First In His Class

by David Maraniss

  161 They spent the first five days: Ibid. Also, Clinton calendar of ten-day Evans trip.

  162 “Times are getting tough”: Letter to Denise Hyland, April 7, 1969.

  162 “My friends just don’t understand”: Int. Sharon Ann Evans, July 13, 1993.

  163 “I heard about Bert just yesterday”: Letter to A. B. Jeffries, April 10, 1969.

  163 Bert had lived a different life: Int. A. B. Jeffries, May 3, 1993.

  163 At just after ten: U.S. Marine Corps Western Union Telegram, received by A. B. Jeffries March 24, 1969. Also letter to Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Jeffries from USMC Lt. D. T. Stevens.

  163 “The thing about Vietnam”: Int. Duke Watts, May 6, 1993.

  164 The tutor Clinton thought so much of: Int. Zbigniew Pelczynski, March 23, 1993.

  164 One week his reading list: Int. Denise Hyland, July 12, 1993.

  164 They had toured Manhattan: Willie Morris, New York Days, pp. 137-38.

  164 he had asked five people: Int. Paul Parish, Oct. 23, 1993.

  164 Sir Edgar took delight: Int. Edgar Williams, March 23, 1993.

  164 “The Rhodent”: Ints. Mike Shea, April 6, 1993; Willie Fletcher, Nov. 23, 1993, and Paul Parish, Oct. 23, 1993.

  165 “explaining what it was”: Int. Edgar Williams, March 23, 1993.

  165 Clinton spent days: Ints. Paul Parish, Oct. 25, 1993, Sept. 5, 1994.

  165 It was a glorious spring: Ints. Sara Maitland, May 11, 1993, and Paul Parish, Oct. 23, 1993.

  165 Clinton would fail to mention: In the early days of his presidential campaign, Clinton omitted mention of the draft notice in interviews with several journalists writing about candidates and the Vietnam War. They included David Kern, Arkansas Democrat, Oct. 28, 1991, and Dan Balz, WP, Dec. 16, 1991. The first story raising serious questions about Clinton’s version of events was by Jeff Birnbaum of the Wall Street Journal, Feb. 6, 1992.

  165 He called his mother and stepfather: Int. Betsey Wright, Nov. 4, 1993. (In the 1992 presidential campaign, Betsey Wright, at Clinton’s request, examined his private documents related to his draft situation. Wright said her examination revealed that Clinton called his stepfather, Jeff Dwire, who was in contact with the draft board secretary, Opal Ellis.)

  165 A study by the Scientific Manpower Commission: New York Times (cited hereafter as NYT), May 20, 1969, p. 6.

  166 “You may have heard”: Letter to Denise Hyland, Spring 1969.

  166 “I really hate”: Cliff Jackson letter to mother, May 7, 1969.

  166 Paul Parish carried one image: Int. Paul Parish, Oct. 23, 1993.

  Ten: The Torment

  167 a leatherbound diary: Int. Denise Hyland, March 4, 1993.

  167 “The diary you gave me”: Letter to Denise Hyland, May 1969.

  167 “I do hope you are finding”: Int. Denise Hyland,July 12, 1993.

  168 “Maintaining viability”: Int. Sara Maitland, May 11, 1993.

  168 “completely inconsistent”: Int. Strobe Talbott, April 19, 1993.

  168 “Clinton and Talbott wanted to solve”: Int. Daniel Singer, March 5, 1993.

  168 In telephone conversations: Ints. Betsey Wright, Nov. 4, 1993; John Spotila, Jan. 12, 1994; and Paul Fray, April 25, 1994.

  168 As Jackson later recollected: Int. Cliff Jackson, June 7, 1993.

  168 “I got a letter from Bill Clinton”: Cliff Jackson letter, May 27, 1969.

  169 “I was ambivalent”: Int. Cliff Jackson, June 7, 1993.

  169 “thought he was going”: Quoted by Associated Press, February 1992.

  169 Clinton’s friends bade farewell: Ints. Doug Eakeley, Dec. 19, 1993; Darryl Gless, March 10, 1993; Rudiger Lowe, April 8, 1993; and Sara Maitland, May 11, 1993.

  170 When Clinton arrived in America: Int. Denise Hyland, July 12, 1993.

  170 “All the light is out”: Letter to Denise Hyland, July 2, 1969.

  170 On his way to Arkansas: Int. Rick Stearns, Dec. 12, 1993.

  170 “They came to us in droves”: Int. Lee Williams, May 12, 1993.

  171 The scene awaiting Clinton: Int. Sharon Ann Evans, July 13, 1993.

  171 “Bill and Jeff”: Int. Virginia Kelley, July 12, 1993.

  172 “ ‘I could do this’”: Int. Paul Parish, Oct. 25, 1993.

  172 “I am home now”: Letter to Denise Hyland, July 8, 1969.

  172 “I was just under the maximum size”: Clinton interview with Dan Balz, Dec. 16, 1991.

  172 On July 10: Int. Cliff Jackson, June 7, 1993. Also, Jackson letter, July 11, 1969.

  173 Jackson asked his boss: Int. Cliff Jackson, June 7, 1993. Also Arkansas Democrat, Sept. 17, 1992, p. 13.

  173 “We were used to guys:” Int. Ed Howard, July 19, 1993.

  173 His papers indicate: J. William Fulbright Papers, Special Collections Division, University of Arkansas Libraries.

  174 He met with Colonel Holmes: Holmes statement, Sept. 17, 1992.

  174 “On the 17th”: Letter to Denise Hyland, July 20, 1969.

  175 Now that he was protected. AP account of letter to Tamara Kennerley, Aug. 15, 1969.

  175 Clinton drove to Houston: Ints. Kit Ashby, Jan. 20, 1993, and Tom Campbell, Feb. 3, 1993.

  175 Strobe Talbott traveled to Arkansas: Int. Strobe Talbott, June 2, 1993.

  176 His “gimpy knee”: Time, April 6, 1992.

  176 And so it was: Ints. Boisfeuillet Jones and Robert Reich, Sept. 16, 1994; John Isaacson, March 5, 1993; and Doug Eakeley, Dec. 19, 1993. Statistics from Vietnam Draft Almanac.

  177 The extent to which: DOD-Gorham study on ROTC, Senate Judiciary Committee, Fall 1969.

  177 Mike Shea spent his first year: Int. Mike Shea, April 6, 1993.

  178 “in direct proportion”: Int. Tom Ward, June 18, 1993.

  178 In mid-August: Int. Rick Stearns, Dec. 12, 1993.

  178 He was on the outer edge: Int. David Mixner, Jan. 31, 1994.

  179 “therapy for a sick man”: Letter to Rick Stearns, Aug. 20, 1969.

  179 “Bill was a lot more revealing”: Int. Rick Stearns, Dec. 12, 1993.

  179 “I am home now”: Letter to Rick Stearns, Aug. 20, 1969.

  179 Stearns called Clinton: Int. Rick Stearns, Dec. 12, 1969.

  179 “My mind is every day”: Letter to Rick Stearns, Sept. 9, 1969.

  180 Clinton stayed up all night: Recounted in Clinton letter to Colonel Holmes, Dec. 3, 1969.

  180 “a month or two”: Holmes statement, Sept. 17, 1992.

  180 “I know I promised”: Clinton letter to Colonel Holmes, Dec. 3. 1969.

  180 “A lot of people”: Int. Ed Howard, July 19, 1993.

  181 Cliff Jackson was among: Int. Cliff Jackson, June 7, 1993. Also, Jackson letters, Aug. 27, and Sept. 14, 1969.

  181 a scrappy little fellow: Ints. Jim French, April 14, 1993, and Bill High, April 24, 1994.

  181 “Mike was in a fraternity”: Int. Herman Thomas, May 3, 1993.

  181 His platoon loved Mike Thomas: Int. Greg Schlieve, May 3, 1993.

  182 In Saigon that morning: WP and NYT, Sept. 15, 1969, both p. 1.

  182 Lieutenant Thomas put on his pack: Ints. Herman Thomas, May 3, 1993, and Greg Schlieve, May 3, 1993, drawn from unit history records.

  182 The Army posthumously: Letter to Herman Thomas from Maj. Gen. E. B. Roberts, Department of the Army, Nov. 24, 1969.

  182 took other casualties as well: Ints. Herman Thomas, May 3, 1969, and Greg Schlieve, May 3, 1969.

  183 Clinton and Stearns were there: Int. Rick Stearns, March 4, 1993.

  183 “The Executive Committee”: Int. Taylor Branch, Feb. 28, 1993.

  184 Mixner confided to Clinton: Int. David Mixner, Jan. 31, 1994.

  Eleven: The Lucky Number

  185 Rick Stearns rented a spacious: Ints. Rick Stearns, March 4 and Dec. 12, 1993.

  185 When the American Oxonian: American Oxonian (Fall 1969).

  185 “I was under the impression”: Int. Zbigniew Pelczynski, March 23, 1993.

  186 a fullblown antiwar organizer: Ints. David Mixner, Jan. 31
, 1994, and Randall Scott, June 30, 1993.

  186 “My friend said”: nt. Steve Engstrom, May 14, 199.3.

  187 A Gallup Poll: WP, Oct. 5, 1969, p. 21.

  187 a broad range of support: WP, Oct. 4, p. 1; Oct. 8, p. 3; Oct. 10, p. 1.

  187 “And I can express”: Randall Scott letter, Oct. 19, 1969.

  187 “Mr. Newman Supports Students”: The Guardian, Oct. 16, 1969, p. 3.

  187 “soulmates in opposition”: Int. Tom Williamson, May 26, 1993.

  188 On the eve of the demonstration: Ints. Taylor Branch, Feb. 28, 1993, and Steve Cohen, May 11, 1993. Ayers confrontation reported in WP, Nov. 18, 1969, p. 1: “Weathermen Accused of Shakedown,” by Aaron Latham.

  188 The day of the Mobe: WP, Nov. 16, p. 1.

  188 In London that day: Ints. Rick Stearns, Dec. 12, 1993: Tom Williamson, May 26, 1993; and Father Richard McSorley, Nov. 17, 1993.

  189 “After my prayer”: McSorley, Peace Eyes, p. 22.

  189 After the service: Ints. Richard McSorley, Nov. 17, 1993, and Richard Stearns, Dec. 12, 1993.

  189 among the Rhodes Scholars who came: Ints. Willie Fletcher, and J. Michael Kirchberg, Nov. 23, 1993. Also, The Guardian, Oct. 16, 1969. (Michael Boskin, interviewed Dec. 18, 1993, said that although the Guardian article identified him among a group of American students trying to close the American Embassy, he was not an antiwar protester. He explained: “My sole recollection of it was there were a lot of Americans arguing different points of view. The London police asked us not to flow into the streets so much from where the discussion was. I and a number of other people started shepherding people back onto the sidewalk. A reporter came up and asked me what was going on. I tried to explain the debate.”)

  190 His draft records: Draft records, Garland County Draft Board.

  190 His answer was largely accepted: “Ex-officer Accuses Clinton; It’s Baseless, Official Says,” Arkansas Gazette, Oct. 28, 1978.

  191 the only letter Clinton wrote Holmes: Clinton letter to Colonel Holmes, Dec. 3, 1969.

  191 “I expected to be called”: Bill Clinton interview with Dan BaIz, Dec. 16, 1991.

  192 The best estimate of when: Int. Randall Scott, June 30, 1993.

  193 “I didn’t see, in the end”: Letter to Colonel Holmes, Dec. 3, 1969.

  193 This became possible because: NYT, Oct. 2, 1969: “Nixon Eases Rule on Draft.”

  193 In the weeks before: Sept. 14 front-page stories in NYT, WP, and Arkansas Gazette cited sources saying the draft would be cut. The NYT article began: “The Nixon Administration is considering a series of major reforms in the military draft intended to defuse domestic political opposition to the war in Vietnam.”

  194 “I didn’t know anything about any lottery”: Bill Clinton interview with Dan Balz, Dec. 16, 1991. (The lottery was headline news during that period. Lead headline in WP, Sept. 20, 1969: “Nixon Trims Draft, Presses for Lottery.”)

  194 they both loved Dylan Thomas: Ints. Rick Stearns, March 4 and Dec. 12, 1993.

  195 “that you and I are queer”: Letter to Rick Stearns, Nov. 19, 1969.

  196 “He basically said that”: Ints. Rick Stearns, March 4 and Dec. 12, 1993.

  196 He had been invited. Int. Strobe Talbott, June 2, 1993. 196 “particularly shambolic”: Int. Sara Maitland, May 11, 1993.

  196 “graduate student bohemian”: Int. Strobe Talbott, June 2, 1993.

  197 She and Talbott rode bicycles: Int. Brooke Shearer, July 1, 1993.

  197 “Frank and Bill shared”: Time, April 6, 1992.

  197 “I may never pick up a parchment”: Letter to Denise Hyland, Nov. 27, 1969.

  198 The first draft lottery: The account of the lottery is drawn from WP, Dec. 1-2, 1969; Boston Globe, Dec. 2, 1969; and Vietnam War Almanac, 1988.

  198 “It was just a fluke”: Bill Clinton interview with Dan Balz, Dec. 16, 1991.

  199 “I am sorry to be so long”: Letter to Colonel Holmes, Dec. 3, 1969. The letter resurfaced twenty-three years later when ABC News obtained a copy while Clinton was campaigning in the 1992 New Hampshire presidential primary. ABC producer Mark Halperin, working with correspondent James Wooten, showed the letter to Clinton aides at the Nashua, New Hampshire, airport on Feb. 10 and requested an interview with the candidate. After reading the letter, consultant James Carville said, “This letter exonerates us. We want to publish this god damn thing in the [Manchester] Union-Leader tomorrow!”

  204 “The letter was the talk”: Int. Ed Howard, July 19, 1993.

  204 A dissident file was kept: Ibid.

  204 Holmes’s reactions fluctuated: Arkansas Gazette, Oct. 28, 1978; Arkansas Democrat, Oct. 29, 1991; Wall Street Journal, Feb. 6, 1992; and Holmes statement, Sept. 16, 1992.

  205 “full of rhetoric”: Int. David Tell, Dec. 13, 1993.

  205 “At no time”: Holmes statement, Sept. 16, 1992.

  205 not above enrolling law students: Int. Ed Howard, July 19, 1993.

  Twelve: The Grand Tour

  206 “a modern version of the old”: Int. Edgar Williams, March 23, 1993.

  206 Not a nobleman’s holiday: Ints. Richard McSorley, Nov. 17, 1993; Richard Shullaw, Feb. 2, 1993; Charlie Daniels, June 29, 1993; Rudiger Lowe, April 23, 1993; and Jirina Kopoldova, June 1993.

  206 As he was ambling down: Int. Richard McSorley, Nov. 17, 1993.

  207 It was from McSorley’s account: In early October 1992, in the final month of the presidential campaign, a group of Republican congressmen led by Robert K. Dornan of California gave nightly “special order” speeches on the House floor, televised by C-Span, which questioned Clinton’s Moscow trip. Dornan said that Clinton rode a “peace train” and, though he had no evidence, suggested Soviet agents were involved in arranging the trip. This sinister scenario caught the attention of George Bush, who asked his negative research team to investigate. David Tell, the head of Bush’s research team, said he interviewed Dornan and listened to his “free associative lecture on the Peace Train,” but found that it was riddled with suppositions and “factual inconsistencies.”

  208 James Durham was another: Int. James Durham, July 1, 1993.

  208 Over the years: Ibid.

  209 Again he had no schedule: Int. Richard Shullaw, Feb. 2, 1993.

  209 “I have found the world’s winter”: Postcard to Denise Hyland, Dec. 24, 1993.

  209 “Pelle did not care for Bill”: Int. Richard Shullaw, Feb. 2, 1993.

  209 One was H. Ross Perot: NYT, Jan. 1, 1970, “Soviet Denies Perot a Visa to Send Gifts.”

  210 “Upon entering Russia”: Daily Journal of Charlie Daniels.

  210 Their view of the Soviet Union: Int. Strobe Talbott, June 2, 1993.

  211 He had one friend: Int. Tom Williamson, May 26, 1993.

  211 Daniels was in Moscow: The account of Daniels’s trip to Moscow with Henry Fors and Carl McAfee is drawn from interview with Charlie Daniels, June 29, 1993. Also Daniels’s daily journal of the trip.

  212 “You wonder why Bill”: Int. Charlie Daniels, June 29, 1993.

  213 Senator Eugene McCarthy arrived: NYT, Jan. 7, 1970.

  213 “That figures!”: Daniels’s daily journal.

  213 “We were all very moved”: Int. John Albery, March 25, 1993.

  213 “My friend Bill Clinton”: Jan Kopold letter to his parents, December 1969.

  214 Clinton stayed with the Kopolds: The account of Clinton’s stay in Prague is based on interviews with Jirina Kopoldova and Bedrich Kopold, May 1993, and letters from Jan Kopold and Bill Clinton to the Kopold family. Also on the description of the apartment complex in Strana magazine, pp. 46-48.

  215 “I still have a picture”: Int. Rudiger Lowe, April 23, 1993.

  215 The first telephone call: Int. Charlie Daniels, June 29, 1993.

  215 “I would like to take”: Letter from Virginia Dwire, Jan. 22, 1970.

  216 with his baggy tweed jackets: Ints. Strobe Talbott, June 2, 1993; Brooke Shearer, July 1, 1993; and Sara Maitland, May 11, 1993.

  216 Frank Aller counterbal
anced: Ints. Strobe Talbott, June 2, 1993; J. Michael Kirchberg, Nov. 23, 1993; and Willie Fletcher, Nov. 23, 1993.

  216 “looked like a lumberjack”: Int. Brooke Shearer, July 1, 1993.

  217 “old and heavy-lidded”: Int. Mandy Merck, May 14, 1993.

  217 “Frank was describing the effect”: Int. Sara Maitland, May 11, 1993.

  217 “As you know”: Int. Tom Campbell, Feb. 3, 1993.

  218 “Senator Clinton will see you”: Int. Mandy Merck, May 14, 1993.

  218 “Politics gives guys so much power”: Ibid.

  218 “Five of us were in the game”. Ibid.

  218 The highlight of her lecture: Ints. Sara Maitland, May 11, 1993; Mandy Merck, May 14, 1993; and Rick Stearns, Dec. 12, 1993.

  219 “I thought I was going”: Int. Mandy Merck, May 14, 1993.

  219 Mixner was gay: Int. David Mixner, Jan. 31, 1994.

  220 The breakup of the relationship: Ints. Paul Parish, Oct. 23, 1993, and Sara Maitland, May 11, 1993.

  220 When the Hilary term ended: Int. Rick Stearns, March 4, 1993, Dec. 12, 1993.

  220 Waiting to see them: The account of Clinton’s trip to Spain is based on interviews with Lyda Holt, June 8, 1993; Rick Stearns, March 4, 1993; Peggy Freeman, June 4, 1993; and Jack Holt, Jr., June 4, 1993.

  222 Leopoulos was always hungering: Int. David Leopoulos, June 9, 1993.

  222 He attended special cram courses: Ints. Maurice Shock, March 24, 1993, and Alan Ryan, Dec. 14, 1993.

  223 “I didn’t take any kind”: Int. Maurice Shock, March 24, 1993.

  223 “If you were an American”: Int. Edgar Williams, March 23, 1993.

  223 In the end: Ints. Strobe Talbott, June 2, 1993; Doug Eakeley, Dec. 19, 1993; and Paul Parish, Oct. 23, 1993.

  224 he drove to Springfield: Ints. Amy and Kit Ashby, June 19, 1993.

  Thirteen Law and Politics at Yale

  226 One of the candidates: Ints. Joseph Duffey, Feb. 7, 1994, and Anne Wexler, May 11, 1993.

  227 They had worked together: Ints. Tony Podesta, May 5 and May 10, 1993, and Carl Wagner, June 28, 1993.

  227 “he had a baby face”. Int. Virginia Kelley, Jan. 13, 1992.

  227 Many from the Pursestrings contingent: Int. Tony Podesta, May 5, 1993.