Greeted by a huge moving dinosaur, we mistakenly thought we had arrived at the Natural History Museum. Wrong. After a one thousand mile journey to Arkansas, we were actually at the front doors of the William J. Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock. We later learned that the dinosaurs were part of a world-wide traveling exhibit but were of some relevance for this Presidential Library. Bill Clinton's opening up of wide swaths of Federal land had led to many new dinosaur discoveries--including several located in Arkansas. Who knew?
The Library is housed in a rather imposing building. It was designed by James Polshek’s architectural firm (now Ennead Architects) and cantilevers out towards the Arkansas River--a homage to Bill’s “bridge to the 21st century” we were told.
The City of Little Rock “generously donated" some 30 acres of riverfront to accommodate Bill’s Presidential papers (amounting to 80 million pages of documents). But there was a slight catch. The land was a toxic wasteland full of old warehouses and assorted railway sidings approached from the other side of the river by a decrepit old bridge.
The Clintons have been accused of questionable land deals in the past but, unlike Whitewater, this one turned out just fine. They had to dig down 18 feet to remove all the toxic soil and then refill the whole area. The Library now has a Platinum LEED designation, is surrounded by well tended lawns and enjoys a wonderful view over the Arkansas River. The Library (and the park in which it is located) has attracted over $2 billion in private investment to the local economy and riverfront development.
We joined the 9.30AM guided tour which was included in our two senior tickets of $5.00 each. This is one hell of a deal compared to the $13 senior tickets to get into the Reagan Presidential Library! Our guide was wonderful. A lawyer by training, she knew absolutely everything about the history of the Library and anything vaguely associated with the Clintons and Bill's presidency. She had a charming Arkanas accent which had that same down home lilting quality which endeared Bill to so many people in America (while at the same time managing to drive the Republicans crazy).
We proceeded to tour the the two vast floors of the Library which were inspired by the Long Room at Trinity College Dublin in Ireland.
Each floor contains numerous galleries which deal with specific aspects of Clinton’s life and his presidency while the large displays on the ground floor show what was going on in the world during each of his eight years in power.
The first thing you realize when you begin to look around the Library is that this is not just the Bill Clinton Presidential Library--it is very much the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Library. Bill, for all his shenanigans, is part of a very tight, ambitious, family trio. There is a remarkable display of family photos throughout the Library and many feature all three Clintons--from Bill’s days as Governor of Arkansas, through the 1992 and 1996 presidential campaigns right up to their departure on Airforce One in January 2001. This was just one of many intimate family photos scattered around.
Bill Clinton was the 42nd Governor of Arkansas and the 42nd President of the United States. He seemed to be drawn to politics from an early age. There is the famous photo of him gazing up at President Kennedy when he was a boy of 14; but I had never seen this photo of Bill campaigning for George McGovern. He looks like Elvis Presley after a bad shampoo....and that tie!
We started in the Cabinet Room where everyone got to sit at the Cabinet table. Regee sat in the Secretary of State’s seat, right next to the President’s seat, which is two inches taller than all the other seats. I did not learn at boarding school that the seating arrangements (in terms of proximity to the President) were based upon when an executive Department was created--State, War, Treasury, Attorney General etc). Now I know.
We moved on to the Oval Office--or, at least, an exact replica of Bill’s Oval Office. We do have a cheesy photo, taken by an official photographer, of Regee and me in the Oval Office but we will not inflict that upon you. The photo below gives you a better idea of the most powerful office in the world.
There were over forty galleries which ranged from World Affairs and economics to Presidential memorabilia (yes, Bill’s saxophone was there) and a very moving gallery on the Little Rock Nine which was one of the transformative events in Bill Clinton’s early life when Federal troops had to protect black students attending a de-segregated high school in Little Rock.
The big display boards on the ground floor were fascinating because you can see what was happening around the world in every year of the eight years of Clinton’s presidency--from genocide in Rwanda and war in Bosnia and Kosovo to impeachment and meetings with the great figures of that time, most notably Nelson Mandela who gave a powerful video tribute to Clinton at the time of the opening of the Library in 2005. I don’t think Obama has cultivated quite the same personal relationships with world leaders; and I doubt that Bibi or Vladimir will be paying any tributes at the opening of Obama’s Presidential Library (in Hawaii or Chicago)?
It is only when you look at all the goofy photos of Bill’s first campaign in 1992 that you realize just how unlikely he was to succeed against an incumbent President who was still basking in the glory of Desert Storm. ("Bill Who?" was the common refrain in those early days, I seem to remember). However, he (and Hillary) started a totally new form of campaigning and got right down to the basics of how to win an election with a vast grass roots operation run out of Arkansas by a highly dedicated group of volunteers.
Soon there will be a successor to President Obama and we have no idea at the moment who that might be. But there was little doubt looking around the Library that there is yet another Clinton waiting in the wings; and that the next Clinton generation is being carefully groomed. I am definitely not into dynasties but the big display below left you in no doubt the “The Work Continues”.
We spent many hours there poking around the various galleries, looking at photos, showcases, documents and absorbing facts that we had either forgotten or never knew. But after about four hours we were growing weary (sorry, Bill) but there was one last little surprise--a first class restaurant in the basement of the Library; and that’s where we headed when our legs were about to give out.
On the way out, there was a map full of red pins showing where visitors to the Library had come from. We could not find any room around the Washington D.C. area to place our pin so put it into a little town called Chewelah, Washington State, near where my Annual Road Trip buddy Rich Schatz lives.
The red pins sort of define where the country is right now but it doesn’t tell you how the overall vote might go in 2016. However, I can’t think of any group that Donald Trump and, by association the Republicans, have not offended yet. Which makes me wonder whether there is still room for another Presidential Library on the banks of the slow moving Arkanas River?
And just to work off our lunch, I made Regee walk across the bridge and back again so that we could see what that decrepit old bridge to the 21st century was all about.....
The Library is housed in a rather imposing building. It was designed by James Polshek’s architectural firm (now Ennead Architects) and cantilevers out towards the Arkansas River--a homage to Bill’s “bridge to the 21st century” we were told.
The City of Little Rock “generously donated" some 30 acres of riverfront to accommodate Bill’s Presidential papers (amounting to 80 million pages of documents). But there was a slight catch. The land was a toxic wasteland full of old warehouses and assorted railway sidings approached from the other side of the river by a decrepit old bridge.
The Clintons have been accused of questionable land deals in the past but, unlike Whitewater, this one turned out just fine. They had to dig down 18 feet to remove all the toxic soil and then refill the whole area. The Library now has a Platinum LEED designation, is surrounded by well tended lawns and enjoys a wonderful view over the Arkansas River. The Library (and the park in which it is located) has attracted over $2 billion in private investment to the local economy and riverfront development.
We joined the 9.30AM guided tour which was included in our two senior tickets of $5.00 each. This is one hell of a deal compared to the $13 senior tickets to get into the Reagan Presidential Library! Our guide was wonderful. A lawyer by training, she knew absolutely everything about the history of the Library and anything vaguely associated with the Clintons and Bill's presidency. She had a charming Arkanas accent which had that same down home lilting quality which endeared Bill to so many people in America (while at the same time managing to drive the Republicans crazy).
We proceeded to tour the the two vast floors of the Library which were inspired by the Long Room at Trinity College Dublin in Ireland.
Each floor contains numerous galleries which deal with specific aspects of Clinton’s life and his presidency while the large displays on the ground floor show what was going on in the world during each of his eight years in power.
The first thing you realize when you begin to look around the Library is that this is not just the Bill Clinton Presidential Library--it is very much the Bill, Hillary and Chelsea Clinton Library. Bill, for all his shenanigans, is part of a very tight, ambitious, family trio. There is a remarkable display of family photos throughout the Library and many feature all three Clintons--from Bill’s days as Governor of Arkansas, through the 1992 and 1996 presidential campaigns right up to their departure on Airforce One in January 2001. This was just one of many intimate family photos scattered around.
Bill Clinton was the 42nd Governor of Arkansas and the 42nd President of the United States. He seemed to be drawn to politics from an early age. There is the famous photo of him gazing up at President Kennedy when he was a boy of 14; but I had never seen this photo of Bill campaigning for George McGovern. He looks like Elvis Presley after a bad shampoo....and that tie!
We started in the Cabinet Room where everyone got to sit at the Cabinet table. Regee sat in the Secretary of State’s seat, right next to the President’s seat, which is two inches taller than all the other seats. I did not learn at boarding school that the seating arrangements (in terms of proximity to the President) were based upon when an executive Department was created--State, War, Treasury, Attorney General etc). Now I know.
We moved on to the Oval Office--or, at least, an exact replica of Bill’s Oval Office. We do have a cheesy photo, taken by an official photographer, of Regee and me in the Oval Office but we will not inflict that upon you. The photo below gives you a better idea of the most powerful office in the world.
There were over forty galleries which ranged from World Affairs and economics to Presidential memorabilia (yes, Bill’s saxophone was there) and a very moving gallery on the Little Rock Nine which was one of the transformative events in Bill Clinton’s early life when Federal troops had to protect black students attending a de-segregated high school in Little Rock.
The big display boards on the ground floor were fascinating because you can see what was happening around the world in every year of the eight years of Clinton’s presidency--from genocide in Rwanda and war in Bosnia and Kosovo to impeachment and meetings with the great figures of that time, most notably Nelson Mandela who gave a powerful video tribute to Clinton at the time of the opening of the Library in 2005. I don’t think Obama has cultivated quite the same personal relationships with world leaders; and I doubt that Bibi or Vladimir will be paying any tributes at the opening of Obama’s Presidential Library (in Hawaii or Chicago)?
It is only when you look at all the goofy photos of Bill’s first campaign in 1992 that you realize just how unlikely he was to succeed against an incumbent President who was still basking in the glory of Desert Storm. ("Bill Who?" was the common refrain in those early days, I seem to remember). However, he (and Hillary) started a totally new form of campaigning and got right down to the basics of how to win an election with a vast grass roots operation run out of Arkansas by a highly dedicated group of volunteers.
Soon there will be a successor to President Obama and we have no idea at the moment who that might be. But there was little doubt looking around the Library that there is yet another Clinton waiting in the wings; and that the next Clinton generation is being carefully groomed. I am definitely not into dynasties but the big display below left you in no doubt the “The Work Continues”.
We spent many hours there poking around the various galleries, looking at photos, showcases, documents and absorbing facts that we had either forgotten or never knew. But after about four hours we were growing weary (sorry, Bill) but there was one last little surprise--a first class restaurant in the basement of the Library; and that’s where we headed when our legs were about to give out.
On the way out, there was a map full of red pins showing where visitors to the Library had come from. We could not find any room around the Washington D.C. area to place our pin so put it into a little town called Chewelah, Washington State, near where my Annual Road Trip buddy Rich Schatz lives.
The red pins sort of define where the country is right now but it doesn’t tell you how the overall vote might go in 2016. However, I can’t think of any group that Donald Trump and, by association the Republicans, have not offended yet. Which makes me wonder whether there is still room for another Presidential Library on the banks of the slow moving Arkanas River?
And just to work off our lunch, I made Regee walk across the bridge and back again so that we could see what that decrepit old bridge to the 21st century was all about.....
No comments:
Post a Comment