The "Midlife Crisis" That Could Have Sunk A Presidency

According to Carl Bernstein's new book "A Woman in Charge: The Life of Hillary Rodham Clinton," in 1988 then-Governor Bill Clinton considered ending his marriage so he could be with his mistress. Bernstein writes that Betsey Wright, Clinton's chief of staff, attributed this to one of our favorite topics here at LifeTwo: midlife crisis:

Wright noted, “there was an adrenaline cutoff immediately, and the funk after that. I mean, he just thought his life was over. There was nothing else for him to do. And he was nutty . . . reckless. I couldn’t get his attention in the office of the governor. He was tired and burnt out on being governor. There wasn’t anything to capture his interest in the job. He really got careless with fooling around.”

Wright concluded toward the end of 1988 that Bill was “having a severe midlife crisis.”

(link to Times of London excerpt from the book)

Governor Clinton apparently sounded out fellow governors and others about the impact a divorce might have on his prospects, including the presidential run he longed for but had already had to abort once in the aftermath of the 1988 Gary Hart scandal. Had he followed through, it's difficult to imagine his party nominating and his country electing a recently divorced man who'd left behind his wife and child (Chelsea Clinton was eight in 1988) for his mistress.

Of course, that didn't happen. According to Bernstein, "Hillary and Bill decided they would work at saving their marriage and his political career; it was a commitment, and Bill understood his obligations not to be unfaithful. Betsey Wright’s interpretation was that there was a 'negotiation.'"

Wright is wrong in her diagnosis of "midlife crisis" precipitating Bill Clinton's restlessness. It's true that Governor Clinton had just seen his hopes of running for the Presidency dashed -- or at least postponed -- and this career disappointment may have left him at sea. But while many people reassess their priorities after a major life event -- a "midlife assessment" rather than a crisis -- that's not what happened.

Rather, Bill Clinton continued a preexisting behavior pattern -- Bernstein makes clear that infidelity was not new to Bill Clinton. His behavior certainly can't be blamed on his reaching a certain age.

Wright's comment is representative of the desire that many understandably have -- to look for a simple, all-encompassing explanation for a friend or loved one's behavior. For many, "midlife crisis" is an easier answer than facing what's really going on. The superficial answer may leave everyone nodding their head in agreement, and may even be helpful -- since people think of it as a phase, and the passage of time alone often lets people work through their problems. But if one wants answers, "midlife crisis" alone is not a diagnosis -- you have to go deeper.

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To Bill and Hillary Clinton's credit, they apparently worked through whatever problems they were having in the late 1980s. See our "Divorce Often Doesn't Make People Happier ... Sometimes Staying Together Does" to learn more about couples whose marriages could have gone either way.