Reno Makes Her Case For Slow Course

She refuses to give details on probe; 'We need to do it right,' she tells House Judiciary Committee

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, Oct. 15) -- Before a congressional panel, Attorney General Janet Reno today steadfastly defended her cautious approach in deciding whether to request independent counsels in the face of Republican charges that her probe "bristles with conflicts of interest."

Reno was called before the House Judiciary Committee, nominally for a general oversight hearing, but it turned into a daylong inquiry into her investigation of the president and vice president's fund-raising.

"This is a massive investigation and we must proceed about our case in an orderly manner," Reno told the panel. What's taking her so long? "We need to do it right," she said.

Reno said repeatedly that she could not disclose details of pending investigations. "If I could tell you what was being done, I think you would feel much more comfortable," she said.

She would say that no part of the investigation will be "closed out" unless both she and FBI Director Louis Freeh agree. Reno pledged that she would "pay no attention whatsoever to politics or pressure" in her probe.

In his opening statement, panel chairman Henry Hyde (R-Ill.) said the investigation "bristles with conflicts of interest" and asserted that based on opinion polls, the "average American wants an independent counsel."

Reno disagreed with what she said was the implication that law-enforcement officials should take their direction from public opinion surveys.

Early on, James Sensenbrenner (R-Wis.) asked Reno whether Clinton's praise of disgraced fund-raiser John Huang on the latest round of released White House tapes suggested a criminal act.

Reno sharply disputed the implication. "To suggest that is to engage in the rumor and innuendo that we try to avoid in the Department of Justice to make sure that the power of the federal government is not directed at people in an unwarranted manner," she said coldly.

"But, Madam Attorney General," replied Sensenbrenner, "that's the kind of thing that's destroying your credibility." (320K wav sound)

Rep. Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-Texas) took issue with the tenor of Sensenbrenner's questioning, asking Hyde, "Are we in a position authorized to challenge the credibility of the witness who is not here under criminal prosecution?" (448K wav sound)

Frank: 'Lock us all up'

Ranking minority member John Conyers passed the baton to Massachusetts Democrat Barney Frank to get the Democratic questioning going.

Frank ridiculed a recent letter House Republicans sent to Reno accusing the president of, among other things, bribery, for declaring land in Utah a national monument.

He also called into question the allegation that a law was broken because someone Vice President Al Gore called for a contribution felt "pressured." Frank said every member of Congress was in a similar spot.

"If everybody who one of us called and didn't want us to call them triggered an indictment, you could just put bars outside, and lock us all up," Frank said. (416K wav sound)

The hearing began with a videotape of testimony Reno gave in 1993 when the independent counsel act was reauthorized, during which she sung the praises of such counsels. "There is an inherent conflict whenever senior executive branch officials are to be investigated by the Department of Justice," she said then.

Reno acknowledged that some say she is inherently conflicted when investigating the president. "Nothing is further from the truth," she said, and quipped, "If I don't have this job, I go back to Miami, and now that we have a World Series team, that has some merit, too."

When Rep. Bill McCollum (R-Fla.) asked, "Can you tell us why the American people should believe you when you say you're going to pursue every lead?" Reno bristled and replied, "Nobody has been stopped from pursuing any course of action."

She added it would be a mistake for members of Congress to second-guess how the investigation is being conducted because they "don't understand all the information that is before us."

On numerous occasions, Reno said she is not allowed to discuss the details of an ongoing investigation. When Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) asked if the investigation included investigating anyone in the administration for obstruction of justice, Reno said, "I can't discuss it."

Members sparred early on about Hyde's refusal to allow the 30-plus members of the committee to give opening statements.

California Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters argued that some members had come great distances on short notice to attend the hearing -- the House itself is in recess this week -- and members should be given the opportunity to be heard.

But Hyde refused. "We have a very long day ahead of us," he said. Hyde said his plan was to give each member 10 minutes per round to question Reno, and he hoped to have more than one round.

In Other News:

Wednesday Oct. 15, 1997

• Reno Makes Her Case For Slow Course
• White House Releases More Tapes
• Clinton Addresses Economic Inequality In South America
• Jones Attorney Probes Clinton's Sexual History

E-mail From Washington:
• New York City To Challenge Line-Item Veto
• U.N. Ambassador Richardson To Visit Congo