THE CASE AGAINST HILLARY CLINTON.

• Author: FISCHER, RAYMOND L.
• Position: Review

THE CASE AGAINST HILLARY CLINTON BY PEGGY NOONAN REGAN BOOKS 2000, 181 PAGES, $24.00

When Hillary Clinton decided to run for the Senate from New York, she invited the state's citizens to give her their views. In this book, Peggy Noonan, a former speechwriter for both Ronald Reagan and George Bush, offers Mrs. Clinton much more than just her views. The Case Against Hillary Clinton is a polemic, an aggressive attack on the opinions and principles of Mrs. Clinton. Actually, the author takes on both of the Clintons because she has contempt for them and for "Clintonism." A native New Yorker, Noonan resents the intrusion of Hillary Clinton, an outsider whose recent, self-serving political interests have no historical connection with the state. "An act of mad boomer selfishness and narcissism, Hillary Clinton's run for the Senate is a thing of utter and breathtaking gall," she maintains.

After viewing the public record, writings, and speeches of Mrs. Clinton, Noonan concludes that not only is the First Lady unworthy to be a senator, but she is fundamentally dangerous. Noonan believes that, although the Clintons have shown no consistent loyalty to any political philosophy, party, person, or ideology, their impulses, assumptions, and beliefs belong to the left-liberal wing. They endorse a kind of paternalism that assumes ordinary citizens must be led and guided by those who know best--the Clintons and their friends. As demonstrated by her health care plan, Mrs. Clinton thinks in terms of "command and control," and she operates behind the scenes to manipulate issues,

Clintonism misleads constituents on crucial issues; evades responsibility for mistakes, derelictions, and scandals; takes actions that are damaging to others, but beneficial to the Clintons; and smears opponents and critics. Proficient prevaricators, the Clintons lack the grace and humility expected of America's leaders, Noonan argues. The scandals are not all the President's--some, such as Filegate and Travelgate, involve his wife. The author enlightens her readers about both of these issues.

In examining Hillary Clinton's self-acclaimed boast of 25 years in public service (she never uses the term politics), Noonan asks the question, "What has she done?" According to Noonan's assessment, the answer is not much. Mrs. Clinton's reputation for accomplishment seems to be just another fiction. Like her husband, she tends to confuse words with deeds.

Noonan considers the content of Hillary...