Why Our President Has To Leave :: essays research papers

This is an essay about why I think Bill Clinton should resign, and also why I think he won't. You see, Bill Clinton is a man without morals. Well, actually that's not quite true. He does appear to have morals; he just sacrifices them to expediency whenever the opportunity arises. If absolute selflessness with respect to one's values were a virtue, Bill Clinton would be the most virtuous president the United States has ever had. Fortunately, most people do not hold this view of morality or ethics (I hope!). The majority of people still seem to hold integrity in some esteem. If they do, and I am right about Clinton's complete lack of principles, then hopefully this short essay will find a few receptive minds. Firstly, let me review the evidence for my contention that Clinton should resign or be impeached. Now, to like-minded people, that must sound like an almost interminable proposition. Don't worry though, I will limit it to just the "bare" facts of the Lewinsky affair. 1. Bill Clinton had sex with an intern in the White House. 2. He lied under oath in a deposition to a grand jury. 3. He lied to the American people. 4. He attempted to cover up his illicit affair, and obstruct an investigation. Do these offences merit his impeachment or resignation? The primary defense of his actions has been the argument that what he does in his private life does not affect the fulfillment of his public duties as President. It's not hard to knock this contention on the head. Clinton is a public employee. Consider what would happen to any employee caught having sex with one of his staff in his office, during work hours. You'd get very short odds on whether he'd last the rest of the day. Being President of the United States of America is probably the most important job in the world. It carries enormous power, influence and prestige. It consequently necessitates a commensurate level of responsibility and gravity. And here we have a President conducting a year long affair with an intern less than half his age. Yes, the President is entitled to have a private life. But, no President is entitled to put his private life ahead of the interests of the nation. And Bill Clinton was clearly more interested in attending to Miss Lewinsky than to the affairs of the nation. So, whether or not you think Presidents are elected to show moral as well as political leadership, one cannot escape the fact that Clinton subjugated his public responsibilities to his private interests.