Regards, Ivan
Posted on 06/25/2004 3:39:22 PM PDT by MadIvan
THE KEY to understanding Bill Clinton is to realise that he is a classical narcissist — a person who has no internalised self-image and must derive his feelings about who he is from the views and opinions of those around him. Perpetually in search of human mirrors who can reflect back to him a positive image of himself, he has chosen an occupation replete with men and women who are characterised by this disorder. Only in Hollywood and the theatre are more narcissists to be found than in politics.
Indeed, Mr Clinton chose politics as his profession because it offered the best opportunity for seeing his reflection in the eyes of fellow politicians, journalists and voters. And, when the press goes home and the band stops playing, he is irresistibly tempted to seek his reflection in the eyes of women, convincing himself of his virility, if not of his virtue. His very promiscuity is not the product of sexuality as much as it is of boredom. When the crowds leave, he has nobody to tell him who he is so he seeks out affirmation, one woman at a time (presumably).
In My Life, Mr Clinton’s frequently self-indulgent memoir, the former US President even seeks to define himself by his image reflected in the eyes of his adversaries. By making Kenneth Starr, the special prosecutor, into a latter-day Inspector Javert, he sets up his own self-image as the innocent victim of persecution. Indeed, by making Mr Starr into a dragon, he permits himself to play the role of St George (is Hillary cast as the damsel in distress?). He must demonise his enemies to assuage his conscience. Only if his opponents are truly evil can he embrace the notion that he is good.
The very decision to publish his memoir amid a presidential campaign reflects Mr Clinton’s obsessive need for attention. To redefine attention deficit disorder — he is disordered when he is not getting attention. This is not a mere exercise of ego. The stimulus of others and the reflection of their opinion of him are essential to his capacity for metabolism. Like the headlight reflector that can be seen only when it reflects the beams cast by a passing car, Mr Clinton needs the spotlight to eat, breathe and function. Deprived of attention, he might as well be cut off from oxygen.
Mr Clinton’s narcissism leads him to seek to please everybody so as to generate the most positive reflections from the broadest number of people. In doing so much to resolve the Northern Ireland controversy, he made a virtue of his desire to be all things to all people, saying to the warring parties, as the Beatles did, “come together over me.”
Hillary Clinton is no narcissist. She could not care less if she is popular or not. As a politician, she realises that only by winning elections can she achieve power and, as an ideologue, she knows that public office is crucial to achieving her agenda. But popularity as a mode of self-definition, so vital to her husband, leaves her cold. She has a clear view of who she is and why she is in politics. She is there to accomplish her programme. He, by contrast, is in the game to achieve self-definition and, while he is there, he might as well do as much good as he can.
But narcissism is only part of the Clinton persona. He is also a Boy Scout, whistling as he works, doing as many positive things as he can in the time he is allotted. One suspects that in this, he has much in common with Tony Blair — an apolitical, civil servant’s desire to solve problems in the most efficient and expeditious way.
“Oh, Dick, I’m glad you called,” he once said as he picked up the White House phone to speak to me. “I’ve been up all night worrying about welfare and I wanted to ask you about it.” Welfare, the American equivalent of the dole, has spiralled out of control, with generation after generation seeking a free lunch (and dinner and breakfast) without working for it. Mr Clinton had signed an historic Welfare Reform Bill requiring that claimants work for their benefits and setting a time limit of five years on welfare.
“There were four million families on welfare when we started,” he informed me. “Fourteen million people, but only four million adults. And one million are disabled and can’t work. I’ve gotten jobs for one million of the remainder, so I’ve got two million more to go.” I sensed my mind numbing. “To generate the million jobs, I’ve had to create seven million jobs nationally. I don’t think I can create another fourteen million jobs, so how can I get two million more welfare recipients into jobs?” Get it?
That is what keeps him up at night. He has a policy wonk’s dedication to data and a curiously apolitical desire to solve society’s problems as long as he is in office. But he wants to have power not to vindicate his agenda, but to assuage his psychological need for attention and affirmation.
As his pollster, I was the one to whom he turned when he needed to ask: “Mirror, mirror on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?” Because I was master of the data and the numbers were the key to his self-affirmation and, more, to his self-definition, I had considerable power. Narcissism in one’s clients can be pretty damn useful in my line of work.
Regards, Ivan
Ping!
Maybe our tax dollars should have bought him some therapy??
Plane tickets to Bangkok, perhaps. Remember, if he's out chasing women, he's not in the office making bad decisions.
Mind you, a guard of some description would be required. For the women, not Bill.
Regards, Ivan
I thought we had marine guards at the White House, it should be required that they guard at the Oval Office Door as well...to prevent temptation.
What caused him to flip on Bill?
I confess to not paying attention; though I do remember him being outed as some sort of a pervert.
This fits with my impression of Clinton quite well. He governed by focus group, meaning he didn't lead at all. He followed.
He's also a heck of a liar, too.
bttt
I'm no Dick Morris fan because he's an opportunist. I don't believe in his core integrity, but opportunist or not, at least this time, he hit it on the mark. 40 points in the good guy column for Dick.
This Morris guy is an absolute thorn in the Clinton's side, despite (or maybe because) his close past association with them. He just never gives up... more power to him.
WARNING! This reply is a rerun. But it seems appropriate to the topic at hand. -Maeve-
“Actually, more like when a tomcat grimaces and sucks in the air around him to savor the scent of a female cat. It’s called flehmening when a housecat or a lion does it.” - Queen McGee
The first time I really looked at Clinton was in a Sunday supplement magazine in the Los Angeles Times in the summer of '91. The article featured pictures of Bill, Hill and Chelsea in the 'backyard' of the governor's mansion 'playing' baseball. There was just something about Bill Clinton's smile and body language. I recognized 'The Look'. It is the look of a malignant narcissist. When he smiles he lifts his upper lip slightly, as if to suck in the attention of the viewer. Certain male animals like housecats and deer do this posturing when seeking mates. It's called 'flehmening'. The breath of life to a narcissist is the attention and admiration of those around him. The more attention a narcissist receives the more turned on and alive he becomes. Without attention he reverts to a passive, hollow shell, just waiting... until he can receive his next narcissist fix.
I can recognize a narcissist immediately because I am an adult daughter of a malignant narcissist mother. Like a practicing alcoholic or a drug addict a narcissist can never be trusted to put his wants above anyone else's needs, and never ever expect him to tell the truth unless he feels it would benefit himself.
Several years ago Bill Clinton was featured on the cover of Esquire magazine. He had a 'flehmen' grin upon his face, his legs were spread wide and he was leaning into the lens of the camera. This is a classic narcissist pose. This is the same pose I've so often seen in family pictures of my mother.
What is the moral of this tale? If a person looks like a narcissist, acts like a narcissist, he is a narcissist and if you don't watch out he will consume you, spit out your bones and and then proclaim, "It's your d*** fault I'm so d*** fat."
The Brain of All Presidents Slick Willie didn't even question that it averages out to 10 per family.
Morris is pretty much on mark in his assessment of BJ.
First off, I've NEVER trusted Morris. There's something there that I can't put my finger on.
THEN...sometime within the last week I read a thread where he gave either a talk, a review of her book, or SOMETHING about Hillary. And, he was complimentary. He made some comment about how she'd be GOOD in the White House.
Do you remember reading that, Ivan? Anyone?
I'm not even gonna comment on BJC. Don't wanna get banned.
Yes, the welfare reform bill that he had to be dragged -- kicking and screaming -- into signing, and then promised, during his re-election campaign to undo, if re-elected.
“There were four million families on welfare when we started,” he informed me. “Fourteen million people, but only four million adults. And one million are disabled and can’t work. I’ve gotten jobs for one million of the remainder, so I’ve got two million more to go.” I sensed my mind numbing. “To generate the million jobs, I’ve had to create seven million jobs nationally. I don’t think I can create another fourteen million jobs, so how can I get two million more welfare recipients into jobs?” Get it?
I always get a kick out of leftists talking about politicians "creating" jobs, as if the politicians go out to every company in the nation and sit there with the company's officers and the books open, and figure out how to hire more people.
What an incredibly silly fool.
I've never remembered why he turned on the Clintons with such a fury. But, he was not "outed as some sort of a pervert". He had an extramarital affair with a high class prostitute.
But, here's the bottom line: AS LONG AS CLINTON IS IN THE SPOTLIGHT AND SUCKING UP AIR FROM KERRY IT'S GOOD FOR OUR TEAM. THE MORE AMERICA REMEMBERS BILL CLINTON, THE BETTER THE PREZ LOOKS. I hope he peddles his book until election day.
I think you misunderstood. The only person Dick Morris hates more than Bill Clinton is Hillary Clinton.
naw, our tax dollars got him a couple of dozen hummers.
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