging in sexual activity with Ms Lewinsky during the deposition that the statement might be literally true?8221; Clinton8217;s sifting and declension of language is so intricate it seems to lend itself to footnotes and superscripts and underlines that slant off into the margins of the page. A10th-grade grammar teacher would be impressed.

Clinton on Women:
Much has been made of Lewinsky8217;s age at the time of the consummation of the affair-alternatively described as barely older than Clinton8217;s daughter, and less than half Clinton8217;s age. Both are true, but neither is probative: Many women of 22 are worldly and sophisticated. The Starr report, however, suggests otherwise of Lewinsky, whose words and actions bespeak nearly comical petulance and immaturity. She calls the staffers who try to limit her access to the president 8220;the White House meanies8221;. Her indiscretion is profound. She babbled incessantly about her affair to 11 different people. When Lewinsky decided it was time to apply pressure on Clinton to bring her back to the White House, she said she would tell her mom and dad.

Clinton on Starr:
The President says he has not read the Starr report. And has no plans to do so.