by David Pipkin

Created on: February 26, 2007   Last Updated: April 27, 2007

I have intently listened while the democrats have attempted to portray this recent deal with North Korea as being the same deal Clinton offered in 1994. The truth is, as usual, a much different story.

At the time of the Clinton agreement with North Korea, columnist William Safire was trumpeting to anyone who would listen in both the print and visual media how badly this agreement worked against our interests. He said that this will be a problem that will 'blow up with the next administration .' Bill Clinton gave Kim Jong - Il the money, technology and the fuel for a nuclear development program, and the only thing he extracted from this evil dictator in return was his promise that he would not use it to develop nuclear weapons. Kim Jong - Il had already demonstrated his tendency towards evil, yet Bill Clinton decided to take him at his word. The agreement also assured that North Korea would not have to undergo weapons inspections for at least the first 5 years. This proved to be one of the all-time foreign policy blunders of the century.

The Bush deal is nothing close to the Clinton deal. We are not providing North Korea with any technology. We are offering them economic assistance provided they meet the stipulations of the agreement. The stipulations are that they stop development and allow inspectors in with full access. If these stipulations are not met, they get nothing.

I do agree with some Conservatives, such as John Bolton, that this agreement sends the wrong message to Iran. However, I think Bush did this to appease those democrats who insisted that he sit at the table with North Korea. We will see if Kim Jong - Il will meet the requirements and where this takes us, but this is nothing near as bad for the US as Clinton's 1994 agreement, or any of Clinton's many foreign policy blunders, for that matter.

This was a problem that was created for us by Bill Clinton. Clinton gave North Korea the power to become a major threat to America and the world, and they took advantage of what he gave them. Now Bush is forced to scramble to find a way to correct the Clinton mistakes in this visceral anti-war climate. Is there any doubt that the United States is being forced to contend with North Korea as a nuclear threat solely due to the foreign-policy blunders of the Clinton administration?

Clinton used to complain more than any other US president about the problems left to him by 'the previous administration.' He then proceeded to leave an unprecedented mess to the administrations that will follow him. Eight years in office, and he started to worry about "the Clinton legacy" in only his last nine months in office. We have witnessed the "Clinton Legacy" in the PATH TO 9-11 and in being forced to contend with a nuclear threat in North Korea.

True to his character, George W Bush has not complained at all about the problems he faces that were left to him by the 'previous administration' though he has had ample reason to do so. Bush is by no means perfect, but I believe we will see in 5 or 10 years - if that long - that the history books are going to be quite kind to the Bush administration regarding foreign policy, especially if we succeed in Iraq.

It is a real shame that the democrats have banked on us losing with the outcome so clearly undecided. It really leaves them in bad shape if America does succeed in Iraq, Iran and North Korea, doesn't it? Just desserts for the democrats' willingness to politicize anything and everything, including war, in their thirst for power.

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