Former President Bill Clinton used his opening remarks at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in New York on Tuesday to criticize President Trump's proposed triumphal arch and the effort to rename the Kennedy Center after him, arguing that global problems would be easier to solve if leaders cared less about who gets the credit.
Clinton, 80, took the lectern and quickly referenced Trump's recent announcement of a massive arch bridging Washington and Virginia that would include a "top grade military complex" to store drones. "I suppose I could take my entire allotted time to discuss the self-evident wisdom of building an Arc de Triomphe in Washington to hold all our drones," Clinton said to laughter. "Some of this stuff — it's hard to make up," he added.
The former president then turned to the Kennedy Center controversy, where a Trump-picked board has sought to add Trump's name to the institution and rename its campus. A federal judge blocked that effort last week. "I personally think that the way we've argued about what's going on at the Kennedy Center and all that kind of stuff — I think we've been majoring in the minors," Clinton said. "You really think 100 years from now anybody's going to care very much about whose name's on what building?" he asked. "Isn't it more important what happens in the building? And what happens outside the building?"
Clinton framed his remarks around the need for cooperation over conflict. "I feel so strongly — as I did 30 years ago-plus when I ran for president as a virtual child — that diversity is a positive thing, not a negative one," he said. "That cooperation works better than conflict, and that we could actually deal with just about every challenge we face, if we didn't care as much about who got the credit, and we made sure that we took care of the least of these."
Much of his address focused on artificial intelligence and a critique of zero-sum thinking among political leaders. "I believe that on the 250th anniversary of this country, we can't have a politics driven by zero-sum thinking: In order for me to win, you have to lose," Clinton said. He acknowledged why such an approach has become popular: "Nevertheless, I do understand why so many leaders around the world have chosen this zero-sum approach. Think how richly they have been rewarded for it in every sense of the word, and this payoff has been more apparent in the United States than any other country."
Without naming Trump, Clinton criticized the current administration's conduct. "Some days I can hardly believe what is happening in this country that I love so much. People in charge have created one set of rules for themselves and another set for everyone else," he said. "They've weaponized government to settle personal scores, prosecute enemies, stamp out free speech. They've even made the federal government a new profit center for themselves and their allies. That violates the spirit and letter of the Emoluments Clause of our Constitution."
Clinton's remarks come as Trump continues to reshape Washington's cultural and physical landscape, from the proposed arch to the Kennedy Center rebranding. The former president's criticism underscores a broader debate about presidential legacy and the use of government for personal aggrandizement.
As the 2024 election approaches, Clinton's speech signals that he intends to remain a vocal critic of Trump's policies and rhetoric. His focus on AI and zero-sum politics also highlights the global challenges that he believes require collaborative solutions.
For more on Trump's foreign policy, see his pledge to free Jimmy Lai and pressure to go bold on Taiwan. Additionally, Trump's recent UN speech on AI and his threats to Iran illustrate the high-stakes issues Clinton referenced.
