White House Fights to Block Testimony in Presidential Affair Investigation

The White House is making a final push to block prosecutors from questioning President Bill Clinton's long-time confidant Bruce Lindsey about an alleged presidential affair and cover-up. Lindsey, a deputy White House counsel, has unmatched knowledge of the President's activities in Little Rock and Washington, dating back 30 years. The White House lawyers are scrambling to buy enough time for the Supreme Court to consider whether the lawyer-client privilege shields Lindsey from questions about his conversations with Clinton. In Toronto, independent counsel Kenneth Starr sidestepped discussion of the investigation at a meeting of the American Bar Association, saying "We are trying to move forward as quickly as possible." Meanwhile, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has turned down a White House effort to keep Lindsey from being summoned before Starr's grand jury until the U.S. Supreme Court decides whether to get involved in the dispute.

Key Takeaways:

• The White House is fighting to block prosecutors from questioning Bruce Lindsey about the alleged presidential affair and cover-up.
• Lindsey has unmatched knowledge of President Clinton's activities in Little Rock and Washington, dating back 30 years.
• The lawyer-client privilege is at the center of the dispute, with the White House seeking to protect Lindsey's conversations with Clinton.
• The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has turned down a White House effort to keep Lindsey from being summoned before Starr's grand jury.
• Starr's office has denied releasing any information improperly, and he has accused the President's lawyers of accusing him of illegal leaks.
• The investigation into the alleged affair has been ongoing for several months, with Starr broadening his inquiry in January to include whether the President lied under oath and urged others to lie in Paula Jones's sexual-harassment lawsuit against him.
• The President has agreed to testify Aug. 17 via closed-circuit television before Star's grand jury, putting him in a position of recanting his earlier denial or contradicting Monica Lewinsky's most recent description of their relationship.
• The cost of the inquiry has been estimated at $44-million (U.S.) so far.

Statistics:

• 30 years: the length of time President Clinton and Bruce Lindsey have been friends.
• 44 million (U.S.): the estimated cost of the inquiry so far.
• 1997: the year Lanny Breuer, the President's special counsel, joined the White House staff.
• 4 years: the amount of time Kenneth Starr has been investigating President Clinton's business dealings in Arkansas.

Sources:

• The Washington Post, date unknown.
• The New York Times, date unknown.
• The Chicago Tribune, date unknown.
• The Toronto Globe and Mail, date unknown.
• The American Bar Association, date unknown.