 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Mike McCurry's New Post
Watch This Video
| Windows Media |
  |
| QuickTime | |
| MPEG |
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|||
|
As White House Press Secretary for Bill Clinton, Mike McCurry bobbed and weaved his way though plenty of scandals…until Monica Lewinsky came along. The president’s private affairs became very public and it was Mike McCurry’s job to set the record straight. While much of the country lost faith in the president, McCurry clung to his. Beyond the klieg lights and sound bites, Mike McCurry found solace and support in his local United Methodist Church. Kim Riemland reports. |
|||
 |
|||
 |
New Items | Additional Stories | UMTV Brief | Archives | ||
SCRIPT:
(Clinton hugs Monica Lewinsky)
It was a scandal that shocked the world and created nightmares for the Clinton administration, including Press Secretary Mike McCurry.
Mike McCurry / Former Clinton Aide: “Early on I had to make a decision: Do I want to be accountable for explaining what Bill Clinton did as a human being? I couldn’t do that. Only he could do that.”
Clinton PBS interview: “It was not a sexual relationship. That is accurate.”
At a press conference the day after the President’s denial, McCurry fielded 148 questions in 36 minutes…every word carried live by the networks. The gut-wrenching pressure would last for months. McCurry’s only relief – the sanctuary of his local United Methodist Church.
Mike McCurry: “To have a quiet place for reflection and to think about what God was asking of me in that very trying moment, that was a connecting point for my faith that turned out to be absolutely critical.”
6 years later, McCurry is using his political experience to help his denomination.
Mike McCurry: “I thought I knew a lot about controversy and politics, and then, of course, I got elected to this job.”
McCurry is once again behind the podium, this time fielding questions from church members. As a first-time delegate to the United Methodist’s General Conference, he’s seeking input on a variety of church legislative issues.
Mike McCurry: “I think the one thing that I can bring to this conference is I do understand something about how to build consensus in politics.”
In the past year, the United Methodist Church has struggled with a number of hot button topics like homosexuality and the war in Iraq- divisions that mirror the country as a whole. Despite the controversies, McCurry believes the church will remain strong.
Mike McCurry: “I think we can do a it better and not end up as bitterly divided as our political system is if we remember that at the end of day-as Methodists, we all have one heart.”
TAG:
Now a communications consultant for corporations and non-profit groups, McCurry says people of faith have much to offer in the political arena. The key, he says, is understanding and reconciling differences and then finding common ground.