Bill Clinton should have resigned post-impeachment.

Firstly, I'm not arguing that Bill Clinton had to leave office, I'm trying to prove that he should have left office for the reasons that many politicians resign office - for doing something (or things) wrong. Many politicians have resigned for much smaller offenses than those of Clinton. Today, I'm going to argue that Bill Clinton should have resigned for embarrassing, shaming, and disgracing his office, culminating in his impeachment by the House of Representatives on Dec. 19th, 1998. For this, I have three two contentions: 1. Regarding the Lewinsky scandal and the sexual harassment case of Paula Jones, Bill Clinton consistently misled and lied to the nation. Throughout the Lewinsky sex scandal and Paula Jones's lawsuit against him, Bill Clinton has admitted, and been shown, to have lied to the American public many different times for the sake of political success. When running for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1992, a young woman named Gennifer Flowers claimed to have a 12-year affair with Clinton. He, of course, denied the allegation. On 60 Minutes in '92: REPORTER: I'm assuming from your answer that you're categorically denying that you ever had an affair with Gennifer Flowers. CLINTON: I've said that before. However, while in deposition for Paula Jones' lawsuit, in January 1998, Clinton admitted that he indeed had a sexual encounter with Flowers in 1977 - directly challenging his prior claims. This admission was later reaffirmed in Clinton's memoir, My Life. But, most famously, Bill Clinton lied about his relationship with the young White House intern Monica Lewinsky. He did this under a sworn oath (my second point), but he also did so outside of deposition and court. And as he is very famous for saying, "I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Ms. Lewinsky." However, for lack of a better phrase, he did have sexual relations with that woman. Unambiguous DNA evidence from "the blue dress" proves that Clinton and Lewinsky had a sexual relationship with the other. He later famously conceded, "Indeed, I did have a relationship with Ms. Lewinsky that was not appropriate." In the same address to the nation, he also admits "misleading" his wife. Not only did he cheat on her, but he lied to her about that cheating. Here, Clinton once again displays his lack of moral character - for members of the military, who he commands, are explicitly prohibited from extramarital affairs. In this way, Clinton nearly displays contempt for the military he commands through his actions. A President should follow the same standard of discipline as that of the officers he commands. And on his last day of office, having been granted immunity from prosecution, he stated: "I now recognise that I did not fully accomplish that goal and that certain of my responses to questions about Ms. Lewinsky were false." 2. He committed perjury, despite his acquittal by the United States Senate. Under oath, President Clinton made the following noteworthy statements regarding his relationship with Ms. Lewinsky: Q: Did you have an extramarital sexual affair with Monica Lewinsky? CLINTON: No. Q: If she told someone that she had a sexual affair with you beginning in November of 1995, would that be a lie? CLINTON: It's certainly not the truth. It would not be the truth. Q: I think I used the term "sexual affair." And so the record is completely clear, have you ever had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky, as that term is defined in Deposition Exhibit 1, as modified by the Court. CLINTON: I have never had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky. I've never had an affair with her. However, as was explained in my first point, he did have an extramarital sexual affair with Monica Lewinsky. And although he was eventually acquitted by the United States Senate, a largely political sphere, many non political, impartial spheres hold that he did indeed commit perjury. Firstly, upon his acquittal, a federal judge from the Paula Jones case cited Clinton as being in contempt of court for knowingly providing false testimony, and fined Clinton over $90,000 for the incident. Clinton paid the fine. Secondly, the day before he left office, on Jan. 19th, 2001, Bill Clinton agreed to a five-year suspension of his law license and a $25,000 fine. Similarly, the Supreme Court also informed Clinton that he was henceforth disbarred from the Supreme Court bar - a position which he then resigned from. Both of these groups were completely impartial (Arkansas even voted for Clinton in '92 and '96). This lying pinnacles with the fact that, on his last day of office, having been granted immunity from prosecution, Clinton admitted these truths himself, despite his earlier denials. "I tried to walk a fine line between acting lawfully and testifying falsely, but I now recognise that I did not fully accomplish that goal and that certain of my responses to questions about Ms Lewinsky were false. I have apologised for my conduct, and I have done my best to atone for it with my family, my administration, and the American people. I have paid a high price for it, which I accept because it caused so much pain to so many people. I hope my actions today will help bring closure and finality to these matters." Now, I have proved that not only did Bill Clinton knowingly lie multiple times in office, but that he also committed perjury, a felony. David Petraeus, former CIA director, resigned when knowledge of his extramarital affair was made public. Clinton did not do so, after one extramarital affair, then another, then more lies, and then perjury. By resigning his post, he would have shown and admitted that he actually did something wrong, including breaking the law, which he later confessed to. For all of these reasons combined, upon being impeached by the United States House of Representatives, William Jefferson Clinton should have resigned his office. [1] http://www.youtube.com... [2] http://www.gpo.gov... [3] http://www.youtube.com... [4] http://famguardian.org... [5] http://articles.latimes.com... [6] http://www.dailymail.co.uk... Thanks so much! And good luck, again.