The Hunting of the President

Rating:
Summary: Needs to be seen
Review: This is a DVD based, ultimately, on the book of the same title. The reason I cannot give this film five stars is that a film is NEVER as good as the book. If nothing else, there are no footnotes, and critics can easily say that much in the film is false.

That aside, I was pretty impressed with this (though recommend the book for those who have the time to read it. It's available from Amazon.com--read it!) As indicated in the book, the hunt for Bill and Hillary Clinton started before Bill decided to run for president. There were PIs and others of dubious merit trying to pry a buck or two out of allegations of Clinton's sexual indiscretions. They came up with Paula Jones. Then Falwell released a film suggesting Clinton's collaboration in everything short of the Kennedy Assassination and the Reichstag fire. From there, downhill, if you can believe it.

Ken Starr's blatantly partisan motives were so transparent from the beginning; the name Richard Mellon Scaife, who funds many of the right wing "movements" came up, like it did in the book, several times.

Then there was Whitewater. Starr brought down the house on an ill-advised real estate deal in which Clintons lost money and broke no laws--as even Starr had to concede. In the meantime, they found a young woman by the name of Monica.

As I indicated some time ago in my review of the book, I wonder what Clinton may have been able to accomplish had he not been hunted down ruthlessly through his term. And I still think Starr and his associates should be tried for an insidious sedition, trying to disrupt the work of an elected government when the only questionable activity he could find after a couple hundred million tax-paid dollars worth of harrassment was a minor sexual offense. And that was NOT a threat to national security.

One of the film's hilights was the case against Susan McDougal. In their pursuit of something to hang Clinton for, the Starr bunch offered her a deal to free herself of potential jail time, a "proffer" as the screen defined. Her husband had lost everything in the Whitewater deal, dreaded the prospect of dying in prison, and encouraged her to take the deal. She refused and spent a couple of years in prison. (For that alone, the prosecutors should be disbarred and imprisoned for a long, long time!) She's a real heroine to me; she could have taken the easier way out. But, as one of her lawyers advised her, "Susan, if you lie now, you'll be lying for the rest of your life." Like those who jailed her...

There was a fair amount of honesty in the film too, by the way. Many of Clinton's aides indicated how furious they were with him for that sexual activity.

Another highlight of the film is that the "mainstream" media fueled the investigation! Some interviewed during the film said they'd go to their editors after the reporter had nothing to report. The editors accused them of being Clintonphiles and dismissed the nothing they found! So much for the "left wing" media of which the right incessantly pouts.

As to film structure, I have one concrete criticism: The director tried to pull a Michael Moore. He slipped in ostensibly comical clips from old films relevant to what was going on in the narrative. But, frankly, Moore is much more talented at that, at the choice of clips and the timing. In fact, in this film, they were a little distracting, and I regret that.

Oh, and this is one film in which it's important to pay attention to the credits at the end. Among those listed are the many "mainstream" reporters who wouldn't be interviewed for the film. One name, from a prominent news weekly, stands out to me because of his comments on a recent Michael Moore film. Critics of THAT critic have accused him of being an apologist for anything Reagan or the Bushes have ever done. Interesting that he refused to be interviewed for this film. And there were several others.

An additional highlight of this film is a speech by Clinton after the film's release. As usual, he didn't free himself from responsbility for the activity with Monica. On the contrary, he admitted to it. And he acknowledged that what the prosecutors had done to McDougal was "abuse of power," something for which new laws must be devised to eliminate! He was more confident than I, frankly, in his appraisal that things DO get better despite right wing slander campaigns, and he gave a number of historical examples.

Overall I recommend the film despite its weaknesses. Many don't read, or don't have the time to do so. This will at least open the door to some questions we all should have on the events of the last decade and more.

And, again, my kudos to Susan McDougal. May we all exercise such integrity.

Rating:
Summary: wow i didnt know some of this stuff
Review: Well,after watching this DVD, I found that I didn't really know a lot about whitewater. I thought it was really interesting to watch no matter what your party affiliation is. A lot of great interviews, including Paul Begala and Susan McDougal. A very good explanation of whitewater, especially if you have little or no knowledge of the scandal like myself. In addition to whitewater, they also give some sex scandal stuff. Talks a bit about Paula Jones in the beginning and later leads into Monica Lewinsky. No actual interview with President Clinton, but there is a special feature on the disc where you can watch President Clinton's reaction and his speech from the premiere. He speaks for a while about the key players involved and gives his thoughts.

Rating:
Summary: Bill Clinton is Nixon without the CLASS
Review: You have got to be kidding me -- this is the real theory of this propaganda film:

the Republicans forced Bill Clinton into the Whitewater scandal (where 10+ crooks and a sitting Governor were convicted) and the Paula Jones scandal (Clinton fined for lying under oath in a sexual harassment case), and the Travel Office Scandal (innocent non-partisan White House staffers dragged through the courts by Hillary Clinton), and the Kathleen Wiley scandal and the Monica Lewinsky scandal...and on and on and on.

What a joke. This type of mock-u-mentary makes Michael Moore look intelligent.

I guess the Republicans are to blame for Bill Clinton committing PERJURY before a federal criminal grand jury and obstructing justice too?

Bill Clinton was a target of attack just as much as Richard Nixon was a target of the Democrats even before Watergate. The only difference being that the media and Clinton's slick followers want to rewrite history for him at the expense of the truth.

Bill Clinton is the only person responsible for his criminal behavior while in office - not the Republicans. As Nixon once wrote "I screwed up...I gave my enemies the sword and they twisted it in." The Republicans probably relished Clinton's downfall as much as the Democrats did Nixon's. That doesn't make the Democrats responsible for Watergate any more than the Republicans are responsible for the numerous Clinton scandals.

At least Nixon had the guts to admit his mistakes and take the punishment. Clinton never accepted blame and never received punishment for his acts in the White House. He and his followers have no shame and no class, and history will remember the facts.