Taking the Ship Down?

. Whitewater impugns the image of another President.

Rarely has a scandal been more appropriately named. What started as a trickle of rumors and allegations has grown into a raging entity that is devouring jobs, reputations, and possibly a presidency. The resignation of White House Counsel Bernie Nussbaum should indicate to all just how serious the Whitewater affair has become.

Not surprisingly, the media and the Washington crowd are in a tizzy over this latest eruption. And lying just below the surface seriousness and propriety with which the scandal is discussed is a certain excitement. The media is thrilled about all the controversy--it makes great copy--and conservatives and Clinton-haters are almost gleeful at the chance to show the world just what an evil man the president is. Having a chief executive on the ropes is becoming sport.

Those who rejoice in the skewering of a president are really only displaying their own myopia. Presidential scandals of this type are deadly to the credibility of the office. One needs only to look at the cynicism with which the public views public servants after Watergate to realize the impact these scandals have. Even if people aren't clear on the facts of the case--as only a very few are--the knowledge that the nation's leader was involved in something improper has its effect.

Glee at the troubles of a president is inappropriate and misguided, but there should be no doubt that the real responsibility for salvaging the public trust lies with the Clintons themselves.

The facts of the case are complex, but the central allegation is clear: that the Clintons used an Arkansas savings and loan as their own personal slush fund, and then interfered with federal regulators investigating the operation.

If true, the allegations add to the general impression of Clinton as a slippery politician who has trouble telling the truth.

We may soon know what many of us have long suspected: that there's some grime below the shiny surface of Clinton's public persona.

Yet this country has had numerous presidents with checkered pasts, men who had committed indiscretions before assuming the presidency. Many of these faults were far more serious than those Clinton is charged with. Some of these tainted leaders became good presidents, some didn't.

It would be sad to know that we have failed yet again to find a leader of high ethical standards and a strong record of honesty, but the shady dealings in Arkansas hardly doom Clinton's presidency.

What would likely doom his presidency is any abuse of Clinton's presidential power in order to hide his past mistakes. And unfortunately, that appears to be happening.

The revelations that members of the Resolution Trust Company gave administration officials a warning about pending investigations it, if not illegal, certainly unethical. There are also serious questions about the removal of documents from ex-White House Counsel Vincent Foster's office, after his death.

Overcoming the temptation to further use the power of the office to avoid embarrassment may require a change of character on Clinton's part. His habits of equivocation and obfuscation will have to disappear, and fast.

The presidency is bigger than Bill Clinton, but he has the power to take it down a notch in an attempt to save himself. For the good of the country, let's hope he decides not to take the ship down with him.

David L. Bosco's column appears on alternate Wednesdays.