Clinton's Apology ... again
December 11, 1998
As anyone close to me knows, for months
I have been grappling with how best to
reconcile myself to the American people,
to acknowledge my own wrongdoing and
still to maintain my focus on the work of
the presidency.
Others are presenting my defense on the
facts, the law, and the Constitution.
Nothing I can say now can add to that.
What I want the American people to
know, what I want the Congress to know
is that I am profoundly sorry for all I have
done wrong in words and deeds. I never
should have misled the country, the
Congress, my friends or my family. Quite
simply, I gave into my shame.
I have been condemned by my accusers
with harsh words. And while it's hard to
hear yourself called deceitful and
manipulative, I remember Ben Franklin's
admonition that our critics are our friends,
for they do show us our faults.
Mere words cannot fully express the
profound remorse I feel for what our
country is going through, and for what
members of both parties in Congress are
now forced to deal with.
These past months have been a tortuous
process of coming to terms with what I
did. I understand that accountability
demands consequences, and I'm
prepared to accept them. Painful though
the condemnation of the Congress would
be, it would pale in comparison to the
consequences of the pain I have caused
my family. There is no greater agony.
Like anyone who honestly faces the
shame of wrongful conduct, I would give
anything to go back and undo what I did.
But one of the painful truths I have to live
with is the reality that that is simply not
possible. An old and dear friend of mine
recently sent me the wisdom of a poet,
who wrote, "The moving finger writes,
and having writ moves on. Nor all your
piety, nor wit shall lure it back to cancel
half a line. Nor all your tears wash out a
word of it."
So nothing -- not piety, nor tears, nor wit,
nor torment -- can hspace=10 vspace=5 align=left ALTer what I have done. I
must make my peace with that. I must
also be at peace with the fact that the
public consequences of my actions are in
the hands of the American people and
their representatives in the Congress.
Should they determine that my errors of
word and deed require their rebuke and
censure, I am ready to accept that.
Meanwhile, I will continue to do all I can to
reclaim the trust of the American people
and to serve them well. We must all return
to the work, the vital work, of
strengthening our nation for the new
century. Our country has wonderful
opportunities and daunting challenges
ahead. I intend to seize those
opportunities and meet those challenges
with all the energy and ability, and
strength God has given me.
That is simply all I can do -- the work of
the American people.
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