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3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Since You Asked: Medford airport and city both dry places Jackson County public meetings May 25-29, 2015 Talent amateur astronomer captures the heavens with high-tech cameras Emergency services, May 24 Phoenix bans commercial growth of recreational pot Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Emergency services, May 24 Emergency services, May 23 Jury will consider death penalty in double-murder case Emergency services New suspect arraigned in 2014 robbery of Ashland gas station Politics and Elections Case, Salmon leading in Central Point School Board race Lundberg, Mannenbach leading Eagle Point races Jackson County district election turnout under 17 percent Arthur I. 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Ashland Ski Area proposes summer adventure center Jackson County declares drought disaster State News In the Oregon Legislature: Impeachment, kicker rebate, gun control Bill would cancel 'kicker,' use money for budget reserves, education Oregon Senate passes bill keeping domestic abusers from having guns State investigates spray crew exposure to herbicide Corvallis-based Bravo company returns home from Afghanistan Nation - World Uh oh .... 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Here's one George Will: Kaine's quest for war legitimacy Editorials Our View: Don't siphon off prison savings just yet Other Views: PERS ruling leaves little room to maneuver Our View: Free tuition could fly if 'fifth-year' plans reined in Our View: Josephine voters choose lawlessness again Our View: Renovating the Capitol is important but costly Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, May 24 Letters to the Editor, May 22 Letters to the Editor, May 21 Letters to the Editor, May 20 Letters to the Editor, May 19 Columns Guest Opinion: BLM management plans fail people and forests You want what-ifs? Here's one George Will: Kaine's quest for war legitimacy Dana Milbank: My return to organized labor Michael Gerson: The Clintons' cloud of deviancy Guest Opinions Guest Opinion: BLM management plans fail people and forests Guest Opinion: Medford needs SkyPark more than it needs parking Guest Opinion: Ample water? Think again Guest Opinion: Oregon mothers need much more than flowers Guest Opinion: Child poverty and the Schneider Children’s Center Lifestyle Latest stories Mr. Campbell and fun with engineering Make herbs part of your plant world Tips for upping your age IQ Adopt a Pet Columnist for a Day: It's all about the thighs Food Community blog: Roasting rhubarb riffs on beet-goat cheese salad Page H. 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Graham Brown reflects on career Laurie Lewis, Tom Rozum at The Mountain House Community Events Memorial Day celebrates veterans Third Friday: 'Into the Woods' is a must-see 5 things to see at Art in Bloom Flowers, art and music highlight Art in Bloom Hip-Hop Poetry Open Mic at OSF's Black Swan in Ashland Movies Interview: ‘Good Kill’ offers blistering look at ‘battlefields and blackjack’ of drone warfare Review: ‘Tomorrowland’ feels like another Disneyland staple — Dopey Movie review: Disney takes us to ‘Tomorrowland’ Dwayne Johnson rocks in a new way in ‘San Andreas’ Movie review: Cast keeps laughs coming in ‘Pitch Perfect 2’ Dining Upscale pub fare at The Point Wine by the keg, growler, box and ammo can 6 stars of the Rogue Valley food universe Cool down with a cold one (or two, or three) Nguyen Street Food Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obits Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Special Sections Business Services NEWS NOW Talent amateur astronomer captures the heavens with high-tech cameras ... Our View: Don't siphon off prison savings just yet ... Guest Opinion: BLM management plans fail people and forests ... Talent amateur astronomer captures the heavens with high-tech cameras ... Our View: Don't siphon off prison savings just yet ... Guest Opinion: BLM management plans fail people and forests ... ANOTHER VIEW Michael Gerson: The Clintons' cloud of deviancy MailTribune.com Writer Posted May. 22, 2015 @ 12:01 am Posted May. 22, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Social News p bs:newslist StartDate="20121121" EndDate="p bs:datecalc Months="3"" DateSort="1" UseObjects="1" ObjectClass="81" Taxonomywords="2325,665" ExactTaxonomyMatch="1" Image="1" Count="4" --> I recall the moment when the press finally turned against Bill Clinton. In 1998, I was a junior writer at U.S. News & World Report, then (for the children in the audience) an actual, physical weekly magazine, useful for pressing leaves or as packing material. When the word came that there was a blue dress stained with actual, physical, genetic evidence, it was the consensus of veteran journalists along the hallway that Clinton was gone, gone, gone, through either resignation or impeachment. Clinton had, as A.M. Rosenthal of The New York Times later wrote, "gambled the moral, political and historic reputation of the presidency — showing what he thought of the office and himself." But Clinton saved himself though a remarkable display of brazen, combative defiance against his accusers and the media. There must be some ancient Greek word for this tragically impressive human attribute. It might be translated "shameless fortitude," or maybe "sleazy grit." Whatever it is called, Americans in large numbers found it persuasive, particularly when compared with the alternative. Yet the practical effect of Clinton's political victory, in a phrase of the time, was to "define deviancy down." He had changed the boundaries of the ethically acceptable — in the character we expect from a president and in the behavior of powerful men toward young women in their employ. In the end, Clinton stood; standards fell. This attribute of backbone in a dubious cause — in a very different moral context — has been on full display in Hillary Clinton's presidential launch. Everybody knows that there are no secrets in the age of Snowden, and that transparency is now a requirement for the political class. But Clinton conducts public business on a private server, destroys 30,000 emails of her choosing and provides the rest in boxes of unsearchable paper records. Everyone knows that social media and the 24-hour news cycle create an insatiable demand for content, which presidential campaigns must strive to fill. Clinton grants media access in frothy little dollops even as large controversies unfold. This is creating a crisis of relevance for members of the traveling press, who are either compromised by complicity or moved to rebellion. But so far, it seems to be working marvelously for the candidate herself. While a majority of Americans do not judge her to be "honest and trustworthy," she is essentially unchallenged for the nomination of her party and leads in all the head-to-heads with Republicans. Who needs a reputation for honesty and trustworthiness anyway? Foreign money is a matter that should be left between a politician and her donors. What Clinton does in the privacy of her server room is her own business. In the five weeks since Clinton announced her candidacy, she has had a normal politician's lifetime quota of scandals. During a brief recent press availability, questions covered foreign donations to the Clinton Foundation, ties to a former aide under investigation, the pace of disclosure of her already purged State Department emails, and speaking fees that put her (as conservative columnist Byron York tweeted) in the 1 percent on a single harvest day in Silicon Valley. "I want those emails out," she told reporters, having made it technically difficult. "I'm proud of the work [the Clinton Foundation] has done," which is relevant only in an argument that ends justify means. Bland and bold. I've done what I've done. Get used to it. Democrats are presented with a political question: Does Hillary Clinton really have the political skills to pull this off? Her husband was a master of projecting likability, remorse and good intent. She is plausible as a president but mediocre as a candidate. Her silence is often an improvement on her availability. As new controversies come — and that is close to a political certainty — will her polling hold? I have heard significant Democratic donors wonder about this aloud. But if Clinton succeeds, it would expand the boundaries of the permissible. It would again define deviancy down. Americans would have rewarded, or at least ignored, defiant secrecy and the destruction of documents. Future presidential candidates and campaign advisers would take note. Americans would have rewarded a skate along the ethical boundaries of money and influence. Future donors would see a green light, no matter what candidate Clinton says about campaign finance reform. A democracy becomes the image of the virtues it rewards. Clinton is tough, disciplined and knowledgeable. Who needs honesty, trustworthiness and transparency? Clinton stands; standards fall. Michael Gerson's email address is [email protected]. MailTribune.com Writer Posted May. 22, 2015 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments /* $( document ).ready(function() { // Jquery mobile is trying to style the button and leaving a blank gry button on top of a white button $("#viafouracoms .vf-comment-controls li.vf-right").html(' Submit '); });*/ » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Propel Marketing Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. 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