Former President Bill Clinton "may be having some second thoughts about the 79 oral history interviews" he gave to historian Taylor Branch during his presidency, USA Today reports.
"The former president has been on the phone with Branch for hours since he got page proofs of Branch's new book, The Clinton Tapes: Wrestling History with the President (Simon & Schuster), running 'hot and cold' about the account based on Branch's recollections of their conversations."
Said Branch: "I think it's fair to say he's nervous."
One of the more interesting incidents Clinton spoke about was about how Boris Yeltsin's "late-night drinking during a visit to Washington in 1995 nearly created an international incident. The Russian president was staying at Blair House, the government guest quarters. Late at night, Clinton told Branch, Secret Service agents found Yeltsin clad only in his underwear, standing alone on Pennsylvania Avenue and trying to hail a cab. He wanted a pizza, he told them, his words slurring."
"The next night, Yeltsin eluded security forces again when he climbed down back stairs to the Blair House basement. A building guard took Yeltsin for a drunken intruder until Russian and U.S. agents arrived on the scene and rescued him."
Another one if how Clinton had a "heated, two-hour discussion" with then-Vice President Gore just after Gore had lost the 2000 presidential election.
"The meeting started politely enough, Clinton recalled. Then Clinton, who felt underutilized during the 2000 campaign, told Gore he could have tilted the election to the Democratic side if he had been dispatched to stump in Arkansas or New Hampshire, both states in which Clinton was popular. Either state would have provided the electoral votes Gore needed to win."
Gore replied that Clinton's scandalous shadow was a 'drag' that had plagued Gore at every step of the campaign. The two 'exploded' at each other in mutual recrimination."
