General Accused of Ridiculing Clinton in Speech at Banquet

A two-star Air Force general is being investigated on charges that he ridiculed President Clinton as a “gay-loving,” “pot-smoking,” “draft-dodging” and “womanizing” commander in chief at a banquet for U.S. Air Force personnel in the Netherlands.

Maj. Gen. Harold N. Campbell has been accused of making the derogatory remarks during a speech he gave to 250 people at a May 24 awards ceremony for Air Force maintenance workers stationed at Soesterberg Air Base in the Netherlands, Air Force officials said in response to an inquiry Monday.

During the weekend, a three-star Air Force general arrived in Europe to investigate the allegations, which, if true, could constitute a violation of military law prohibiting “contemptuous” comments by officers about their civilian leaders.

More broadly, the case could prove embarrassing to military leaders and the Clinton Administration by again spotlighting the strong undercurrent of suspicion, even hostility, some military personnel continue to feel toward their new commander in chief.

Despite efforts on both sides to improve relations, officers and enlisted men and women have voiced strong reservations about Clinton’s background as an anti-war protester, his program of defense cuts and his unpopular efforts to lift the ban on homosexuals in uniform.

Air Force officials Monday acknowledged that Clinton remains a controversial figure in the military, but they insisted that the remarks attributed to Campbell do not reflect widely held views.