9/11 Commission Report:

“The failure of the strikes (cruise missile strikes in August 1998 against Afghanistan, Sudan), the “wag the dog” slur (slur: President Clinton fired the missiles just to deflect attention away from him being caught lying about the Monica Lewinsky affair), the intense partisanship of the period, and the nature of the al Shifa (pharmaceutical facility in Sudan hit with US missiles on concern it was producing nerve gas) likely had a cumulative effect on future decisions about the use of force against bin Ladin.” -911 Commission Report, page 135