Clinton Says Legacy Will Be Truth

In his first full-fledged news conference in nearly a year, President Clinton said Friday that the “box score” of his presidency will show “hundreds and hundreds” of times he was truthful and only “that one negative.”

The president was reflecting his optimistic belief that history will record his effort to cover up his relationship with Monica S. Lewinsky and his impeachment as a footnote in the context of his presidency.

Reminded that children are taught about the importance of telling the truth by learning about how George Washington refused to lie about chopping down a cherry tree as a child, Clinton was asked what lesson his presidency will teach future generations about lying.

“I think that what young people will learn from my experience is that even presidents have to [tell the truth] and there are consequences when you don’t,” he said.

Responding to questions on a wide range of topics, the president offered glimpses into his marriage and his family’s likely living arrangements after he leaves the presidency.

He tried to muffle a flurry of tabloid rumors that the first lady is so angry about Clinton’s dalliances that they are experimenting with a trial separation.

“I think we’re working hard. We love each other very much and we’re working at it,” he said.

Even before First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton began to consider running for the Senate in New York in 2000, the couple talked about living in that state after leaving the White House, Clinton said. But the president signaled that theirs may be a commuter marriage, saying that he plans to spend “a lot” of time in Little Rock, Ark., where his presidential library will be built.

On the question of whether Mrs. Clinton will run for the Senate, the president said that he still does not have “a clue” what her decision will be.

“If you asked me today whether I thought it was more likely or not that she would run or not run, I could not give you an answer,” he said.

Advisors to the first lady have said that she is unlikely to announce her intentions until June or July after a lengthy process of exploring her other options and assessing her prospects in New York.

On other topics:

* Clinton rebuffed the avalanche of criticism from Congress about his administration’s handling of alleged incidents of espionage before he took office and said that he has had no reports of such spying during his presidency.

“To the best of my knowledge, no one has said anything to me about any espionage which occurred by the Chinese against [U.S. nuclear weapon] labs during my presidency,” Clinton said.

The president appeared to make a slight rhetorical retreat from his policy of engagement with China by stressing that the United States must keep its “eyes wide open” and pursue a “no-illusions relationship with China.” Nonetheless, he said that his administration’s efforts to draw China out of its authoritarian shell through trade and exposure to the free world had fostered a “constructive” U.S.-China relationship.

* Asked whether he felt betrayed by tell-all books written by former high-ranking members of his White House staff, including George Stephanopoulos, Clinton said that he has “absorbed no pain” because he had not read them.

* He also lent support to Vice President Al Gore, who has been the brunt of jokes after telling Cable News Network 11 days ago that he “took the initiative in creating the Internet.”

“He came a lot closer to inventing the Internet than I did,” Clinton said with a laugh. And then he added that the vice president does deserve some credit: “You remember he was talking about the Information Superhighway 20 years ago and he did have a lot to do with supporting the development of it and supporting the government research that led to these developments.”

Then, trying to shed light on why Gore seems awkward talking about himself, Clinton said: “The vice president is, by nature, a reticent person when it comes to talking about his life and his background. . . .”

“But I can tell you this: I’ll be happy to toot his horn in terms of the years that we’ve worked together because there’s no question that he has been integral to all the good things that have happened.”

The president was willing to talk at length about topics ranging from Hillary Clinton’s qualifications for the Senate to the need for the United States to come to Russia’s assistance as it struggles to make its political and economic transition.

But he refused to discuss the Lewinsky scandal and impeachment process that imperiled his presidency for more than a year.

He also again refused to comment on allegations last month from Juanita Broaddrick, an Arkansas woman who said that he had sexually assaulted her 20 years ago when he was running for governor.

“Five weeks ago today, I stood in the Rose Garden, after the Senate voted, and I told you that I thought I owed it to the American people to give them 100% of my time and to focus on their business and that I would leave it to others to decide whether they would follow that lead,” Clinton said, referring to his statement after being acquitted by the Senate on impeachment charges brought by the House.