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2. THE CLINTON LIBRARY It was definitely Not Hot in Little Rock, Arkansas, on that wet and chilly day in mid-November when the worshipful Friends of Bill -- the rich, the famous, the powerful, the crooked, and the self-deluded -- descended on the sleepy southern city to join other dignitaries in the garish, over-the-top dedication of the newly erected Clinton Presidential Center. With a torrential rain gushing down, it was as if the heavens themselves had opened up in a fury over the obscene celebration going on down below, casting a deliberate pall over the whole nauseating display of hubris,...

During ABC's hour-long Primetime Special Edition promotion of the opening of the Clinton Library, titled, "Bill Clinton: A Place in History," Peter Jennings trumpeted his record as "full of accomplishment" and touted how he's "hugely popular in other parts of the world." But Clinton lectured Jennings on ABC's bias against him. Jennings had told the former President how a survey of historians had ranked him highly in some areas, but that "they gave you a 41st on moral authority." That prompted Clinton to launch into a rant against Ken Starr and the historians, but he maintained that "I don't really...

New Yorker and ex-President Bill Clinton formally opened his presidential library this week in Arkansas. An historic occasion, the affair was decidedly bipartisan, with President Bush as well as former Presidents George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter present. These library-dedication ceremonies are meant to focus on the highlights of a presidency and sidestep the areas that could be deemed controversial. For example, of the 14 exhibit areas, only one is devoted to the at-times sordid impeachment saga. And that, of course, is placed in an achingly familiar context — Clinton as victim. [snip] So the mind boggles to learn...

If you were watching cable yesterday, you'd have thought that the capital had been moved to Little Rock. The media can't resist a gathering of presidents, and never could resist a story line involving Bill Clinton (remember his hospital-bed advice to John Kerry?). Especially when his wife (who's also making the TV rounds, including Larry King and Greta Van Susteren) may run for his old job. But I don't remember anything like all this live coverage when Bush 41 opened his library, do you? And the ex-prez got an hour with Peter Jennings on "PrimeTime" last night. (Fox seemed to...

November 19, 2004 -- WASHINGTON — Bill Clinton savored warm tributes from three presidents at his library dedication yesterday, while he tipped his hat to wife Hillary — whom he called the family member with the real power. Bill Clinton, speaking outside the $165 million Little Rock, Ark., building to a rain-soaked crowd of nearly 30,000, said he was honored by the attention and hoped the Clinton Presidential Center would make Americans think about his eight years in office.

Little Rock, Ark., may have a new $165 million presidential library. But the sleepy, grits-fed city barely has enough hotel rooms for the celebs who've come to pay homage to Bill Clinton. Early yesterday, Jordan's Queen Noor was due to check into a Comfort Inn miles from the ceremonial action. The lowly volunteer who gave up her room for the queen was planning to "knock on the door and ask her if I could have the shampoo - just so I could take a look at her." Democratic Party planners spoiled the volunteer's dream when they saw where the queen...

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Bill Clinton (news - web sites), America's first baby boomer president, opened his library Thursday with a rock 'n' roll gala that hailed the $165 million glass-and-steel museum as "a gift to the future by a man who always believed in the future." AP Photo AP Photo Slideshow: Clinton Library Opening Despite a steady, bone-chilling rain, nearly 30,000 people joined a celebration that included tributes from President Bush (news - web sites), his father and former President Carter. Rock stars Bono and The Edge of the band U2 performed a three-song set before Clinton spoke to...

In honor of the first Democrat to win two terms as president since Franklin D. Roosevelt, members of many of the nation's past and present first families celebrated the life and political talents of Bill Clinton on Thursday as they dedicated his library here in a chilly, rain-drenched ceremony on the banks of the Arkansas River. "Welcome to my rainy library dedication," a hatless Mr. Clinton said somewhat wistfully to a crowd of 30,000, most of them hidden under umbrellas. Bucking himself up, he said his late mother would have reminded him that "rain is liquid sunshine." The ceremony, held...

You have asked that I discuss some memories of President Clinton and my relationship with him. There are several that immediately come to mind. First, I remember being on the last Arkansas Traveler trip of the 1992 election. We had gone to the state of Kansas and returned to Little Rock on the night before the 1992 election. My wife, Susan Turner Purvis, also a Hope native, picked me up as we arrived back into town and told me I absolutely had to see this scene in downtown Little Rock. I remember driving into downtown Little Rock at night and...

A FIERCE storm blowing in from Texas rained mercilessly on Bill Clinton’s parade yesterday. The crowning moment of the former President’s efforts to shape his legacy was all but washed away as 25,000 people huddled and shivered in the driving rain that accompanied the dedication of his $165 million (£90 million) presidential library. Mr Clinton looked crestfallen as the Presidents Bush, senior and junior, President Carter, a large train of diplomats and politicians from around the world and a crowd larger than most Arkansas towns were soaked. When Bono and The Edge from U2 opened their brief headlining set with...

Bush praises Clinton Little Rock, AR, Nov. 18 (UPI) -- U.S. President George Bush praised former President Bill Clinton Thursday as an able and talented American who led the nation with optimism. Speaking at the opening of the Clinton presidential library in Little Rock, Ark., Bush noted the collections in the $165 million glass-and-steel structure "record the dedication and hard work of thousands, who brought talent and idealism to public service. And at the center of that era, at the head of that administration was an able and energetic American." Bush said Clinton seized important opportunities to try to champion...

The exhibit space will occupy two levels and cover 20,000 square feet. Utilizing photographs, videos and interactive stations, a 110-foot-long timeline on the first floor will present a substantive chronological history of the day-to-day work of President Clinton and his administration.

President Clinton's new presidential library, which is being dedicated at a gala ceremony today, has already triggered a politically charged battle over whether the museum's exhibits present a skewed view of history. The $165 million facility opened yesterday for brief tours by members of the press. Reporters quickly noted that the exhibits present Mr. Clinton in a uniformly flattering light, while omitting or downplaying facts that the former president and his allies might view as inconvenient. At several points, the museum's displays also disparage Mr. Clinton's political adversaries. An alcove entitled "The Fight for Power" depicts Mr. Clinton's impeachment as...

Bill Clinton's newly opening library is in denial, which is not the same as saying there's no reason to clap your hands about the place, including its 80 million items soon to be available to scholars and a terrific quote taken from Clinton's first inaugural. "There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America," the quote says, according to a news account that tells us that it is found at the start of a timeline of the Clinton presidency. The words have the virtue of speaking truth and of calling us to our...

LITTLE ROCK — In his new presidential library that opens today, Bill Clinton defiantly mocks the impeachment proceedings against him, charging that the independent counsel who investigated him had "a bias against the president" and blaming Republicans for engaging in the "politics of personal destruction." The former president, in exhibits he approved, repeatedly castigates Newt Gingrich, accusing him of instructing Republicans to label Democrats as "sick," and asserts that the former House speaker led a cabal of radical right-wing "revolutionaries" bent on destroying Mr. Clinton for one reason: "Because we can." "The impeachment battle was not about the Constitution...

Thu Nov 18, 2:37 PM ET Former U.S. President Bill Clinton (news - web sites) kisses his wife, Sen. Hillary Clinton (news - web sites) (D-NY) after she introduced him to speak at the dedication ceremony for the William J. Clinton Presidential Library, November 18 in Little Rock, Arkansas. Thousands gathered in a pouring rain for the event. REUTERS/Jason Reed

LITTLE ROCK, United States (AFP) - On the eve of the opening of his presidential library, Bill Clinton (news - web sites) voiced lingering bitterness Wednesday over what he sees as the political and personal persecution he suffered in office. AFP/File Photo     In a wide-ranging interview with ABC News, the former president discussed his health following open heart surgery, offered his take on the Iraq (news - web sites) war and praised the political acumen of President George W. Bush (news - web sites). But his most passionate comments were reserved for a biting indictment of Kenneth Starr,...

Former U-S President Bill Clinton's library will be officially dedicated today in Little Rock, Arkansas. Among those who will attend the event will be Robin Williams and Kevin Spacey, as well as former presidents Jimmy Carter and George Bush Senior. The Clinton library features a full-scale replica of the Oval Office, and a display on the Whitewater and Monica Lewinsky scandals.

Former President William Jefferson Clinton formerly opens his Presidential Center, which will hold the papers from his two term presidency.Attending the ceremony will be President George W. Bush, former Presidents Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush, along with First Lady Laura Bush ,Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, Rosalyn Carter and Barbara Bush.

Many of the political VIPs and Hollywood glitterati visiting Little Rock this week for the opening of the Clinton Presidential Library will be staying at the hotel where the top Democrat launched the chain of events that turned him into the only elected president in American history to suffer impeachment. Reports the London Telegraph: "The Excelsior Hotel, notorious as the venue where the then-Arkansas governor allegedly sexually harassed a junior state employee called Paula Jones, is under new ownership, renamed the Peabody - in which guise it will host many of the dignitaries attending this week." Many of the political...