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Summary: Good Read about Great President..except that Monica thing
Review: Breaks down Clinton's presidency by taking out the womanizing stories and actually analyzes how Clinton's policies led to the the biggest economic boom the US has ever seen. Discusses the Republicans strategies to bring him down and how Clinton devised his strategy to combat them.
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Summary: Diet Roosevelt.
Review: Liberal, but not a socialist. Popular, but not deified. Two terms, but not four. Wife rumored to be a lesbian, but not confirmed to be a lesbian. For all these reasons and many many more, all of them richly explored in this authoritative volume, one can fair-mindedly state that if Bill Clinton were a soft drink, he'd be Diet Roosevelt. Great taste! Less filling!
Rating: 
Summary: Great 1st Step
Review: When I bought this book I had read some rather nasty reviews stating that the book was very left of center and nothing more then a 200 page campaign add. In all honesty that would not have been disappointing for me to read, but what I got was a book that did not shy away from the biggest disappointments of the Clinton Presidency. The author tries to provide a balanced look at the Clinton Presidency by given equal time to both the good and the bad. Sure the author leans to the left a bit but that did not make him pull up the rains at all when talking over the personal problems Clinton kept getting involved in. I think Klein did a very good job with the book, he is a funny and sharp writer that keeps you wanting to read the book in one sitting. I would also say that the writing style is not for the quick and easy reader, it makes you want to pay attention and think over the writing after you put the book down. My only real complaint is that I would have liked about twice as much volume. At a bit over 200 pages it does feel like it just gives a broad overview. Overall I found the book very enjoyable and interesting that anyone that is interested in President Clinton will find entertaining and useful.
Rating: 
Summary: I don't think so...
Review: I think a rating of one star is a little too generous, but I guess I didn't have much choice. In short, this book is a big pat on the back to try an elevate Clinton to the ranks of more notable (not to mention more honest and qualified) former presidents.... Great read for your most radically liberal friends who are constantly trying to make it seem as if Clinton was America's unsung savior.
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Summary: Solid book
Review: Joe Klein writes a good and informative book about the Clinton Presidency. At times the structure of the book seems a bit illogical, but what it lacks here is made up for in terms of anecdotes and good analytic work by Klein.
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Summary: The Natural: The Misunderstood Presidency of Bill Clinton
Review: Another book about Clinton? No, it's not just another book. Written by the bestselling author of Primary Colors and one of our most brilliant political analysts, THE NATURAL is the only book to read if you want to understand exactly what happened--to the economy, to the American people, to the country--during Bill Clinton's presidency. It is the first work that cuts through the scandals, the media hype, and the emotional turbulence that Clinton always engendered, to step back and rationally analyze the eight years of his tenure, a period during which America rose to unprecedented levels of prosperity. Joe Klein puts that success into perspective, showing us what succeeded and what didn't, exactly what was accomplished and why, and who was responsible for the successes and the failures. We see how the Clinton White House functioned on the inside, how it dealt with the maneuvers of Congress and the Gingrich revolution, and who held power and made the decisions during the endless crises that beset the administration. Klein's access to the White House over the years as a journalist gave him a prime spot from which to view every crucial event--both political and personal--and he sets them forth in an insightful, readable, and completely engrossing manner. THE NATURAL is stern in its criticism and convincing with its praise. It will cause endless debate among friends and foes of the Clinton administration. It is the book Bill Clinton must read--if he wants to genuinely comprehend what his reign was all about--before he begins to write his memoir.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty fair evaluation from a left-leaning writer
Review: You can tell that Klein is left-leaning the way he describes "New Democrats" as people who at least like the idea of fiscal responsibility. If he were conservative, he would have trashed all of this ideology as so much bull. However, had he done this, the criticisms of Bill Clinton would have come accross as partisan sour grapes. The fact that he was as open to Clinton's presidency as he was makes the criticisms, in my mind, much more meaningful. Klein does give Clinton good marks in several areas. First, his intellect, which allows the man to bring an understanding of many issues to the presidency that few office-holders before him. Certainly more than the current president. Second, no one can complain that the man didn't come to work everyday with his sleaves rolled up, ready to put in long days, also unlike the extended "working vacations" of the current administration. Finally, if he were a stereotypical liberal he would have used the wealth of the 90's to fund a myriad of new federal programs that would have had a tough time sustaining themselves these days. Instead, he did pay off a lot of government's bills, which I find admireable. So much for the good parts. When Klein comes down hard, he comes down really hard, and not just on Willie. Hillary gets her share of venom for totally blowing any chance of her precious health care program by making it far too complicated and not accepting any modifications of it. And whatever dislike he may hold for Clinton, Newt Gingrich is many levels below that for his petty politics and hypocrisy that partially resulted in his own destruction. And then there's the man himself. Klein comes down hard, as he should on several ideosyncracies of the administration. Clinton's sloppiness, in consistantly being late for meetings, and letting meetings about smaller matters go on far too long really slowed down the administration. The fact that he took so long to get his staff together, and then didn't really makeup what he wanted resulted in it taking forever to get things going. To it's credit, the current administration does not seem to have this problem. He also comes down hard on the the appearance of impropriety. From hanging around with sleazy characters because they provided funding, to pardoning sleazy characters because they provided funding, Clinton made people around him understandably associate this sleaziness with the administration. For this, he can't be forgiven. And then there's the way he handled the whole Lewinsky matter. Now the Republicans and the media also should have their share of blame for letting this get to the prominence it did, but the bulk of the responsibility lies on the shoulders of Clinton himself. By insisting for months that nothing happened, he forced his staff to take the same stand publicly. When he finally did admit to the affair, this made all these people around him look like fools. And the way he twisted around what the meanings of the word "sex" and "is" were just cemented what the general populace feels about politicians and lawyers. In general, the theme of the administration seems to be one huge missed opportunity. While I do credit them with not "blowing it" when it came to the good economic times, it was also the time to start getting a better handle on such runaway issues as AIDS, Social Security, and yes, even health care. Unfortunately, 9/11 has lowered the priority of these issues. Clinton's biggest sin was to let general disorganization and the blowup of petty issues prevent him from achieving any decent level of greatness.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Overview of the Clinton Years
Review: This is a very quick read, but it provides a great overview of the accomplishments of President Clinton as well as just how much he squandered through his reckless conduct (e.g., Social Security reform). More imporantly, it also provides a very good portrait of the ugly political climate during which the Clinton drama unfolds. I do not believe this book to be partisan, although the author appears to like his subject. Klein demonstrates that Clinton was a good President who could have been great.
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Summary: A natural at politics and a tendency to self-destruct
Review: Once the sensational aspects of the Monica Lewinsky affair settles into the insignificant area of history, it will be possible to develop a realistic appraisal of the presidency of Bill Clinton. Joe Klein starts this process by developing a brief and reasonable account of the Clinton presidential years. One major accomplishment of Clinton was considered impossible before he took office. Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush passed on the incredible federal deficits that they had run up in their combined twelve years in office. At the beginning of Clinton's first term, no one thought that a surplus would ever again be possible. And yet, before Clinton left, the federal government surplus was into twelve figures. Less than two years after George W. Bush took office the deficit has reappeared, which is further evidence of how significant the surplus was. Klein places this in the proper perspective, as Clinton's program was passed without a single Republican vote. The story of how this was done is a political tale masterfully described by Klein. Other major accomplishments of the Clinton administration also described are significant welfare reform, free trade legislation, and the Earned Income Tax Credit.
The most interesting stories in the book concern the political dance between Clinton and his primary adversary, former speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. As Klein points out, the two men were more alike than either would care to admit, right down to their propensity for extra-marital affairs. Both faced ethical charges, and it is ironic that Clinton survived while Gingrich was forced out, largely due to the efforts of his former allies in his own party. The stories about the activity of political consultant Dick Morris aren't as interesting because they are so seedy. Morris is a man with no scruples, which of course makes him the perfect political consultant for a man like Clinton.
While Klein gives Clinton his credit, he also does not spare the rod regarding his personal behavior. In fact, his recounting of Clinton's personal failures leaves you wondering how he managed to accomplish so much during his presidency. One cannot help but speculate about what he would have done had he not had to cope with so many sideshows, although not all were self-inflicted.
During the Clinton years, I found myself ambivalent about him, which puts me square in the heart of American public opinion. I had a great deal of respect for his accomplishments as president while having a low opinion of him as a person. Reading this book reinforced both areas, my respect for the accomplishments increased while my opinion of his person declined.
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Summary: Concise history of Bill Clinton's presidency
Review: Bill Clinton's presidency was characterised as much by media frenzy as anything else, therefore it is probably appropriate that a journalistic approach to the overall history of his presidency is taken at some stage.
While not a scholarly work, this is a very well written, balanced account of the Clinton years and the major events that shaped his administration. Mr Klein (thankfully) spares us the gory details of Whitewater, the Lewinsky affair and so on and instead presents these scandals in their proper context.
The author makes a convincing case in describing how the landscape of US politics in the 1990's was shaped by trends which began with Watergate. The years of dirt-digging, media hyperbole and inter-party warfare all converged during this period to new levels. In terms of Clinton's own failings, in the author's view the moral self-indulgances which are characteristic of the nation as whole, and which themselves derive from years of prosperity and peace, are epitomised and exemplified by the president.
It's not all doom and gloom however, and Klein presents his case very well in showing the concrete achievements of the Clinton era. There are also great portraits of the other major personalities such as Gore, Gingrich and of course Mrs Clinton.
There may be more exhaustive and analytical accounts of this period to be published and of course it will be some time before Bill Clinton can be placed in his proper historical context, however in the interim this book explains the Clinton years with great insight. Well worth reading.
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