Former White House Chief of Staff Leon Panetta: President Clinton's legacy

Leon Panetta

Leon Panetta was the White House chief of staff under the Clinton administration. Prior, Panetta served for 16 years in Congress as a representative from California. He now serves as director of the Panetta Institute, a bipartisan study center looking at public policy.

Chat Moderator: Thank you for joining us today, Leon Panetta. When you served as chief of staff, were you aware of President Clinton's interest in his legacy?

Leon Panetta: It was clear from the time that I served the president as director of the Office of Management and Budget, which was before I became chief of staff, that he had a great interest in making sure that his legacy would benefit the American people and be one that would last in history.

Chat Moderator: How do you think future historians will evaluate President Clinton's handling of the government shutdown in 1995?

CHAT TRANSCRIPTS Peter Arnett: A look back at Operation Desert Storm Bernard Shaw: A look back on the 10th anniversary of the Gulf War CNN's Brent Sadler looks at Iraq since the Gulf War    VIDEO Military Affairs Correspondent Jamie McIntyre looks back at the air war and the lessons it holds for military leaders a decade later Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   RESOURCES In-Depth Special: The Unfinished War: A Decade Since Desert Storm   • Timeline   • Facts   • Video calendar   • Gulf war weapons info   ALSO Israelis-Palestinians set for more talks Tuesday despite a violent Monday Iraq-U.N. weapons talks postponed until after February CNN's Jane Arraf on changing attitudes in the Persian Gulf   ON CNN The hour-long documentary "The Unfinished War: A Decade Since Desert Storm" debuts on CNN at 10 p.m. ET and CNN International at 1500 GMT (times and additional airings).      QUICK VOTE Should sanctions on Iraq now be lifted? Yes No Scaled down but not lifted completely View Results

Leon Panetta: I have always felt that this was a major turning point in the administration and particularly for the president himself. Up to that point, the president had been successful in putting in place a very important economic plan that accomplished significant deficit reduction, and I believe it was extremely important to the economic recovery that followed.

But the president always felt that he was not doing a very good job in getting his message across to the American people. It wasn't until the Republicans tried to implement their budget, the so-called 'Contract for America', and were willing to shut the government down in order to force the president to accept it -- it wasn't until then -- that the president was able to let the American people know what he was about and what he was willing to fight for. I believe that that battle over the government shutdown was very important to the president's reelection.

Chat Moderator: Many people believe that ultimately President Clinton will have a mixed legacy. Do you believe the issues of scandals and character will overshadow his acknowledged political skills?

Leon Panetta: I have said that I believe President Clinton's legacy will be very much a tale of two presidencies. One, an administration that accomplished a great deal for the American people and produced, perhaps, the greatest economy in our history along with key investments in education, health and the environment, and at least, provided for peace in the world. And it will be the history of a president who was very bright and able and dedicated, and probably one of the best politicians to hold that office in a long time.

But the other presidency will be that of someone who made a terrible personal mistake and lied to the American people about it. And the impeachment process that followed, while it did not remove him from office, is something that will shadow his presidency and history, as well.

I would like to believe that his ability to do good for the American people would be the more important legacy. But history will be the final judge.

Chat Moderator: What was it like to work in the White House during the Whitewater investigations?

Leon Panetta: As chief of staff, I felt it was my responsibility to keep the White House and the president focused on substantive policy. And that's what the president wanted, as well.

When the various investigations began, it was my view that those should be handled by the president's attorneys and to some extent, by the White House counsel, but that it was important not to have the rest of the White House staff diverted by these various investigations.

I have always said that the job of chief of staff is not so much a management job as a battlefield position, because the job on the battlefield is to keep your forces focused on the primary mission and not diverted by incoming fire.

Question from chat room: With all the tags and cliches that went along with the Clinton years, do you see future administrations operating in a similar fashion or avoiding similarities all together?

Leon Panetta: I believe that the president, in his own way, captured the times that we live in, in his presidency. And I believe that other presidents in the future will do a lot in their presidencies that will reflect much of what President Clinton did.

For example, I think that there was no question that the president felt his presidency was about moving the country from the industrial era to the information era. A good example of that is the very Internet chat that we are having, and the president felt it was important to expand on that technology for schools and in politics.

He was also a president who understood not only how to communicate, but how to try to govern from the center of the political spectrum. As a matter of fact, I believe that George W. Bush took a page from Clinton's playbook by talking about the importance of reconciliation and governing closer to the center than from the extremes. So even with George W. Bush, there is a reflection of the Clinton presidency.

Question from chat room: Is the image of the president and his office drastically different after President Clinton's eight years in office?

Leon Panetta: I believe that the image of the presidency has changed a great deal over the last 20 to 30 years, beginning with the distrust that the American people had over Viet Nam, followed by the Watergate crisis in the White House.

The development of information technology, the competition for news, the focus of both political parties on scandals as opposed to policy, and the resulting occupation of presidents with all of that has, I believe, diminished the overall respect for the office of the presidency. That problem will be a challenge for future presidents, because it is difficult to govern without respect.

Question from chat room: Do you believe when President Clinton leaves office that he will follow tradition and not comment on issues?

Leon Panetta: Not on your life! The president, by nature, is someone who lives and breathes politics. He spent most of his life in political office, and he is personally consumed by an interest in both issues and politics. Because of that, there is no question in my mind but that he will stay very active in commenting on current events.

Question from chat room: What kind of relationship did Clinton have with his staff?

Leon Panetta: The president is someone who immediately connects with the people that he talks to or that work for him. I have always felt that one of his greatest assets as a politician was his ability to connect with any audience and with any individual. There is no one, who has met Bill Clinton, who is not impressed by his warmth and personality. The same is true of his staff, and as a result, even during the darkest moments, there was a continuing loyalty to the president.

Question from chat room: What do you think President Clinton considers his single greatest achievement in his eight years?

Leon Panetta: I think that there isn't much question but that his economic legacy is the most important achievement of his eight years. When he came into the presidency, the country was facing huge deficits, a growing national debt and a stagnant economy. He was able during his eight years to balance the federal budget, develop the largest surplus in our history, and in promoting trade, develop important markets abroad.

All in all, while presidents do not directly control the American economy, he did as much as any president could do to help put our fiscal house in order and strengthen our economy.

Chat Moderator: Do you have any final thoughts to share with us?

Leon Panetta: I am someone who for 30 years has been involved in politics of one kind or another--as a Congressman, as a member of the president's Cabinet, and as his chief of staff.

As the son of Italian immigrants, I always felt that this country does offer everyone the opportunity to serve and to succeed. I had that opportunity, and I hope that those who are participating in this chat room will understand that the strength of our democracy depends on their participation as well. Thank you for the ability to share in this forum.

Chat Moderator: Thank you for joining us today.

Leon Panetta: Just want to wish everyone the happiest of New Years, and please continue to stay involved in political issues.

Leon Panetta joined the chat via telephone from California. CNN provided a typist for Leon Panetta. The above was an edited transcript of the chat, which took place on Wednesday, January 17, 2001.

Tenth anniversary of the Gulf War: A look back
January 16, 2001
Missing U.S. pilot dead, Iraq insists
January 14, 2001
Iraq denies U.S. claims missing Gulf War pilot might still be alive
January 13, 2001

CNN.com In-Depth Speacials - Gulf War
Air Force Link
Precision Air Attack in the Modern Era
U.S. State Department
U.S. Department of Defense
Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (POW/MIA)
Gulf War Veteran Resource Pages
Frontline: Last Battle of the Gulf War - PBS
Browse GulfLINK Declassified Documents

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.