Clinton Aide Contradicts Willey

Willey and Clinton

WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, March 16) -- An allegation by former White House volunteer Kathleen Willey that President Bill Clinton groped her in 1993 and later lied about it under oath is at odds with Willey's eagerness to be part of Clinton's 1996 re-election effort, a presidential aide told CNN on Monday.

Excerpts from Kathleen Willey and President Bill Clinton depositions.

A statement released by the White House on Sunday after Willey went public with her allegation in a television interview said Clinton is "bewildered by her allegation."

On Monday, White House Communications Director Ann Lewis said she had a "personal experience of my own which confirms the president's statement."

White House spokeswoman Ann Lewis interviewed on CNN

Lewis told CNN she recalled meeting Willey in 1996 when Lewis was deputy manager of the Clinton-Gore re-election campaign. "(Willey) came to see me several times," Lewis said in a live interview.

"She told me how much she wanted to work for the president, how much she wanted to be part of the campaign team (and) if it could not be with the campaign, then, perhaps, at the Democratic National Committee, supporting the campaign." (333 K / 30 sec. AIFF or WAV sound)

Ann Lewis

Lewis: Willey was 'proud' of Clinton link

"Kathleen Willey told me then how proud she was that she had worked for the president in 1992," Lewis said. "She was very positive about his achievements and that she had spent time working at the White House."

In an interview broadcast Sunday night on CBS' "60 Minutes," Willey said that she and Clinton were in his private study off the Oval Office in 1993 when Clinton embraced her tightly, kissed her on the lips, fondled her breasts and then placed her hand on his genitals.

She said the advances were unwelcome, that she did nothing to signal Clinton that she might be interested in a sexual encounter and that the president was aroused.

"I just remember thinking, 'What in the world is he doing?'" she said. "I was just startled."

"I thought, well, maybe I ought to give him a good slap across the face. And then I thought, I don't think you can slap the president of the United States like that," Willey said.

On Monday, Lewis said she was "very surprised" at what Willey said in the interview, "because I felt my own personal experience really contradicted what I saw and heard her say."

Willey, who was a White House volunteer at the time of the alleged encounter, was not immediately available to respond to Lewis' comments.

Monday March 16, 1998

• White House Strikes Back At Willey
• Willey v. Clinton: Who's Lying?
• Gore Receives First Endorsement Of 2000 Race
• Arrest Made In Connection With So-Called Kennedy Papers
• Densuk's Grand Jury Appearance Delayed
• White House Releases Willey Letters
• Clinton Aide Contradicts Willey
• White House Scandal At A Glance
• Chung Pleads Guilty

Documents:
• Legal Documents Released In The Jones v. Clinton Case

Poll:
• Clinton Approval Rating Up Despite Allegations