Clinton and Rather on 60 Minutes.

Clinton is a charming guy. I have no criticism of his 60 Minutes performance in pursuit of books sales--other than that he needs to control his use of imagery (and not use words like "swallow" and "stain" to refer to things like his daughter's acceptance of his affair with Lewinsky and the significance of the impeachment struggle). But what is happening to Dan Rather? Did Barbara Walters tutor him on how to do celebrity interviews? At my house, we were laughing quite a lot at Rather. He was speaking in an extra-slow, extra-sensitive way that might have been appropriate for addressing a child or (if you're Barbara Walters) trying to lead a celebrity down an emotional path that might end in tears. Mr. President, look at this clip of your dead mother, which you've never seen before, telling you how proud she always was of you! Too cloying, too ... mellified.



UPDATE: Instapundit says this might explain Rather's weird demeanor.