Clinton abused the power of office

Human Events, Aug 28, 1998 by Hopkins, Kara

Cabinet

After the Lewinsky story broke, Clinton called a cabinet meeting where, according to Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, "The President started out by saying that the allegations are untrue, that we should stay focused on our jobs and that he will be fine." Four department heads emerged from that meeting eager to defend the President:

Secretary of Education Richard Riley: "I think what he [Clinton] thinks. . . I do. I absolutely do."

Secretary of State Madeleine Albright: "I believe that the allegations are completely untrue."

Secretary of Commerce William Daley: "I'll second that, definitely."

Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala: "I'll second that, too."

Sec. Daley: "Third it."

Sec. Shalala: "Third it."

White House Counsel's Office

On May 7, Ada Posey, director of the Executive Office of Administration, testified before a Senate subcommittee that the White House counsel's office employs 34 attorneys. By contrast, former White House Counsel C. Boyden Gray testified that during the Bush Administration the counsel's office averaged only 12 lawyers.

When asked how involved the counsel's office is in defending the President, Posey responded that the office can legally work on the case because it focuses "on the alleged conduct of the President during his tenure in office with respect to a White House employee." She also revealed that 40 White House employees have been asked to provide documents or testimony, and that "the counsel's office is responsible for responding on behalf of the White House to these demands."

White House Staff

On February 6, the New York Times reported that the President's secretary, Bettie Currie, told the grand jury that the day after he testified in the Paula Jones case, Clinton briefed her on his version of his relationship with Lewinsky, specifying that the two had never been alone. According to the Times, Currie testified truthfully that Clinton and Lewinsky had been alone together, and that she retrieved gifts given to the former intern by the President and turned them over to investigators.

In addition to making his secretary complicit in the coverup, Clinton also enlisted his closest advisors to publicly attest to his innocence. Presidential Counselor Rahm Emanuel said, "Did he have sex? No. Sexual relations? No." The President sent the same defense of his deceit through official channels. "He's never had any improper relationship with this woman," Press Secretary McCurry stated unequivocally on April 5.

These aides emerge with tarnished credibility, and other staffers also paid a tangible price in large legal bills incurred during the course of their grand jury testimony.

Department of Defense

Before Clinton and Lewinsky's relationship became a public scandal, but at a time when members of the White House staff clearly feared it could take that course, Clinton appointed Lewinsky to a political job at the Defense Department. On January 27, a spokesman for Lewinsky's White House supervisor, Deputy Chief of Staff Evelyn Lieberman, told the New York Times that Lieberman "had moved Ms. Lewinsky out of the White House because of inappropriate and immature behavior and inattention to work:' At the Pentagon, Lewinsky was given a Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI) clearance, the highest security clearance granted by the U.S. govemment despite the fact that she was covertly committing adultery with the Commander in Chief.