My mother, who was kind of an old school Republican (she would have voted for McCain and Romney, but never for Trump), had the best description of Bill Clinton’s conduct in the Lewinsky affair that I have ever heard: it was a “low crime and misdemeanor.” Her point was that Clinton’s behavior was deplorable and arguably illegal, but it was not sufficient to warrant impeachment. The majority of Americans agreed with her, as did I.
I was reminded of this phrase when I heard the FBI Director talk about Hillary and the e-mail issue. My initial reaction to the use of private e-mail was that it was stupid and arrogant, but essentially inconsequential. I still think so, but I can’t help but be troubled by the public misstatements that she made to defend herself. They don’t go far enough to disqualify her as a candidate, but they certainly don’t bode well for her Presidency, if there is one.
The problem is that there is not, and never was, a reasonably plausible alternative. If Sanders had articulated an agenda that was directed at modernizing the welfare state to address issues created by technological change and globalization, I would have taken him more seriously, but all he wanted to do was bash banks and spend tax money mindlessly on programs like “free public college.” Like Jeremy Corbyn, he has a mindset that is stuck in the radical politics of the 1960’s and 1970’s. Trump, on the other hand, is a blowhard strongman wannabe who not only lies every time his lips move, but views lying as a legitimate campaigning and negotiating tactic. I have discussed the likely implications of that to the world economy in previous posts.
I miss Obama already, and he isn’t even gone yet.