In response to David Wilson’s letter of April 8, wherein he decries accusations of moral turpitude against President Bush and asks where these accusers were when Clinton was attacking Third World countries, I’d like to say we were right where we should have been; supporting Clinton. Lest we forget that his attack on the compound in Afghanistan, although unsuccessful, was aimed at a terrorist responsible for the embassy bombings in Africa, Osama bin Laden

It is possible that without the unnecessary persecution of the Clintons by a Republican Party bent on hatred and revenge, he might well have tried again and been more successful. There can be little doubt that one reason bin Laden felt he could get away with his recent attacks was a belief that the United States was impotent to respond against him. Clinton was persuaded to abandon his attack on bin Laden’s infrastructure by the accusation that he was trying to “wag the dog.”

As a supporter of political democracy, let me say that character does matter when the issue involves the principles upon which our nation is built. However grave a political mistake it was for Clinton to cover up his shortcomings, a lie, even under oath, about a matter having no bearing on the ultimate outcome of justice doesn’t impinge on those principles.

President Bush, on the other hand, has turned the executive branch into a secret society complete with passwords and underground bunkers. Never in the history of our country has the presidency been so secretive, even in times of real war.

Certainly comparing the campaign in Afghanistan to the Vietnam War is, as yet, unjustified. But then so was President Bush’s claim of “success” made during his State of the Union address, as we can readily see from subsequent events. One impetus for the protests against the Vietnam War was the unwillingness of the presidency and military to be open and honest about what was going on. If the campaign against terrorism is so right and defensible, why isn’t this administration defending it in open debate on the floor of Congress instead of hiding behind the absurd accusation that simply questioning the president is aiding the enemy?

Ben Erik Lamborn

Levant