Atonement and...Bill and Hillary Clinton

NOTE:  I had first posted this on Oct. 2, 2007, when I was a declared candidate for the US presidency. Even though I lost that race (obviously), even today I find elements of the following essay to be worthy of note. Enjoy!

My thesis for today:

Bill Clinton should have resigned from the U.S. presidency after being acquitted by the Senate. In fact, not doing so constituted a major sin on the part of the former president. Why? By remaining in office, he severely compromised Al Gore's chances of winning. As a consequence, Bill Clinton is personally responsible for giving us George W. Bush and, therefore, the War in Iraq.

Now hold on thar!

Some of you might recoil in horror after reading my last paragraph. Bill Clinton's presidency was well-regarded by many Americans - and not just the Democrats among them. As wikipedia puts it: "Clinton presided over the longest period of peace-time economic expansion in American history, which included a balanced budget and a federal surplus." That and his ratings in post-presidency polls seem to speak well of the man.

However, I'm dead serious.

Suppose Bill Clinton had resigned after he had been exonerated (hmm...can't say that's exactly the right word) by the Senate. He could have worn the mantle of altruism by saying: "Even though the Senate's vote allows me to keep my office, after careful consideration, I realize that I cannot in good conscience remain as your president, having sullied that office and reduced its effectiveness (in my hands) by means of my thoughtless conduct."

How many people do you know who would be so selfless? The Senate vote allowed Clinton to keep his office. He didn't have to resign, so he didn't. Nothing could have forced him out. Therefore, many of his detractors would have held him in higher esteem by virtue of doing something so noble.

I maintain that a Clinton resignation would have assured an Al Gore victory over that cipher Dubya. Especially since Al Gore would have had some time in office as Chief Executive to ingratiate himself into our good graces.

It is not enough to say "I'm sorry"

I know Bill Clinton apologized to the nation for his conduct. However, in my view, an apology must consist of more than just the words "I'm sorry." In my Zaadz posts [Zaadz is now defunct], I have spoken of the dire necessity that wrongdoers seek atonement for their sins.

Bill wanted to say "I'm sorry," put this behind him, and then move on. That's not good enough, but it seems to be what the powerful among us prefer. They just love moving on.

Years have passed since Bill Clinton had passed up the perfect opportunity to atone (by resigning). I have a feeling that even he realizes this on some unspoken level.  But to Bill Clinton, I say, "It's not enough to write a book encouraging others to give*, after you've taken so much. Not even your pledge to donate an unspecified portion of this book's profits will be enough to buy your way into heaven. And, really, isn't that exactly what you're trying to do?"

* [Bill Clinton's book is entitled: Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World.]

Failure to Atone

It is said that victors write history books. It's also said: the public memory is short. I will cite the position of the Germans to make a point that applies well enough to the Americans. My warning to the Germans: they should not ever allow themselves to become lulled by their prosperity and the ever-increasing time since WWII ended. They have got to try a lot harder to atone for their genocidal sins. Their current efforts are not good enough, and I will not hesitate to say so.

It's too easy to look at our current comfort level in the United States, while becoming increasingly satisfied with paltry levels of charitable donation. While choosing to remain ignorant of how profound is our footprint on the backs of the powerless of the world. [Out of sight, out of mind, yes?]

The failure to atone will lead to our downfall. And when the fall happens, everyone will ask, "What happened and how?" That's the funny thing about karmic retribution. The web of cause and effect is intricate and the precise form which retribution takes cannot be seen without the Buddha eye. But even without the Buddha eye, this is easy to appreciate: Those who don't exert profound efforts to atone will not mitigate their comeuppance in the least.

Certainly not, Bill Clinton, by writing a book which you delude yourself into thinking will save the world (while hoping everyone will have "moved on and forgotten all that" and think you're such a good fellow).

What about Hillary?

Will the karmic sins of Bill Clinton taint Hillary Clinton? Should they?

The direct answer to both questions is: "yes, without a doubt, inevitably." I will use myself as an example to convey my meaning here. Even though I'm not a typical American by any stretch, I was born here and I have benefited from this system. My karma caused me to be born here, though some Buddhists would argue that I chose to be born here because of my ancient vow to effect profound change. Attempting to fulfill that vow could be construed as the most profound way to expiate my trillions of years of accrued negative karma.

There are a lot of ways to regard why I am here and what that means. But the fact is: I am here, I benefit from this system (with its numerous corruptions) on a daily basis, so why should I be spared from any blowback I might happen to suffer during my life here as an American citizen [UPDATE: I am no longer an American citizen – I renounced that]? The answer is, I shouldn't be spared. Nor do I expect to be spared. In fact, I welcome whatever will come my way. After all, didn't the Buddha teach equanimity?

Bill and Hillary have "shared karma."  She benefits quite handsomely from Bill's networks of connections and donors. Without them (without being Mrs. Bill Clinton), she'd have no more right to expect the Democratic presidential nomination than would any other woman of similar accomplishments. Those are the plusses. However, her karmic connection to Bill Clinton (not to mention, being strongly connected to him in the public mind) is a well-spring of minuses.

The Buddhist Factor

I do not believe that Hillary Clinton will become our next president, especially since there is a Buddhist in the race - me! I will serve in unascertainable ways to derail her. As with other instances of the workings of karma, she will not see why she lost this race. Nor will she see how on earth I could possibly have "taken it away from her" (please note, she feels entitled to this office for none other than nepotistic reasons).

If, however, Hillary Clinton does become our next president, it will be because we (including me) Americans deserved no better. It will be because our system was too flawed to prevent it. It will be because irresistible waves of karma swept her into office, only to dash us all upon the rocks of our own (unatoned for) shared, national, negative karma. It will be because not enough people worked hard enough to forestall the "inevitable." [psst...I could use a little assistance in this regard.]

Final Note to Bill Clinton

I have a piece of advice for Mr. Clinton, for whatever it's worth: "I encourage you to engage in Buddhist practice as a start toward atoning for (at least) your political sins. It's not too late." I would give the same advice to Hillary.

Steven Searle for U.S. President in 2012

Founder of The Independent Contractors’ Party

I am the only candidate presenting a written contract to the voters: "You wouldn't sell your house without a contract; why give your vote away?"