Idea: "Monica Lewinsky Scandal" without Paula Jones

My idea is essentially this, as per historical reality, President Clinton has an affair with his intern, Monica Lewinsky, and that affair is somehow exposed in the media in his second term. However, in this alternate reality, the Paula Jones lawsuit never came to be, for whatever reason. Now I know there might be plausibility issues due to the passionate intensity of the more obsessed of the Clinton haters on the right, but for the moment let's imagine that the Paula Jones v. Clinton suit, and any similar lawsuit, simply never comes to be. How would this alternate "Lewinsky Scandal" play out? Or is the whole idea of Lewinsky's affair with Bill Clinton being exposed between 1997-1999 without a harassment lawsuit totally out of the question. Basically I'm wondering what would happen if Clinton's affair becomes public knowledge, but the affair is not even theoretical grounds for impeachment. Since he's never in a legal setting Clinton's denials could never be construed as perjury, because he's never actually under oath on the matter.
 
My idea is essentially this, as per historical reality, President Clinton has an affair with his intern, Monica Lewinsky, and that affair is somehow exposed in the media in his second term. However, in this alternate reality, the Paula Jones lawsuit never came to be, for whatever reason. Now I know there might be plausibility issues due to the passionate intensity of the more obsessed of the Clinton haters on the right, but for the moment let's imagine that the Paula Jones v. Clinton suit, and any similar lawsuit, simply never comes to be. How would this alternate "Lewinsky Scandal" play out? Or is the whole idea of Lewinsky's affair with Bill Clinton being exposed between 1997-1999 without a harassment lawsuit totally out of the question. Basically I'm wondering what would happen if Clinton's affair becomes public knowledge, but the affair is not even theoretical grounds for impeachment. Since he's never in a legal setting Clinton's denials could never be construed as perjury, because he's never actually under oath on the matter.


I have no opinion
 
The political theater of impeachment aside, I imagine (would anticipate) that many on both the right and the left would raise the issues of sexual harassment, sexual misconduct and abuse of (rank) authority/power.
 
Clinton needs to admit the affair with Lewinsky though. In this scenario, I could see the GOP doing better in '98 and a slim possibility of Gingrich remaining Speaker.

House: R + 10-15.

Senate: Feingold and Reid go down, Faircloth retains his seat.
 
Clinton needs to admit the affair with Lewinsky though. In this scenario, I could see the GOP doing better in '98 and a slim possibility of Gingrich remaining Speaker.

House: R + 10-15.

Senate: Feingold and Reid go down, Faircloth retains his seat.

Would he? Without the Jones v. Clinton suit, the Monica Lewinsky thing becomes much more deniable. There isn't going to be the same legal incentive to prove Clinton did indeed have an inappropriate relationship with Lewinsky. If the affair was something that was exposed in the media and not in the courthouse, would the definitive proof, the tell tale dress, ever end up a matter of public knowledge? And without the dress, and without all the impeachment mess, why wouldn't Clinton simply continue to deny that he had acted improperly until the end of his term, and possibly afterwards?
 
Would he? Without the Jones v. Clinton suit, the Monica Lewinsky thing becomes much more deniable. There isn't going to be the same legal incentive to prove Clinton did indeed have an inappropriate relationship with Lewinsky. If the affair was something that was exposed in the media and not in the courthouse, would the definitive proof, the tell tale dress, ever end up a matter of public knowledge? And without the dress, and without all the impeachment mess, why wouldn't Clinton simply continue to deny that he had acted improperly until the end of his term, and possibly afterwards?

The Vast Right Wing Conspiracy[SIZE=-4]tm[/SIZE] will make it so...

Ken Starr and the fourth branch of the federal government known as the Office of Independent Counsel.

Larry Klayman and the fifth branch of the federal government known as Judicial Watch.

Their weapons bearers in Hate Radio led by Rush (pass the Quaaludes) Limbaugh and Fixed News.

The Evil One (also known as Linda Tripp). Remember the tapes?

Cries of "Higher Standards for POTUS!" Of course, in America, we don't WANT men to lead us. We want popes. Even though Roman Catholics are only a plurality.:D

Impeachment done on grounds of "General Principles!" Clinton impeached on party-line vote. Senate has Trial. The only article submitted (constitutionally disliked by Newt and friends) fails on party line vote with several GOP defections to the Democrats. GOP defectors targeted for defeat by Republican leadership and the VRWC[SIZE=-4]tm[/SIZE].

1998 election results:

Democrats

+ 52 House seats (258-176)

+ 16 Senate seats (61-39)

Calculations for House seats based on projected Republican gains, doubling them, and then switching the parties

Calculations for Senate seats based on all Republican candidates OTL winning by less than 75% losing ITTL:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes: (except Carol Mosely-Braun is still losing to Peter Fitzgerald:p).

Democrats overreach and W elected President in 2000 by the biggest landslide in American history:eek::), carrying even the District of Columbia (after the Recount is finished:D). Everything after that is OTL.:(:(:(:( More or less.
 
I can't see things being all that different. While the Paula Jones lawsuit was certainly a major issue for President Clinton's detractors, Gennifer Flowers and Troopergate were still in existence, not to mention the constant rumors about other personal indiscretions on his part. Miss Jones was at best a character witness in the whole tawdry affair.
 
I can't see things being all that different. While the Paula Jones lawsuit was certainly a major issue for President Clinton's detractors, Gennifer Flowers and Troopergate were still in existence, not to mention the constant rumors about other personal indiscretions on his part. Miss Jones was at best a character witness in the whole tawdry affair.

Without Paula Jones, Clinton won't have to answer questions about Lewinsky under oath, and the affair isn't connected to a legal proceeding. That means that Clinton's denials can't be construed as perjury or obstruction of justice. Conceivably, you might get some Republicans wanting to impeach the President for "abuse of power", claiming that his affair with Lewinsky amounted to that. But if they do it'll look even more nakedly partisan than the real impeachment did. I mean the pro-conviction rallying cry was "It's not about the sex, it's about the perjury!" Paula Jones is the context of the historical impeachment and trial of President Clinton. Now, it's entirely possible that the rabid nature of some of Clinton's detractors will lead them to impeach him anyway, even without a perjury allegation or an allegation that Clinton obstructed justice by allegedly obfuscating his affair with Lewinsky from the Prosecutor in the Jones suit. But then again, they might equally be content to use the Lewinsky thing as a stick to beat Clinton over the head with while they attempt impeachment on some other issue. Or, there's at least some possibility that impeachment won't happen at all.
 
Without Paula Jones, the anti-sexual harassment movement stays strong longer. The argument that we should "believe the victim", ie that if a woman says she was harassed then that proves she was harassed, remains a lot more popular among Democrats when they're not having to call Paula Jones a liar.
 
No perjury, no impeachment, and the affair is perversely probably more damaging for Clinton because of it. A censure will probably be voted, and in contrast to OTL, it will be seen as a real black mark on his presidency.
 
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