Middle East 'Thing' Interrupts Clinton Fund Raising
NewsMax.com Wires
Monday, Oct. 23, 2000
JOHNSON CITY, N.Y. (UPI) – For some, the backstage drama of President Clinton telephoning Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak in the midst of an upstate New York fund-raising tour for his wife only added to the political experience.
Clinton kept hundreds of people waiting at a Sunday morning fund raiser in Johnson City while he urged the Israelis and the Palestinians to stick to last week's cease-fire agreement.
Those waiting were told that the president was "taking care of some very important business."
Many guests were left with the impression that this wasn't a lame duck president campaigning for a fellow Democrat, but a sitting president coolly managing a global crisis – while visiting a mostly Republican section of upstate New York.
"The backdrop of the whole Middle East thing made the presidential visit more presidential," one of those attending the fund raiser told United Press International.
Once the president appeared, he spoke of his role as "presidential spouse," not leader of the Free World or Middle East peace broker.
"I came here today in my capacity as presidential spouse," Clinton said. "I want to talk about what is at stake in this election."
Actually, Clinton appeared in his role as fund-raiser-in-chief for the first lady's Senate race because she needs money; Clinton's opponent, Rep. Rick Lazio, raised $11.2 million during the month of September compared to Mrs. Clinton's $2.9 million.
The president said the Senate race in New York echoes the issues in the presidential race between Vice President Al Gore and Texas Gov. George W. Bush, and illustrates that Democrats and Republicans have different approaches to keep economic prosperity going as well as to education, health care, the environment and crime.
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