The Rule of Law in the Wake of Clinton

Bys: Pilon, Roger and Cato Institute Staff

Now that the Clinton Presidency has drawn to a close, political analysts and historians will study his administration and policies for some time to determine what his legacy will be.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1930865031
• ISBN13: 9781930865037
• Release Date: March 2001
• Publisher: Cato Institute
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.6" x 6.1"

Customer Reviews

An introduction to the real Clinton scandals

This book is a collection of essays drawn from a conference in July 2000 held by the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank in Washington, D.C. Needless to say, the contributors have a pretty low opinion of the accomplishments of the Clinton Administration in regards to the rule of law, civil liberties and the Bill of Rights. Each chapter serves as a good introduction to the various assaults by Clinton on privacy, free speech, gun rights, and so on. As a primer, the book succeeds. It was nauseating to read of Clinton relentlessly championing unlimited government and the rule of man over the individual, freedom and common sense. Unfortunately, no chapter is able to go into depth on any of the subjects so one will have to go elsewhere for an in-depth expose on any of Clinton's appalling attacks on freedom that occurred regularly throughout his reign as head of Leviathan.Of interest is the fact that a couple of the essays are written by people currently in the Bush Administration, including Ted Olson (currently Solicitor General) and Bill Pryor (appellate court nominee). Only time will tell if they were sincere in their respect for the rule of law, after they held the reigns of power.Hopefully (and sadly) this will be the first of many such books, each one examining the latest administration?s attack on the Constitution. It certainly looks like the current administration is off to a rousing start with the USA PATRIOT Act.

Good Analysis of What Clinton Did and Why It's Bad

Given the stellar legal backgrounds of its contributors, I purchased this book expecting it to be more about the assault on the rule of law that has taken place over the last thirty years than about specific misdeeds of the Clinton Administration. To my surprise, these essayists do an exceptional job of addressing both issues.As Pilon states in the introduction, the book explores the legal assault taking place on the ideas of limited government and individual rights. He explains that leaders can violate their Constitutional authority either by pursuing a legitimate end that is unconstitutional or by violating people's rights. He then introduces the thesis of the book-that members of Clinton's Administration worked to expand Presidential or congressional authority while oftentimes receiving only token opposition from many Congressional Republicans or members of the Supreme Court.Some of the authors focus on steps taken by Clinton's staff to encroach upon congressional regulatory initiatives. For example, in his essay on "legislating via executive order," Douglas Kmiec points out that although Clinton did not break the record for most executive orders issued, he frequently refused to cite statutory authority for his actions. Kmiec explains that the Supreme Court has traditionally been willing to review questionable orders and that Clinton has, at times, done everything he could to find ways to reenact initiatives that were struck down.James Wootton offers a similar analysis of the Justice Department's support of "regulation by litigation." Specifically, he focuses on how the department worked to impose liability on selected industries by weakening traditional legal rights over time. He concludes by pointing out that even Robert Reich eventually felt compelled to express his distaste for Justice's efforts to circumvent the democratic process.The highlight of the book is clearly Senator Fred Thompson's discussion of how the inability of our political institutions to hold Clinton accountable for his role in the fundraising scandal of 1996 was so severe that it led many Constitutional scholars to question the efficacy of our legal system. He does an excellent job of explaining how the failure to apply the law to the highest-ranking officials in our nation has contributed to the cynicism people feel toward the democratic process. However, he concludes by offering a beacon of hope: "Perhaps it is true that we have begun to rely too much on the courts and legal processes to resolve matters that are best left to the political process, because that is where such issues are ultimately resolved in a democratic society. As frustrating and disheartening as it is to see a breakdown in the rule of law, we know that in the end the American people will have the final say. And we will always have the kind of government and rule of law that we deserve."Pilon's collection contains stellar analyses of ongoing efforts to undermine the rule of law as well as abuses by Cl