WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, December 7) -- Following the advice of top aides, Attorney General Janet Reno declined Monday to seek the appointment of an independent counsel to investigate President Bill Clinton's use of so-called "issue ads" during his 1996 re-election campaign.

At the end of a 90-day preliminary investigation by the Justice Department, Reno notified a special court that "there are no reasonable grounds to believe that further investigation is warranted" into the president's involvement in Democratic party-financed issue advertisements during the 1996 campaign.

"I find by clear and convincing evidence a lack of knowing and willful criminal intent required for criminal prosecution," Reno told the court. Clinton and Gore were advised by legal counsel that the advertising campaign complied with the law.

In a statement, the White House applauded Reno's decision. "As we have said all along, the president and the Clinton-Gore campaign complied with the spirit and the letter of the law. We are gratified by the decision," the statement said.

In September, Reno ordered the 90-day inquiry into accusations that Clinton illegally evaded federal spending limits by using unregulated advocacy ads to support his re-election campaign.

Reno's rejection of an independent counsel was widely anticipated after her top aides advised against the appointment, according to Justice Department sources.

Republican leaders immediately renewed their criticism of Reno's decision against the appointment. Rep. Dan Burton (R-Indiana), chairman of the House Government and Oversight Committee, said it was "deplorable that the attorney general has placed the president above the reach of the law."

Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pennsylvania), who has repeatedly demanded a wide-ranging investigation into Democratic fund-raising, also questioned Reno's decision.

"It is hard to understand how the attorney general would not move for appointment of independent counsel here under the law and the facts, where the specific and credible evidence has been set forth, where FBI Director Louis Freeh has long urged the appointment of independent counsel," Specter said.

The probe focused on whether the president was involved in wrongdoing in alleged coordination between spending on his re-election campaign and the Democratic Party-funded media campaign which, according to federal election laws, must be an independent effort aimed at promoting issues and party-building efforts.

Even with Reno's latest decision, the threat of an independent counsel to investigate campaign finance remains.

Reno has yet to decide whether to seek an outside probe of Harold Ickes, the former deputy White House chief of staff. On November 30, Reno requested and got a a 60-day extension to continue to review the Ickes' matter.

CNN has learned Carol Elder Bruce, the independent counsel investigating Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt, has sent Reno a letter requesting authority to fold Ickes into her ongoing probe.

Bruce is looking into if Babbitt lied to Congress about whether campaign donations influenced his department's decision to block an application for an Indian gambling casino.

Sources told CNN the Bruce letter may well persuade Reno to seek an independent counsel investigation of Ickes. That could lead to another Clinton nightmare -- a broad probe of alleged Democratic fund-raising abuses reaching directly into the White House.

CNN's Pierre Thomas and Terry Frieden and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Monday, December 7, 1998

• White House pledges a factual defense of Clinton
• Transcript: Reps. Hyde, Bono news conference
• Reno says no to Clinton 'issue ad' probe
• Poll: Public strongly opposed to impeaching Clinton
• Funeral Tuesday for Al Gore's father
• White House decked out for holidays
• Tripp will testify about FBI files
• President portrayed as busy with the people's business
• Americans can pick design for new dollar coin
• GOP moderates gaining influence in Congress
• Could campaign buttons become a thing of the past?
• Clinton proposes crackdown on Medicare abuses
• Minorities are divided on privatizing Social Security

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