Perhaps the most astonishing display at the newly reopened William J. Clinton Presidential Center focuses on the 42nd president's skills in managing the federal budget.
In 2021, it is mind-boggling to be informed that Clinton and his administration actually achieved a $226-billion budget surplus for 2000, his last full year in the White House.
Given that this year's U.S. budget deficit is expected to hit $3 trillion, the crafting of a sizable surplus just two decades ago seems unbelievable. What's more, that $226 billion remains the largest yearly surplus in the nation's history. And it came just eight years after Clinton took office facing a $290 billion deficit.
Having opened again July 1, 15 months after the pandemic forced its closing, the Clinton Presidential Center and Park is welcoming a steady stream of tourists from Arkansas and other states. A few displays are still inoperative, but no masks are required. And the site's guides seem fully delighted to be back working at one of Little Rock's prime attractions.
"It's so good to see so many people enjoying themselves here again," says Ann Kamps, the center's manager of volunteer and visitor services. In an Arkansas Democrat-Gazette guest column last week, Kamps wrote: "Within the walls of the Clinton Center, we are reminded of who we were, who we are, and who we can be. Here, we can begin to grasp how our world's mistakes can be recognized so we do not make them again."
Like the dozen other U.S. presidential libraries and centers, dating as far back as Herbert Hoover, the Clinton Presidential Center aims to put the best possible construction on the life and actions of its White House laureate.
That's why visitors still curious about the Monica Lewinsky affair, which made headlines for the better part of a year, have to settle for a single alcove on the two floors of museum-style exhibits. Labeled "The Fight for Power," the lower-level display mentions the name "Monica Lewinsky" once in its impeachment account, which concludes with this summary:
"In September 1998, President Clinton acknowledged that he had not been forthcoming about the relationship. On this basis [Kenneth] Starr, the Republican Congressional leadership and their allies launched an impeachment drive that the overwhelming majority of constitutional scholars said was unjustified.
"The impeachment battle was not about the Constitution or rule of law, but was instead a quest for power that the President's opponents could not win at the ballot box. The constitutional crisis ended with the President's acquittal in the Senate."
Of interest to a much larger number of visitors are the trappings of the Clinton presidency, including eye-boggling displays of gifts and other memorabilia. Two favorite settings are replicas of the White House's Oval Office, decorated as it was during Clinton's 1993-2001 tenure, and the Cabinet Room.
Hillary Clinton's roles as an active first lady get substantial exhibit attention, along with less information on daughter Chelsea's teenage years in the White House. Also displayed are facts and photos for the presidential family's dog and cat, with this note:
"Like First Pets through history, Buddy and Socks were a large part of the White House family and the national family. They received hundreds of handmade gifts and more than 300,000 letters and e-mails from fans, mostly children."
Socks also have a place in the center's capacious ground-floor gift shop — not only in souvenirs bearing the image of the White House cat, but also in a rack of snug footwear. Clinton's presidential face adorns several sock patterns in a bipartisan selection that also features George H.W. Bush, the Republican chief executive defeated in 1992 by Arkansas' only president.
The William J. Clinton Presidential Center
- Location: 1200 President Clinton Ave., east of the River Market District
- Hours: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday
- Admission: $10 for adults; $8 for visitors 61 and older, college students with ID, and retired military personnel. Minors 6-17 pay $5. School groups are admitted free with advance reservations. Available as part of ticket prices are one-hour guided tours at 10:30 am. Wednesday and Saturday, as well as 1:30 p.m. Sunday. Advance online ticket purchase is encouraged.
- Information: Visit clintonpresidentilcenter.org or call (501) 374-4242.