WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, Sept. 11) -- First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton publicly backed her beleaguered husband Thursday night, praising his "leadership" and "unrelenting determination."

First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton

"I know that all of you are proud of what has been achieved in this administration and I'm very proud of the person I am privileged to introduce," said Mrs. Clinton, who introduced President Clinton at a dinner of the Democratic Business Council in Washington on Thursday night.

"I'm proud of his leadership, I am proud of his commitment, I am proud of what he gives our country and all of us every day by his commitment," she said.

Mrs. Clinton said she has "personally seen how hard he has worked. I've seen how he's responded day and day out to the challenges that face all Americans, and how he's given faith again to people all over our country that the American dream can mean what it should mean for people today and tomorrow."

Calm and assured, Mrs. Clinton recited a list of accomplishments, including the extension of health insurance to millions of uninsured children, improvement of schools and efforts to help secure peace in Northern Ireland.

"Day after day, I've seen his determination, his unrelenting determination to do what is best for America and for the children who will inherit our country," Mrs. Clinton said.

"None of what has been done in the last five and a half years to put our country on the right track, heading in the right direction for the future, could have been done without the leadership of one particular person," she said.

Mrs. Clinton said her husband had found "a new way to think about our country and its challenges, a new way to bring people together across all those divides that separate us and drain our energies."

The president appeared visibly moved by the first lady's remarks, giving her a brief hug before he took the stage.

"It's rare for me to feel that I am at a loss for words. I can only hope you know what I'm feeling -- for you and for my wife and for my country," Clinton said.

Friday September 11, 1998

• Starr report at a glance
• Early poll shows public wants Clinton to stay in office
• Starr report causes Internet slowdown, but no meltdown
• Newspaper editorials target Clinton scandal
• Dead candidate shakes up Oklahoma's U.S. Senate race
• Explosive Starr report outlines case for impeachment
• Congressional reaction muted
• Starr's 11 possible grounds for impeachment
• Legal analysts: Clinton rebuttal unconvincing
• White House rips into Starr's report
• Starr's report is just a start
• President: 'I have repented'
• Clinton apologizes to Cabinet
• The Starr investigation: At a glance
• Mrs. Clinton goes to bat for the president

Transcripts
• Clinton speaks to prayer breakfast

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