Clinton on Sheehan

Bill Clinton was on Larry King Live last night. And he showed he is a decent human being. Bush, take notes.

CNN.com - Transcripts: "KING: Should the president have met with the lady who lost her son?

CLINTON: I think he'd seen her once before. You know, I think I would have but that's a question only he can answer.

KING: But you would have.

CLINTON: Yes, you know, I met with the people that I gave the Medal of Honor to, people who -- some people who were killed on Black Hawk Down and one of the fathers was very angry at me and I knew it. And he said some really rough things to me and...

KING: How do you handle that?

CLINTON: It wasn't easy but I thought I owed it to him. His son gave his life in the service of this country and this father served in Vietnam, was a veteran. I thought that he had the right to say to me whatever he wanted to say. There is no greater pain in life than having a child die before you.

There is nothing worse and I had sent his son into harm's way. And the thing was not managed as it should have been. And he was -- as far as I was concerned, he'd earned the right to say whatever he wanted to me. And if he felt better when it was over, then it was a precious little thing I could do is to take the heat coming in.

So that's the way I feel. But that's a decision that each president has to make, you know, because it's not like he can change the lady's opinion. I just -- I think, you know, when you send people into harm's way and you know there is going to be killing and dying, some people are going to be very unhappy. History will record whether she was right or he was right on the policy but on the human level, she lost her son and that's a tough thing."