Democracy Dies in Darkness
Retropolis

After impeachment acquittal, Bill Clinton was ‘profoundly sorry.’ Trump not so much.

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February 6, 2020 at 2:50 p.m. EST
Former president Bill Clinton and President Trump were both acquitted. Here’s how their first addresses following the trials compared. (Video: The Washington Post)

No one shouted “Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the United States!”

“Hail to the Chief” did not play.

There was no applause.

It was, essentially, a good news day for President Bill Clinton on Feb. 12, 1999; he had been acquitted in his impeachment trial. Still, when he took to the lectern in the Rose Garden, he was solemn.