Clinton's Testimony From The Second Whitewater Trial

Cast of Characters

Neal Ainley The government's star witness in the second Whitewater trial, Ainley was formerly president of Perry Bank and pled guilty to two misdemeanors. He told jurors he saw documents revealing that the defendants, Robert Hill and Herby Branscum, reimbursed themselves for political donations to Clinton's gubernatorial campaign. Defense attorneys dismissed Ainley as a scoundrel simply trying to cut a deal to get a lighter sentence for his own crimes.

Roger Altman Formerly deputy Treasury secretary, Altman resigned Aug. 29, 1994 following revelations he tipped the White House off to criminal referrals made by Resolution Trust Corp. investigators related to Madison Guaranty. Altman, a college friend of Clinton's, angered both Republican and Democratic senators after giving conflicting testimony about White House-Treasury contacts.

Richard Ben-Veniste was counsel for the Democratic members of the Senate Whitewater Committee.

Herby Branscum, Jr. A longtime political supporter of Bill Clinton, small-time banker Branscum was one of two defendants in the second Whitewater trial, charged with 11 counts of misusing bank funds for political purposes. The jury acquitted both Branscum and Robert Hill on four charges and deadlocked on the rest. Starr decided not to retry.

James Carville The Democratic strategist who helped orchestrate Clinton's 1992 campaign, Carville threatened in late 1996 to mount an aggressive campaign to counter what he has termed Starr's "Republican effort to harass the president, the first lady and their friends." Though he backed down a bit, Carville remains the Clintons' preeminent political pit bull.

Michael Chertoff The counsel retained by the Republican side of the Senate Whitewater probe, Chertoff is a New York lawyer specializing in government corruption cases. Democrats cried foul after Chertoff questioned the president's ethics during appearances on behalf of GOP nominee Bob Dole during the presidential campaign.

Bill Clinton The president has now testified under oath in two Whitewater cases tried by Starr and his team. In the first, Clinton steadfastly contradicted the government's star witness, banker David Hale, who said Clinton had pressured him to make an illegal $300,000 loan. After supporting Clinton's denial, James McDougal is reportedly now corroborating Hale. Starr is also investigating Travelgate (the Clinton Administration's firing of seven longtime travel office workers) and the FBI files flap (the improper collection of some 900 FBI background files). Did Clinton as president act improperly in these matters? Starr's team is trying to find out.

Hillary Clinton She made history as the only first lady to appear before a federal grand jury, which she did in January 1996 after being subpoenaed by Starr to help explain the mysterious appearance of her long-sought Whitewater billing records in a book room in the Clintons' White House residence. Mrs. Clinton is reportedly a major focus of Starr's investigation, and figures prominently in Whitewater, Travelgate, and the FBI files flap. What work she did as a Rose Law Firm lawyer on behalf of Jim McDougal's failed bank Madison Guaranty, as well as a sham transaction known as Castle Grande, continues to be scrutinized. Whether she attempted to obscure her role in the firing of the White House travel workers, or the hiring of Craig Livingstone (the former security chief who oversaw the collection of FBI files) is also a focus for Starr.

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