William Rouse 
July 13, 1996 
William Raymond Rouse, 54, Of Mesa Oaks Circle, Austin, Texas, Died Saturday 
In Austin.

A Giant Inclination 
Big Brothers-big Sisters Stands To Benefit From Annual Hill Climb

Sunday, July 14, 1996 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 





White House scandals bear irrefutable resemblance to Watergate &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Nobody wants to say it. Nobody wants to utter the word that keeps coming to
mind with each new revelation about Bill Clinton and his cheesy band of White &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; House roguesNobody wants to say it, but somebody needs to. So let's just
say it and get it over with: Watergate. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That's "Watergate," as in "Doesn't that FBI files scandal remind you of
Watergate?" &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Or: "The more I hear about that Whitewater business, the more it sounds
like Watergate." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Or: "Political dirty tricks? Enemies lists? White House coverups? Isn't
this the kind of stuff that caused Richard Nixon so much trouble in the
Watergate mess?" &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The ever-deepening, ever-widening river of suspicion that seems to be
swamping the Clinton administration these days does conjure up memories of
Watergate. The reason nobody wants to say so is that we don't know where all
this is leading. We don't to risk looking foolish if all the questions and
suspicions suddenly evaporate, leaving us with a nonscandal and a large, ugly
helping of egg on our face. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But there are similarities. The comparison is there, whether we talk about
it or not. Whether the Clintonites acknowledge it or not. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 What is particularly reminiscent of Watergate is the way the president and
his apologists have set out to brush aside every new allegation with a
countercharge of political mudslinging. And the way the media have set out to
downplay the story, shoving it toward the back of the newspaper each day and
giving it short shrift on the TV news. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Only recently, with the disclosure of a possible White House "enemies
list," have the mainstream media been forced to turn the spotlight on the
curious goings-on inside the White House. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That's the way it was with Watergate. A pair of unknown and unheralded
reporters for The Washington Post, Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward, were
churning out stories about the June 1972 Watergate break-in and its aftermath,
but nobody was paying any attention. Other papers sometimes picked up the
stories but rarely gave them prominent display. TV news barely seemed to
notice the emerging scandal. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Watergate was widely dismissed as a "third-rate burglary" and the
information that was trickling out to the public about such a seemingly
insignificant event made little or no impression on the nation's voters. In
November 1972, Nixon was re-elected by a landslide. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But Nixon had barely finished celebrating his greatest triumph before the
third-rate burglary began evolving into a constitutional crisis. The break-in
may have been no big deal, but it touched off a coverup that eventually caused
Nixon to become the first president to resign his office in disgrace. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Just think. If the American people had known before the 1972 election what
they found out later, they could have used the power of their votes to drive
Nixon from the presidency. The country could have been spared the endless
months of presidential lies and deceptions, the tribulation of impeachment
hearings, the anguish of Nixon's humiliating departure from the White House. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 This is where we're supposed to say: "Of course, Whitewater isn't
Watergate." Or: "It's far too early to suggest that Travelgate or Filegate is
in any way comparable to Watergate." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But you know what? Whitewater may yet turn out to be another Watergate.
Travelgate and Filegate may be every bit as felonious as the Watergate coverup
that bridged the gap between bureaucratic snafu and obstruction of justice. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 We don't know. But all the signs are there: the constant dissembling by the
president and his aides and, in this case, the president's wife; the
ever-changing explanations of events, and never a believable explanation in
the bunch; the relentless maneuvering to change the subject, to deflect
legitimate questions by sloughing them off as the byproducts of partisan
politics. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Yes, there is something eerily familiar about all this. We're not supposed
to say it, but what the heck. Let's say it one more time: It sort of reminds
you of Watergate, doesn't it? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Bill Thompson, former associate editor of The Times Leader, is a columnist
with the Fort Worth (Texas) Star-Telegram. Readers may write to him at the
Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 400 W. 7th St., Box 1870, Fort Worth, TX 76101. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

White House Scandals Bear Irrefutable Resemblance To Watergate 
Nobody Wants To Say It. Nobody Wants To Utter The Word That Keeps Coming To 
Mind With Each New Revelation About Bill Clinton And His Cheesy Band Of White 
House Rogues.

White House Scandals Bear Irrefutable Resemblance To Watergate Nobody Wants To Say It. Nobody Wants To Utter The Word That Keeps Coming To Mind With Each New Revelation About Bill Clinton And His Cheesy Band Of White House Rogues.