The Aldrich Alert Gary Aldrich
A Publication of the Patrick Henry Center for Individual Liberty

Lovable Rogue or Sociopath Criminal?

June 23, 2002

by Gary Aldrich - Volume 2, Issue 33

This article appeared on TownHall.com on Wednesday, June 19, 2002.

Even though our country is engaged in a war that will eventually allow us sleep without the fear of waking to another 9-11, the mainstream media finds time to celebrate the downfall of Richard M. Nixon. “Watergate” happened 30 years ago, but it still causes Loony Left hearts to flutter!

Ironically, during the anniversary remembrance of this infamous ordeal, an important “puzzle-piece” of the Clinton administration was firmly set in place during the very same week. But, the mainstream media found nothing remarkable about a Government Accounting Office report that concluded the Clinton administration was peppered with slobs, vandals, thieves, and crude-acting poor sports who refused to graciously concede victory to President George W. Bush.

In my opinion, two better examples of how difficult it is to obtain and report “truth” in Washington, D.C. do not exist. In the case of Nixon, while it is true that he engaged in conduct that would be considered abusive and reprehensible when judged against the backdrop of the high office he held, from all indications, Nixon was a family man who was faithful and attentive to his family. There are no bimbos to talk about when Nixon’s name comes up.

Moreover, nobody could ever say that Nixon’s administration was bent on a systematic destruction of national security protections, not only in the White House, but in the entire Executive Branch. Looking back on the Nixon White House, one could only conclude that national security was a cornerstone of Nixon’s overall policy. Even so, Nixon’s foreign policy included opening trade and diplomatic doors with Communist China – no small accomplishment.

Critics of Nixon, and of Republicans in general, cannot point a finger at either of them relative to the war in Vietnam. Jack Kennedy got us into it, and Lyndon Johnson committed hundreds of thousands of our boys to fight there. When it was all over, more than 58,000 died in Vietnam, and those soldiers who did come home alive were treated with scorn by citizens who had been led to believe it was an unjust effort.

Nixon’s ending of the war and the controversial draft began the healing, but for that, he gets no real credit.

There are many more accomplishments that Nixon fans can claim, but the point is, he is not as bad as the mainstream media would like you to believe. Yes, there was a third-rate burglary at the Watergate Hotel by clumsy political operatives, and yes, there was an even clumsier attempt to cover it up. Nixon’s men had made a colossal mess, but the error was compounded when he tried to cover up their stupidity.

Recall that as a nation, we were shocked to hear a president use such locker room banter. Some even claim that Nixon’s swearing did as much to hasten his departure than the actual burglary and cover-up. When Americans heard those tapes, they were convinced at last that Nixon was a man of low moral character, and those who had defended him against a relentless drive by the mainstream media to oust him, finally threw in the towel. Consider what you might hear if Bill Clinton had taped all of his activities in the Oval Office. When reporters from the Washington Post discovered “Watergate” they were celebrated as finders of truth. It was about character and sleaze, they said. Their information showed that Nixon was punishing his political enemies, they lectured. It was so very important that Nixon be targeted for impeachment, they intoned. And, since it appeared that a democratically controlled House and Senate would do just that – with public disapproval of Nixon fanned by a scolding, judgmental media, Nixon finally resigned.

Nixon had been swept into a second term victory by a landslide, but the erosion of public support caused by the laser beam intensity of a ferocious mainstream media was more than anybody could withstand. So, Nixon left office. His resignation has given the Loony Left the “boogie man” they can trot out each year to amplify grievances they have with the “Right.”

Since the Loony Left owns most of the microphones, cameras and newspapers, there isn’t much that can be done about this. But there are a few things we can do.

For example, when we catch the mainstream media in lies and half-truths, our side could call them on it. There are but a few organizations – Media Research Center and Accuracy In Media – who document these lies well. The trouble is, our guys don’t take advantage of them!

This may sound self-serving, and if it is, I apologize, but the GAO report was, in essence, an exoneration of the claims in my book, Unlimited Access. When my book was introduced, most of the attacks against me were in the areas of conduct. Condoms on a Christmas Tree? Preposterous! Sloppy, arrogant, thieving Clinton staff members grossly unappreciative of and irreverent towards the environment in which they were privileged to work? Unbelievable lies made up by a former FBI Agent in league with the forces of “big tobacco!”

The cacophony created by the mainstream media was used to discredit both me and my book, and caused long lasting damage to my reputation. No matter how much of my book has been proven to be truthful – and I contend the percentage is somewhere near 99% and counting – the Washington Post still treats me like I’m some kind of crank.

There are no invitations to appear on CBS, a network that has treated me with hostility from day one, and invitations to share what I know about the dysfunctional Clinton White House, or even the beleaguered FBI, are rare from any in the so-called “mainstream” media. They will never allow me to rehabilitate my credibility and reputation with their audiences because if they did that, they would hurt the Loony Left, and they would have to admit that they were wrong.

It might be helpful to me, and to those who will come after me, if some on our side would point out my case once in a while to their counterparts on the other side of the aisle.

As long as conservatives allow the Loony Left to get away with spreading lies and half-truths about those who come forward to tell the truth, we will have fewer individuals willing to take that risk. Compare Nixon and Clinton, then decide for yourself if one or both were “lovable rogues” or “criminal sociopaths.” In a “contest” between Nixon and Clinton for the most corrupt and twisted, the winner has to be Clinton, hands down! But not if you ask the mainstream media. Then you get a different answer.