Bill Clinton Can't Help Himself

During the Lewinsky days, the word "compulsive" was often applied to Bill Clinton's behavior, and the former President seems intent on reviving memories of the disappointment even his most ardent admirers felt back then.

Now, stumping for his wife in North Carolina after being chastened for his South Carolina comments comparing Barack Obama to Jesse Jackson, here he is doing a little McCarthyesque turn to pile on her opponent's Jeremiah Wright problem by suggesting Obama is something less than a true patriot.

"I think it would be a great thing," Clinton said yesterday, "if we had an election year where you had two people who loved this country and were devoted to the interest of this country. And people could actually ask themselves who is right on these issues, instead of all this other stuff that always seems to intrude itself on our politics."

What can this man be thinking? Has he been watching too many screenings of "Primary Colors?" Is he so devoted to winning at all costs that nothing else matters? Or is he so jealous of Obama's appeal as a moral figure that he can't help trying to tear him down?

It would be a "great thing," Mr. President, if you would just put a cork on it before you start making George W. Bush look like a figure of probity.