Reply #13: Thanks but no thanks

[SuperSloMo]

The Monica Lewinsky scandal and ensuing impeachment proceedings tarnished Bill Clinton's reputation so much that Al Gore decided to distance himself from Clinton while campaigning for the presidency in 2000, essentially tying one hand behind his back. This led to an election margin so close that hanging chads, gangs of Republican operatives and the presidential preferences of the Supreme Court justices decided the election. If Gore had felt more comfortable drawing on the successes of the Clinton years in his campaign, and if Clinton had campaigned on his behalf, the election margin would likely have been too large for any of that stuff to be relevant.

Maybe by hooking up with Monica, Bill Clinton shot himself in the foot in terms of being able to "fix" social security in a way that it didn't need. His shot also hit Al Gore though, and made possible at least George W. Bush's first term. I'd like to think there were other ways of blocking the social security fix that wouldn't also lead to the White House disaster that we're still trying to figure out how to clean up now.