Clinton, bin Laden, Wag The Dog and Fox News

self | 9/24/2006 | Technomage

[technomage]

After reading parts of the FoxNews Sunday transcript of the interview between Wallace and Clinton, something stuck out to me.

Clinton keeps claiming that 'right wing conservatives' were constantly complaining that he was too obsessed with bin Laden. I have mentioned previous that I have no memories of that happening. What I do remember is conservatives in general complaining about his obsession with Monica.

But, getting back to that claim that conservatives were complaining that Clinton was too obsessed with bin Laden.

After watching the rant, oops, interview, Clinton slipped up. He showed his cards by uttering three little words: wag the dog.

It was like a light bulb going off in my head.

Now it made sense. Clinton is once again 'mixing' historical events to conform to what he wants the world to remember.

Conservatives did use the wag the dog reference numerous times, not in reference to bin Laden, but in reference to Clinton's massive bombardment of Serbia, which had absolutely nothing to do with bin Laden.

Clinton, in the interview basically says, and I paraphrase:

conservatives were complaining that I was obsessed with bin Laden, you know the wag the dog references.

THAT is the statement that shows that either Clinton is having memory problems and mixing up events, or is lying.

All the wag the dog references in the 90's had nothing to do with bin Laden, but had everything to do with Serbia and Milosevic, as far as my meager memory serves. I may be wrong, and I may be unaware of statements to the contrary but as far as I can remember, all those references were regarding Milosevic and Serbia.

Claiming that 'right wing conservatives' were complaining that Clinton was obsessed with bin Laden is an outright lie. But to try and prove it by using the wag the dog reference was a stupid move on his part and illuminated his lack of facts to back it up. And in my view, invalidated the rest of the rant, er interview.

[MHGinTN]

I would have given anything if Chris had immediately referred to the MOnica denial finger wagging TV incident when the sinkEmperor kept wagging his finger at Chris. I can only imagine the vein which would have exploded in that degenerate brain. The alphabet networks are working their sycophantic asses off to rescue the sink's image immediately.

[RedEyeJack]

He is very mixed up. Conservatives critized him for ordering the launch of TLAMs against Afganistan camps and the famous "asprin factory" on the eve of his impeachment to try to divert the press (which worked!). That was viewed a a form of wag the dog as I recall. However, NO ONE ever critized him for going after OBL too hard because... he didn't go after him very hard at all. Shooting a few camels and tents in the middle of nowhere is an obsession only in WJC's mind.

[fishergirl]

For me, shankbear's tagline says it all. The whole world knew that for months and months Clinton's attention was on wagging something else and not just his finger.

[Rocko]

Please compare and contrast with GWB, who does what he thinks is correct, no matter how much flack he gets.

[xkaydet65]

Wag the dog was also about bin Laden. When he lobbed those tomahawks into Afghanistan and the aspirin factory in Sudan. He claimed it was an attempt to kill bin Laden or, maybe more correctly, to destroy terrorist training sites in Khost after Kenya and Tanzania. The fact that this all took place during impeachment is what made GOPers use the wag the dog reference

I can remember Ron Kuby on Curtis and Kuby calling for Clinton's impeachment for killing people to move the news cycles away from Monica et al. And Kuby is an unreconstructed commie who opposed Monicagate.

What I will never understand is Clinton's being terrified of the impeachment process. There was never any doubt the House would impeach and even less doubt the Senate would acquit. It was staged like good Japanese Kabuki. Every movement choreographed. Clinton was never in any danger. He created the wag the dog reference for no valuable reason.(see pages 117-120 9/11 Commission Report, authorized edition)

[TomGuy]

Wag the Dog showed up several times, including Lewinsky's Grand Jury appearance:

2) Wag the Dog scenario considered by all the networks as CBS questioned the lack of "bipartisan patriotism." On ABC George Stephanopoulos insisted Clinton refused to apologize "because he was afraid of projecting weakness" to the terrorists.

---

[hosepipe]

[ Claiming that 'right wing conservatives' were complaining that Clinton was obsessed with bin Laden "IS" an outright lie. ]

WHatever the meaning is of "IS"...

[true_blue_texican]

bttt

[BenLurkin]

"NO ONE ever criticized him for going after OBL too hard because... he didn't go after him very hard at all."

Exactly. This is classic Clintoon. The very epitome of why he is despised by every American who is not emotionally and intellectually committed to the democrat party.

[montag813]

Actually the "wag the dog" reference had nothing to do with eiother Bin Laden or Serbia. It was October 1998, during Clinton's deposition, that he carried out a massive attack on IRAQ, and his officials made big noises about a possible invasion of Iraq.

[TomGuy]

Some more Wag links:

No. 99-D 39
... example of a Clintonian "wag-the-dog" exercise, of a piece ... with its latest wag-the-dog gambit, the Clinton Administration may have subjected the Nation to the worst of ...

MediaWatch -- 09/07/1998 -- Page One: Lobbing the Ultimate Conversation Stopper
... affair with Monica Lewinsky, Bill Clinton authorized cruise-missile attacks on ... All the networks noted the similarities to the satirical film Wag the Dog, in which the White House ...

Saddam Hussein, Permanent Punching Bag
... President Clinton, reminiscent of the wrestling metaphor above and commonly referred to as "Wag the Dog" syndrome after ... that even Bill Clinton (who is a man ...

[bwteim]

LOL. I always liked his constant referencing to *working hard*, as in:

"And I think in the meanwhile, I need to work on the business of the people."
http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/01/13/clinton.transcript/

"I am working as hard as I can to convince Congress and the American people to seize this opportunity."
http://www.usembassy-china.org.cn/press/release/2000/clinton38.html

"I want the families to know that I am working as hard as I can to speed this process"
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/print.php?pid=53098

"I am working as hard as I can to be a good President"
http://www.clintonfoundation.org/legacy/120999-speech-by-president-at-dnc-gala.htm

"And a weary President Clinton laments he's been working "as hard as I've ever worked."
http://www.s-t.com/daily/11-96/11-17-96/a09wn025.htm

"I am working hard to persuade our Congress to pass my trade proposals for Africa"
http://www.imf.org/external/am/1999/speeches/pr06e.pdf#search=%22%22president%20%22william%20j.%20clinton%22%20%22I%20am%20working%20as%20hard%20as%22%22

"I want the families to know that I am working as hard as I can to speed this process and to make it as easy as possible. "
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=53098

" I will work hard to get these measures passed. I will continue to work equally hard to uphold the privacy rights of the American people as well as the proprietary rights of American businesses."
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0001/07/se.01.html

[socal_parrot]

All the wag the dog references in the 90's had nothing to do with bin Laden

The missle stikes on Afghanistan and the Sudan on Aug. 20, 1998 and his speech that evening were on the same day as his Grand Jury deposition.

[LADY J]

While watching Slick's meltdown - I came to the conclusion that since he was never on Fox before - they offered him a platform to grandize himself about his Global money raising achievemnts.

Being that there is nothing he loves more than talking about himself - he accepted. He never expected Chris Wallace to ask him 'the question!!'

He was totally unprepared and went nuts. You are right about the wag the dog. He was trying to quickly go back in his memory to defend himself & I think he was confusing two different things.

Chris is lucky that Slick didn't give him the knock down treatment that Dick Morris got...if I am remembering that he got Morris down on the floor for whatever was going on at the time. Too long ago for me to be positive about this.

[Neenah]

I watched about all of the Bent One's white legs....

....speaking of which, (white legs)can someone get a closeup of those plucked chicken legs? Do they have any "HAIR" on them ?

Were those pants "high water" jobs? All I could picture were those shiny gabardine slacks one of my uncles used to wear (blue) with BROWN SHOES ! LOL Ugh!

[ark_girl]

Which legacy? The economy that was built on overpriced tech stocks and corperate fraud? Peace with Korea and China that was based on them lying to us and us giving away the family farm? Or that enduring peace in the Middle East that ended with the guy who was the focus of it, Yasser Arafat, dying holed up in a house surrounded by ticked off Israelis?

Seriously, I went to the Clinton Library this summer (just because it seemed silly to live as close as I do and not go look, if nothing else, out of morbid curiosity).

It was very difficult to find anything that he claimed he did that has stood the test of time.

Ronald Regan did stuff and it took. He took out the USSR and they're just now kind of hinting at going back to their old ways, 20 years later. Clinton build a wonderful economy and world peace that was so enduring, they collapsed before he was even out of office.

[socal_parrot]

While Clinton cries like a stuck Rat about the "Wag the Dog" references during the Monica affair, it just points out why the most powerful man in the world should keep it in his pants during his term(s).

[neocon1984]

Something we need to remember is that the Left is most often wrong, but they never give up. They simply deconstruct, rationalize and write new history. It shocks me how many "urban myths" are popularly held around the world. Clinton and his loyal following are not delusional, but hard core politicians who peddle delusional ideas to the masses. (Remember what Hitler said about the "big Lie"). Sadly, even "fair" reporters lack the intellect and desire to question their purposeful distortions and lies.

[True Grit]

Was interesting Clintoon could not pass up the opportunity to scald Carl Rove. Dims are afraid of Rove as a bear. Rove is a political genus who has the ability to paint the dims in a way people can see their sorry a## for what they are.

[Chode]

THAT is the statement that shows that either Clinton is having memory problems and mixing up events, or is lying.

lying...

OHhh WOe is me... Why's Everybody Always Pickin on ME???