Supreme Court Turns Down Starr, Twice
WASHINGTON (AllPolitics, June 4) -- The Supreme Court Thursday denied a request by Independent Counsel Ken Starr to expedite a ruling on governmental attorney-client privilege and privilege for the Secret Service.
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Starr had asked the high court to intervene in his attempt to compel White House Deputy Counsel Bruce Lindsey and three Secret Service employees to testify before the grand jury investigating the Monica Lewinsky matter.
"The petition for a writ of certiorari before judgment is denied without prejudice. It is assumed the Court of Appeals will proceed expeditiously to decide this case," the court said in a two-paragraph statement.
The decision represents a setback for Starr and a victory for the White House, which had accused Starr of attempting to leapfrog the normal appeals process.
Attorneys in the White House counsel's office praised the high court's decision to allow the dispute to follow its normal course and go next to the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.
"The Supreme Court acted appropriately today rejecting Mr. Starr's attempt
to bypass the traditional appeals process on the subject of attorney-client
privilege," White House Counsel Charles Ruff said in a written statement. "Contrary to Mr. Starr's claims, the governmental attorney-client
privilege is not a 'new' privilege. It is well established that
confidentiality is the cornerstone of all attorney-client communications."
White House Press Secretary Mike McCurry said the president learned about the Supreme Court decision as he left a Democratic Leadership Council event Thursday afternoon and shares Ruff's opinion on the ruling.
When asked if the ruling meant further delays in the investigation, McCurry took aim at Starr. "Today is day 1,400 of Ken Starr's tenure as independent
counsel at the rate of $30,000 a day of taxpayers' money," McCurry
said. "If there's any delay, that's the delay right there."
Starr continues to push for speedy decision
Charles Bakaly, spokesman for Starr's office, said Thursday that despite the Supreme Court ruling, the special prosecutor will continue to push for a speedy resolution to his probe of Clinton.
"We will continue to do everything we can to get to get the facts and
complete our investigation as quickly as possible," said Bakaly.
He also pointed out the Supreme Court's statement that the appellate court would proceed expeditiously is "extremely unusual." Bakaly said Starr would immediately "file some papers requesting a faster Court of Appeals schedule than the White House requested."
He was unwilling to speculate how much of a delay Thursday's decision would cause Starr's investigation.
Because of its government-related caseload, White House lawyers believe the D.C. Circuit will be more sympathetic to the idea of attorney-client privilege between the president and government lawyers than other courts have been.
Sources involved in the White House strategy discussions pointed out the dispute goes well beyond Starr's efforts to question presidential confidant Lindsey.
Starr previously has subpoenaed other White House lawyers involved in
damage control efforts, including Lanny Breuer, and White House officials were
expecting a wave of new subpoenas to attorneys if Starr was successful in
winning a court ruling that government lawyers have no attorney-client
privilege with the president.
Earlier Thursday morning, Attorney General Janet Reno sent a brief to the Supreme Court, arguing against an expedited review of the Secret Service's so-called "protective function" privilege.
Starr had asked the justices to consider the matter of Secret Service testimony without an appeals court review because of "the imperative public need for expeditious resolution."
The Supreme Court met in conference Thursday to discuss whether to take up Starr's request.
Blumenthal, Landow make repeat visits to grand jury
Meanwhile, the Washington grand jury investigating the sex-and-perjury allegations in the Lewinsky controversy went back to work Thursday with White House aide Sidney Blumenthal returning to continue his testimony.
Since the grand jury last met, the Clinton legal team dropped its claim of executive privilege, paving the way for Blumenthal's appearance.
During his last visit to the grand jury Feb. 24, Blumenthal refused to answer some questions about the advice he gave first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, citing executive privilege.
Shortly before 5 p.m. EDT, after nearly three hours of testimony, Blumenthal emerged from the courthouse with his lawyers, William A. McDaniel and Jo Marsh. Marsh said Blumenthal would not comment because he has been told he will be recalled for more questioning.
But McDaniel had harsh words for the independent counsel's team, complaining that prosecutors did not focus on the information that Blumenthal and Clinton had claimed was privileged. Instead, McDaniel said, Starr's team wanted to know what the White House was saying about them.
"It's only until 4:30 that they get around to asking him a question about 'Well, what did the president tell you?' and then of course he is out ten minutes later," McDaniel said. "I just think it is a further example of what appears to be the obsessive view these people have about what other people think of them and think of their investigation. And they use the grand jury to further that excessive view, which I think is a travesty."
Democratic fund-raiser Nathan Landow appeared before the grand jury Thursday morning. He is the Maryland real estate developer who, according to former White House volunteer Kathleen Willey, tried to buy her silence. Willey has claimed she had an unwelcome physical encounter with President Bill Clinton in the White House.
The grand jury is investigating reports that Clinton lied under oath in the Paula Jones sexual harassment case and encouraged Lewinsky, a former White House intern, to do the same. Clinton has denied the accusations, and both Clinton and Lewinsky have testified under oath they did not have a sexual relationship.
Lewinsky lawyers plan no 'substantive' contact with Starr
In developments away from the courthouse, Lewinsky's new lawyers do not plan any substantive conversations with Starr until next week at the earliest and are engaged in "intensive" meeting with their client to familiarize themselves with the case and her relationship with the president, sources tell CNN.
A lawyer familiar with Lewinsky's legal strategy said new lawyers Plato
Cacheris and Jacob Stein have had no substantive conversations with Starr or
his prosecutors. They did pay a courtesy call on Starr's team.
Lewinsky has remained in Washington and is meeting, in the words of one
lawyer, "constantly to walk us through all of this, to sort out the facts from
the theater."
Another Lewinsky associate said, "The attorneys realize they have a mound of information to go through and learn before they can talk anything of
consequence with the independent counsel. I would not look for anything of that
nature for at least several days and possibly more, unless Mr. Starr does
something to force the dialogue."
CNN's John King, Bob Franken and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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