Word: starrs
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: during 1990-1999
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...House were the presumed culprits. They are the only players on the field adroit enough to pull off a p.r. play of this complexity--and the ones with the most to gain. The new details helped further numb the public to talk of sex in the Oval Office, kept Starr on the defensive with hints that he was the leaker and laid out the script for other witnesses to follow. This week, when Jones' lawyers argue why their case should go forward, they are sure to trot out the names of all the women who can point to a pattern...
Conveniently, the leak also provided another pretext for invoking executive privilege. You can hear the arguments already. Why let Clinton consigliere Bruce Lindsey testify if Starr is going to leak it? And here lies perhaps a most important motivation: slowing Starr's progress on Monica. The White House is fighting a two-front war. The first battle is the Jones trial: if Clinton prevails there, and his lawyers are confident that he will, he has a stronger case for defending himself against Starr. A victory over Jones would boost Clinton's image as the beleaguered victim and trivialize Starr...
...Starr's problem is that their stories had been converging for a week. What Lewinsky said in her affidavit, what Jordan said in his testimony, what Clinton swore in his deposition--the general shape of their narrative is the same: Lewinsky and Clinton had shared something less than sex but something more than a handshake; Jordan helped her get a job but not at the President's behest; there were gifts exchanged and visits made, but Currie was always somehow involved. "His complete denial a month ago looks now like the right approach," says a White House insider...
...privately. Was it five, as Clinton said in his account? Or more? The difference, said a lawyer, could be trouble. "If Monica's testimony is that they were alone 25 times, that's a tough statement. Can you believe anyone doesn't remember 25 times?" Which helps explain what Starr wants to know from Currie: How many visits does she recall? Were they during the day or late at night? Was Currie always there? Or almost never...
...private-sector job; the issue is why, and at whose behest? The stories, as told so far, are consistent. Currie made the approach to Jordan, which allows Clinton to maintain that he was passive in the job hunt and yet invited Jordan to work aggressively on her behalf. Starr is certain to press Currie this week on who instigated the effort and when...