Politics

Blair–Clinton transcripts: Bill Clinton's charm is always on

Blair wanted friends who could "make things happen", and the then-President was the ultimate prize

January 11, 2016
Former President Bill Clinton, left, introduces former British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the announcement of the formation of the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, New York, May 2008. ©Richard Drew/AP
Former President Bill Clinton, left, introduces former British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the announcement of the formation of the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, New York, May 2008. ©Richard Drew/AP


Former President Bill Clinton, left, introduces former British Prime Minister Tony Blair at the announcement of the formation of the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, New York, May 2008. ©Richard Drew/AP

Anyone who has met Bill Clinton knows how charismatic he is. The intense focus he gives to you and you alone–for however short a time–is captivating and indeed seductive. His charm is real and apparently always on. The voice is personal and informal. You know that he does this to everyone but you feel that this time it is special–he really means it for you. It is an unforgettable experience.

I remember a hard-bitten Westminster lobby hack talking about the first time Clinton did a press conference with Blair. The press pack accompanied Tony Blair to the US and they all had a hugely high opinion of Blair and his communication skills. But Clinton–"he was like Superman compared to the PM".

The Clinton-Blair relationship is back in the news with the Clinton Presidential Library's release of redacted transcripts of their phone calls and meetings from May 1997 to December 2000. This is a fascinating haul for anyone with an interest in politics.

There is a lot about the Northern Ireland peace process. This gives a good flavour:

Prime Minister Blair: Hello. (U) The President: Hello, Tony. (U)

Prime Minister Blair: Hi. Thanks for calling me. [Redacted]

The President: Sounds like what we did in Bosnia.

Prime Minister Blair: [Redacted]

The President: I heard it all. It sounded good to me. I like this idea of third-party verification. That way the IRA keeps the nominal title to their weapons, so they didn't decommission, but they did.

Prime Minister Blair: Exactly.

The President: I like it. If the IRA will take it, it's a good deal. Then you’ll put the government back up as soon as soon as possible?

Prime Minister Blair: Right. [Redacted]

The President: How about "Formerly Royal Police Service?"

Prime Minister Blair: [Redacted]

The President: You don't want me to call Gerry or Martin now?

Prime Minister Blair: [Redactted]

The President: That's good.

Prime Minister Blair: There we are. We're trying our best. I [Redacted]

The President: Well, I like this very much. I always thought the only way around this conundrum was something like secure storage with third-party verification. I think that's about the best we can do right now. It is going to come down to whether both believe it would be a crying shame to let May come and go and basically junk the Good Friday Accord.

Prime Minister Blair: [Redacted]

The President: You'll find a way, and I'll be glad to call them. We've kept in touch with their people. You've got a really good proposal. I don't see how you could make it better than it is.

Prime Minister Blair: [Redacted]

The President: Anything else? (U)

Prime Minister Blair: No. I will keep in close touch, if I may.

The President: You can call me in the middle of the night if you want, if this thing gets hot. You know I care deeply about it. I will do what I can.

Prime Minister Blair: If you don't mind, I may have to do that.

The President: Okay, I'm eagerly looking forward to it. Okay, bye. (U)

Prime Minister Blair: Okay.A lot of what is redacted here is basically in the public domain now. The way the peace process was made to work has been written about a lot. But the closeness of the personal relationship comes across well.

Some of the conversations, of course, will give lots of pleasure to the world’s conspiracy theorists: Prime Minister Blair: [Redacted] The President: Whew. Well, yes. We're making a little progress on the Africa trade bill. (gap) I may run over to Nigeria in a few months.

Prime Minister Blair: [Redacted]

The President: But better gay than sad.

Prime Minister Blair: [Redacted]

The President: But I think we've given a lot of evidence.

Prime Minister Blair: [Redacted]

The President: If you are, you've; got a hell of a cover-up! You are doing the best you can do.

Prime Minister Blair: Okay, Bill. (U)

The President: Thank you, man. (U)

Prime Minister Blair: Bye. All the best.

But the thing which has caught the public imagination is the surreal nature of some of the conversations: The President: We will be doing our best to stick with you -- you have a big dog in this hunt.

Ambassador Crowe: That is an Arkansas expression. (U)

The President: They hunt with dogs here too; I went beagling once. (U)Or the best one, about John Prescott and bananas:

The President: Nice to hear your voice. Al had a wonderful time. (U)

Prime Minister Blair: It was great. He went down well. He was fantastic with all the New Deal programs. He met with all those business people. The unemployment program was really impressive. I thought it was a good visit and he was fantastic on it. (U)

The President: He also liked when he went into Precott’s office and the only decoration was a bowl of bananas. I heard all about it. He was very happy. (U)

Prime Minister Blair: I hope we get all that sorted out. (U)

The President: My staff won't let me talk to you unless I have a banana at hand. I'm sitting here with a banana; it's a big, ugly, brownish one. (U)

Prime Minister Blair: Now Bill, I thought we should have a word about Kosovo.

This led to a marvellous parody by Michael Spicer. These deadpan classics about why Leeds Castle is in Kent not Leeds and how punching a ham relieves tension went viral–and some were taken in by them. They were very good in both mimicking the format of the minutes and the down-home, "Bubba" style of Clinton himself.

But in the end the point is the relationship. Blair put it well in a show he did with Matt Forde. Politics is the same at every level. There are the bores and the obsessives, the people who always want to talk about anything and add nothing. And then there are the people who have the power, the knowledge, the connections to make things happen–you identify them, says Blair, and you make friends with them. As these phone transcripts make clear he did that with President Clinton and the President was a good friend to have.