Rating: 
Summary: Right Wing Conspiracy is far worse than we knew.
Review: Prepare for a riveting read. I followed the Clinton wars while they were happening and was incensed the entire time. The impeachment was infuriating and an abomination on this country's history. Sidney Blumenthal's first-hand inside view of what was happening day by day and the complicity of the news media (example: ABC's rightwing producer Chris Vlasto and his mouthpiece Susan Schmidt) will make every reader very frightened for this country. A Cataline conspiracy indeed!
Ken Starr and his fanatical minions at the OIC, Linda Tripp, Lucinanne Goldberg, Richard Mellon Scaife, Ted Olsen, Judges Sentelle and Silberman, Tom Delay, the despicable members of the House Judiciary Committee on Impeachment, the compliant media members and all those too numerous to name here will go down in history as evil schemers.
Anyone critical of President Bush is labeled unpatriotic. The conservatives players who tried to remove President Clinton should have been held in well deserved scorn and put on trial for treason. Sidney Blumenthal has written an excellent historical account of the treachery of the conservatives and their demonic plot to subvert the constitution.
It is time for liberals to fight the right wingers with as much venom as they dish out. It's never too late.
Rating: 
Summary: A President Under Siege
Review: I came to Sidney Blumenthal's "The Clinton Wars" hoping that the book would shed some light upon why so many people hated -- and still hate -- the 42nd president with such passion and venom. Given that Bill Clinton's administration produced great prosperity, given that he himself was obviously a hard worker and inspiring speaker, and given that the intial accusations against him were so dubious, why do so many people despise him and assume the worst about him? Regrettably, "The Clinton Wars" doesn't look very deeply into that question. Blumenthal matter-of-factly explains it as people who dislike the 1960s counterculture focusing their hostility upon a (wrongly) perceived representative of that movement, a political interloper that they never recognized as legitimate. Not a wholly satisfying answer. As a liberal Democrat and Clinton supporter, I liked reading "The Clinton Wars" because it affirmed many things that I believe: Whitewater was a fraud; Kenneth Starr was politically motivated from the get-go to remove Clinton from office; Clinton was a capable commander-in-chief; George W. Bush stole the 2000 presidential election, etc. Furthermore, without explicitly saying so, this book implies something even more disturbing: Starr's legal harassment of Clinton drained the anti-terrorism activities of the FBI and State Department and enabled Osama bin Laden to carry out the horrifying events of September 11, 2001. But at the same time, I could tell that I was in the company of a starry-eyed Clinton admirer whose biases might cloud his retelling of events. Usually, when a conservative reads "facts" that support his/her beliefs, he/she accepts them at face value but takes less comforting "facts" with a grain of salt. It's the same with us liberals: Data that back up my beliefs are to be believed; those that don't are not. But despite my eagerness to accept Blumenthal's account as completely veracious, I decided to surf the 'Net for opposing viewpoints. The negative reviews at Amazon.com are largely dismissive, petulant ad hominem attacks on Blumenthal and repeat some accusations that he already addressed in his book -- not very helpful. Michael Isikoff's critical review of "The Clinton Wars" is itself criticized by Slate.com. In an on-line essay, conservative activist David Horowitz defends his organization against Blumenthal's characterization of it as a "front" organization for Richard Mellon Scaife. He also decries Blumenthal's "vindictive tort against Matt Drudge" as an assault on the First Amendment. But -- tellingly -- Horowitz doesn't mention the incident that provoked the lawsuit in the first place: Without evidence, Drudge on his widely read Web site accused Blumenthal of beating his wife. It's hard for me to see how responding to such a scurrilous, inflammatory accusation via the legal system endangers free speech, and Horowitz's omission of this inciting incident makes me question his own veracity. On the whole, "The Clinton Wars" is engaging as an affirmation of Clinton's strengths and an indictment of the Starr witch hunt. On the down side, it's too uncritical of Clinton's moral lapses and his voracious fund raising. Blumenthal forgives Clinton during the Monica Lewinsky scandal for "being human." But one wishes that the author would admonish Clinton about how appallingly *stupid* is was for him to have conducted himself in such a capricious way when an over-reaching prosecutor was trying to dig up dirt on him. Some may split hairs with Blumenthal on certain particulars of his account about the Starr investigation. But nothing that anyone has said about "The Clinton Wars" has shaken this conviction of mine: Starr's investigation of Clinton was utterly unnecessary, politically vindictive, and a waste of this country's valuable resources. And in their rush to be the next Woodward and Bernstein, the press became willing dupes of Starr's illegal leaks. Democrats abided Republicans in the White House for the 12 years of Reagan/Bush, granting them at least minimal respect as leaders of the country, but Republicans could not show Clinton the same courtesy. It had to be presumed that he was guilty of unspeakable acts. He had to be driven from office by hook or by crook. Republicans still condemn Clinton for "lying under oath," but the fact that he was entrapped to do so by a hostile, politically motivated ideologue using police-state tactics seems unimportant to them. Clinton's personal behavior in office was deplorable; Starr's official behavior was frightening. And I'm still astounded that so many self-proclaimed conservatives can't see that.
Rating:
Summary: Thoroughly Researched, Brilliantly Written.
Review: Mr. Blumenthal's book, which is partially a first-hand account and partially a grand history of American politics from the inception of the Republic is absolutely wonderful reading. Many right-wing media outlets have tried to smear Mr. Blumenthal and his terrific book, but by doing so they only prove his point, that the Right and its media allies went much too far in their irrational quest to destroy Bill Clinton's presidency, and continue to trespass upon the bounds of objectivity, truth, and rationality. Inside this book you will find abosolutely riveting details about the desperation with which the Republicans worked to destroy the Clintons--details that the corporate media has never bothered to report. I thought I lived throught the 1990s as an informed, educated citizen, but after reading this book, I can say with certainty that I really knew nothing, for wool had been pulled over my eyes by the media.
Rating:
Summary: A long book -- but even so, it's a quick, enjoyable read.
Review: Hillary has an easy, inviting writing style that is a pleasure to read. It is rewarding to have this inside view of events that were part of our lives, too. She truly was Living History, and I thank her for sharing her experiences with us. I came away from this book with more positive feelings toward Hillary, and a more negative view of those who put our country through the trauma of an impeachment. It wasted the time and energies of the many people who were supposed to be attending to the business of running the country and creating legislation.
Rating:
Summary: The Other Side, At Last!
Review: Hitherto most of the books about the Clinton Presidency have been produced by its enemies. They have been characterized by a high degree of bigotry, hypocrisy, deceit, and in some cases raving paranoia. Now in The Clinton Wars Sidney Blumenthal has rescued the record of the Clinton Administration from the slathering jaws of the Radical Right (which has now swallowed most of the Republican Party)and given us the true story of a President and his Administration which, while far from perfect, had the strange idea that they were elected to govern the country in the interests of all of its people, not just those of a supercilious elite. Blumenthal concentrates on the second Clinton term. He does not shy away from the Lewinsky scandal, but covers it fully and in the context of the numerous other investigations with which the President's enemies sought to destroy him. Blumenthal rightly points out that the President was his own worst enemy when he lied about his affair in the first place. This deception by a President who was undoubtedly one of the most talented men to hold the office still rankles with me and with many of his other supporters, and I hope that eventually Clinton will explain his actions more fully in his own memoirs. However wrong Clinton was in seeking to conceal this affair, it does not excuse the overweening arrogance and smug hypocrisy with which Kenneth Starr and his henchmen in the Congress sought to make political hay out of a consensual affair between adults. Blumenthal sets out the full story of the shameless impeachment proceedings and reminds us of just how imperfect these self appointed guardians of the public virtue were themselves. Blumenthal ends his book with a description of what he aptly calls the last of the Clinton Wars, the oily machinations by which the Republicans seized control of the White House after the 2000 election. This, above all other reasons, is why this book is so important. It is a guide and a warning for all who oppose the extreme Radical Right agenda now being pursued by the Bush team. Even if we succeed in throwing the Bushies out of Al Gore's house on January 20, 2005 we will still be locked in battle with a well funded and amoral foe. The Clinton Wars will be a useful reference for years to come.
Rating: 
Summary: He Said / She Said
Review: I purchased this book with the hope it would be an interesting and detailed study of the inner workings of the White House in formulating policy. I was also hoping to learn more about Mr. Blumenthal, who he is and how he had become an adviser to the President. These most interesting topics were largely relegated to one chapter. The bulk of the book simply rehashed every bad thing a conservative writer, pundit, operative or politician had said about Mr. Clinton. The clincher was the Chapter on how George W. Bush stole the election. Coming from a very independent minded largely apolitical person this book wound it self up with a hugh negative in that regard. An upside to this book is that it is well written and definitely expanded my vocabulary.
Rating: 
Summary: Life in a Parallel Universe
Review: One of the most striking characteristics of the Clinton administration was the degree to which it attempted to shift the blame for its failings on to previous administrations. No president in my memory did this in the way Clinton did. The current President Bush certainly could have placed a lot of blame on CLinton for his foreign policy inaction- and didn't. Another classic Clinton characteristic was how it tried to vilify any and all opponants. In both cases, the man most responsible for presenting and formulating the attacks was Sidney Blumenthal. There were no traditional political differences or opposing dissenters for the Clintons; instead there was only a "vast right-wing conspiracy", which Blumenthal spent much of his time defining and attacking. Would that the administration had spent half as much time seeking out al-Queda. When a few women spoke up to complain of sexual harassment from the President, it was again Sidney Blumenthal who was brought out to vilify and insult them and characterize them as "trailer park tramps". It is not surprising that Sidney Blumenthal is still inventing conspiracies and misrepresenting historical fact in service of his ex-employers. He states that Hillary Clinton was found inocent of having anything to do with the infamous "Travelgate" affair when in fact a court stated that it appeared she was the chief instrigator. He states that the Clintons were found "innocent" of any and all wrongdoing in their famous real estate dealings, when this was not the case. And he even denies a fact on the public record- that Bill Clinton was found guilty of lying under oath by a federal court. This is a book that will greatly please those who are less interested in facts than in having their personal predjudices stroked. And who better to deliver this message than Sidney Blumenthal.
Rating:
Summary: Sidney Blumenthal lays it all out
Review: There's a reason why, as Sean Wilentz notes, the professional historians praise this book while the journalists trash it: Because it (like the fine Conason-Lyons book The Hunting of the President) shows how the US corporate media, both knowingly and unknowingly, was made to do the bidding of Bill Clinton's political enemies. Information that favored the Clintons was buried; spurious tales that damaged them were given uncritical 24/7 coverage. Blumenthal explains, again and again, in irrefutable detail, how this happened. Yet he does so calmly, politely, like the fine attorney he is. This book is essential, both to understand what happened to the Clintons and how the Republican National Committee took over the American corporate media to use it for their own gain and the nation's loss.
Rating:
Summary: BE CAREFUL - TITLE CAN BE CONFUSING
Review: This 800 page tome is yet another rehash of the many difficulties the clintons faced while trying to do great and wonderful things for the nation. Blumenthal proves in this scholarly epistle that everyone including Boopus the Clown had a hand in sabotaging the saintly clintons. He also offers excellent reasons why the clintons should never be held to account for their unseemly actions and behavior. Unfortunately, even the entertaining Boopus cannot save this effort. It is too long and is riddled with minutae which could put even hard core insomniacs to sleep. To that end I suppose it does have some merit. Practical readers might also consider using this as an indestructible doorstop. Besides that I had read a couple hundred pages before I realized I'd purchased the wrong book! I misread the title, thinking this to be not about the clinton wars, but about the clinton "girlfriends" and Hillary's constant attempts to foil bubba's fun. What a letdown! Not my cup of tea, but a definite winner for liberal democrats who continue to wallow in the clintons' sad "legacy."
Rating:
Summary: Clinton from his side
Review: A contrast to the far right literature and nature of coverage of the Clinton administration. Essential to a complete understanding of the history of that period in time.
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