Letters: Feb. 10, 1997

(2 of 3)

Paula Jones, you go, girl! If Governor Bill Clinton did have you escorted to his hotel room so he could pull his pants down, he deserves the pain you are inflicting by taking your case to the Supreme Court [NATION, Jan. 20]. If, on the other hand, your lawsuit is just another example of how America's out-of-control legal system allows anyone to initiate costly litigation without fear of legal or financial retribution--well, that's good too! The sound of trial-lawyer contributions pouring in to his re-election fund has clearly deafened Clinton to appeals for tort reform. The President works diligently to sustain this monster we call a legal system, and you, Paula, have turned it loose on him. Bravo! GARY STUSSIE Bowie, Maryland

If any man, including the governor, summoned me to his hotel room and I accepted the invitation, the responsibility for the consequences would be mine alone. America has been sue crazy for some time. Sexual harassment can easily be stopped by just saying no! DENISE PEREAU Clementon, New Jersey

The President is an American citizen and therefore not above the law. But anyone who thinks this case should go forward while Clinton is in office is a fool. I pay my President to do his job, not to have something of infinitesimally small importance distract him from the duties of the presidency. Perhaps Jones should think about the millions of American citizens and what they deserve instead of thinking only of herself. CARYN LAW Laramie, Wyoming

So James Carville's response to this case is, "Drag $100 bills through trailer parks, there's no telling what you'll find"? This comment says nothing about Paula Jones or the merits of her case, but it speaks volumes about Carville. BILL KING Nashville, Tennessee

THE SAGA OF NEWT GINGRICH

Considering the Democrats' dilemmas and the potential for compromise between the self-seeking factions in Congress, Gingrich's re-election as Speaker of the House of Representatives [NATION, Jan. 20] may not prove to have been the wisest course, but it does tell us much about U.S. politicians. Morality in Washington is obviously a sometime thing, where lapses can be excused after a plea of ignorance and carelessness. What did the Representatives' parents, their schools and churches teach them? And there are still people who wonder why so many of us don't vote. ALBERT CLARK Groveland, California

As a liberal, I was thrilled to see Republicans "Newter" the House! Speaker Gingrich will stand as a beacon of hypocrisy as he continues his partisan assault against the President. RICK EWING Lexington, Oklahoma

Gingrich's supporters said his misdeeds were the equivalent of jaywalking. Indeed! The vote re-electing him as Speaker was the requiem for Republican virtue. It is now confirmed: politics is about winning and losing, not about right and wrong. You should ask anyone to whom party loyalty is supreme the same question that Army counsel Joseph Welch posed to Senator Joseph McCarthy: "Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last?" TOM ZWEMER Augusta, Georgia

Newt: your ethical credibility went South. And so should you--back to Georgia. You are no longer a viable leader. Do us a favor and get out of the way. TOM RINGLEY Big Horn, Wyoming

NEW PARK FEES WILL HELP