Regarding the Nov. 18 front-page article "Democrats who once defended Clinton now ask: Were we wrong?":
Now, James Carville, Mr. Clinton’s top campaign adviser for the 1992 race, opined that the “ground has shifted between that time and now” in light of recent reports of widespread sexual harassment and a far more vocal public reaction. And the apologies from some of the harassers are more forthcoming, less swathed in lawyer-directed words — except, of course, in Mr. Trump’s and Alabama Senate candidate Roy Moore’s cases.
Wouldn’t it be refreshing if Mr. Clinton apologized for his smarmy relationship with Monica Lewinsky, albeit belatedly? Perhaps he would set an example for his successors. I question, however, if Mr. Trump could learn from others.
Howard Freedlander, Easton, Md.
Those politicians and commentators who now regret defending then-President Bill Clinton or who wish he had resigned his presidency are looking at the incidents from the time through the wrong filter. The dredging up of his alleged affairs and the Monica Lewinsky scandal had nothing to do with sex, as today's scandals do. It was about power. Republicans wanted to remove Mr. Clinton from office from the moment he was inaugurated.
They created a steady stream of "scandals," from the firing of White House travel office employees to an imbroglio over Hillary Clinton's legal billing records to Vince Foster's unfortunate suicide to the Holy Grail of them all, Whitewater, the land deal on which the Clintons lost money. After spending more than $1 million and conducting dozens of hearings, the Senate Banking Committee found nothing untoward. The special prosecutor who first investigated Mr. Clinton found nothing, but then a three-judge panel gave Kenneth Starr a carte-blanche hunting license.
They finally got their impeachment on the flimsiest of excuses after right-wing interests sent David Brock to Arkansas to dredge up dirt and others betrayed and harassed Ms. Lewinsky. Yes, Mr. Clinton’s sexual behavior was unbecoming, but it was not an impeachable offense. But as they could find nothing else, the Republicans used what they had.
Had Mr. Clinton resigned, he would have given in to that campaign. That’s why he didn’t quit.
Art Brodsky, Olney
