Setting the Tone

Grace periods were designed for a more graceful period, so maybe Bill Clinton should have known that transitions count. By the time Inauguration Day rolled around, he'd already weathered questions about Vernon Jordan's ethics, Zoe Baird's nanny and his own publicly stated faith in a possible "deathbed conversion" by Saddam Hussein. And then there was the tardiness question: Would Clinton be on time for his own presidency? As official Washington held its breath and frazzled aides awaited their marching orders, the President teed up Issue One.