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Transcripts from video deposition of Lewinsky, Jordan, and BlumenthalJump to the start of individual depositions: Lewinsky, Jordan, Blumenthal [Previous Page][Page S1232][Next Page]
Q. Was the purpose of that call with Mr. Gittis to arrange breakfast the next morning on January 21st? A. Yeah. I was in New York, and I did call Mr. Gittis and say--and as I remember, I had breakfast with him on the 21st, I believe. Yes, I did. Q. And this is a breakfast that you had set up? A. Yes. Q. And what was the reason you made the decision to request a breakfast meeting with Mr. Gittis? A. Yes. As I remember, I had gotten a telephone call from David Bloom at 1 o'clock in the morning at the St. Regis Hotel about the matter that was about to break having to do with the entire Lewinsky matter, and I had not at any time discussed the Lewinsky matter with--with Howard Gittis. And so I had breakfast with him to tell him that reporters were calling, that this would obviously involve Revlon, which had responded to my--my efforts to find Ms. Lewinsky employment, and so Howard Gittis is a friend of mine. Howard Gittis is a fellow board member with me at Revlon. He is the Vice Chairman of McAndrews & Forbes, and I thought it--I thought I had--it was incumbent upon me to stop and say, "Listen, there's trouble a-brewing." Q. And just--you've mentioned McAndrews & Forbes and Revlon. McAndrews & Forbes, am I correct, is the parent company of-- A. It's the holding company. Q. The holding company of Revlon and presumably other companies. And you sit on the board of McAndrews & Forbes? A. I do not. I sit on the board of Revlon. Q. All right. And that is a position that brings you an annual salary-- A. There is a director's fee. Q. You receive a director's fee, and in addition, your law firm receives--from business from-- A. We do-- Q. --Revlon? A. We do. We do business. We've represented Revlon, and we represented Revlon before I was elected a director. Q. And you mention that things were breaking that you felt like you needed to advise Mr. Gittis concerning. At the time that you made the arrangements for the breakfast on January 21st, had you become aware of the Drudge Report? A. Yes, I had. Q. And you had had lunch with Bruce Lindsey on January 20th? A. No. I don't think it was on January--it was on Sunday. No, that was not the 20th. Q. And during that luncheon, did you become aware of the Drudge Report-- A. That is correct. Q. --and receive a copy of it? A. That is correct. Q. And that was from Bruce Lindsey? A. That is correct. Q. And that Drudge Report, did it mention your name? A. I don't think so, but I don't remember. Q. Was there some news stories that had mentioned your name in reference to Ms. Lewinsky and the President? A. I believe that my name has been an integral part of this process from the beginning. Q. And did you in fact have the breakfast meeting with Mr. Gittis? A. Yes, I did. Q. And what information did you convey to Mr. Gittis concerning Ms. Lewinsky at that breakfast meeting? A. I just simply said that the press was calling about Ms. Lewinsky; that while I had not dealt with him, I had dealt with Richard Halperin, I had dealt with Ronald Perelman. I had not dealt with him, but that he ought to know and that I was sorry about this. And I also said that it would probably be even more complicated because early on I had referred Webb Hubbell to them to be hired as counsel. Q. And I want to get to that in just a moment, but you indicated that you said you were sorry. Were you referring to the problems that this might create for the company? A. Well, I was obviously concerned. I am a director. I am their counsel. They're my friends. And publicity was breaking. I thought I had some responsibility to them to give them a heads-up as to what was going on. Q. Now, is it true that your efforts to find a job for Ms. Lewinsky that you referenced in that meeting with Mr. Gittis--were your efforts carried out at the request of the President of the United States? A. There is no question but that through Betty Currie, I was acting on behalf of the President to get Ms. Lewinsky a job. I think that's clear from my grand jury testimony. Q. Okay. And I just want to make sure that that's firmly established. And in reference to your previous grand jury testimony, you indicated, I believe, on May 28th, 1998, at page 61, that "She"--referring to Betty Currie--"was the one that called me at the behest of the President." A. That is correct, and I think, Congressman, if in fact the President of the United States' secretary calls and asks for a request that you try to do the best you can to make it happen. Q. And you received that request as a request coming from the President? A. I--I interpreted it as a request from the President. Q. And then, later on in June of '98 in the grand jury testimony at page 45, did you not reference or testify that "The President asked me to get Monica Lewinsky a job"? A. There was no--there was no question but that he asked me to help and that he asked others to help. I think that is clear from everybody's grand jury testimony. Q. And just one more point in that regard. In the same grand jury testimony, is it correct that you testified that "He"--referring to the President--"was the source of it coming to my attention in the first place"? A. I may--if that is--if you--if it's in the-- Q. It's at page 58 of the grand jury-- A. I stand on my grand jury testimony. Q. All right. Now, during your efforts to secure a job for Ms. Lewinsky, I think you mentioned that you talked to Mr. Richard Halperin. A. Yes. Q. And he is with McAndrews & Forbes? A. Yes. Q. And you also at one point talked to Mr. Ron Perelman; is that correct? A. I made a call to Mr. Perelman, I believe, on the 8th of January. Q. And he is the-- A. He is the chairman/CEO of McAndrews Forbes. He is a majority shareholder in McAndrews Forbes. This is his business. Q. Now, at the time that you requested assistance in obtaining Ms. Lewinsky a job, did you advise Mr. Perelman or Mr. Halperin of the fact that the request was being carried out at the request of the President of the United States? A. I don't think so. I may have. Q. Well, the first answer you gave was "I don't think so." Now, in fact, you did not advise either Mr. Perelman or Mr. Halperin of that fact because am I correct that Mr. Perelman--or, excuse me, Mr. Gittis--expressed some concern that Revlon was never advised of that fact? A. Then, uh, I cannot say, I guess, precisely that I told that "I am doing this for the President of the United States." I do believe, on the other hand, that given the fact that she was in the White House, given the fact that she had been a White House intern, I would not be surprised if that was their understanding. Q. Well, in your conversation with Mr. Halperin. A. Yes--I'm certain I did not say that to Richard Halperin. Q. Okay. So there's no question that you did not tell Mr. Halperin that you were acting at the request of the President? A. I'm fairly certain I did not. Q. And in your conversation with Mr. Perelman, did you indicate to him that you were calling--or you were seeking-- employment for Ms. Lewinsky at the request of the President? A. Yes--I don't think that I, that I made that explicit in my conversation with Mr. Perelman, and I'm not sure I thought it necessary to say "This is for the President of the United States." By the same token, I would have had no hesitance in doing that. Q. Now, at the time that you had called Mr. Perelman, which I believe you testified was in January of '98-- A. That's right. Q. --I think you said January 8th-- A. Right. Q. --you were aware at that time, were you not, that Ms. Lewinsky had received a subpoena to give a deposition in the Jones versus Clinton case? A. That is correct. Q. At the time that you talked to Mr. Perelman requesting his assistance for Monica Lewinsky, did you advise Mr. Perelman of the fact that Ms. Lewinsky was under subpoena in the Jones case? A. I did not. Q. And when you--did Mr. Perelman, Mr. Gittis or Mr. Halperin ever express to you disappointment that they were not told of two facts--either of these two facts--one, that Ms. Lewinsky was being helped at the request of the President; and secondly, that she was known by you and the President to be under subpoena in that case? A. No. Q. Now, you are on the board of directors of Revlon. A. I am. Q. And how long have you been on the board of Revlon? A. I forget. Ten years, maybe. Q. And as a member of the board of directors, do you not have a fiduciary responsibility to the company? A. I do. Q. And how would you define a fiduciary responsibility? A. I define my fiduciary responsibility to the company about company matters. Q. And how would you define fiduciary responsibility in reference to company matters? A. Anything that has to do with the company, that I believe in the interest of the company, I have some fiduciary responsibility to protect the company, to help the company in any way that I--that is possible. Q. And is fiduciary responsibility sometimes considered a trust relationship in which you owe a degree of trust and responsibility to someone else? A. I think--I think that "trust" and "fiduciary" are probably synonymous. Q. Okay. Do you believe that you were acting in the company's interest or the President's interest when you were trying to secure a job for Ms. Lewinsky? A. Well, what I knew was that the company would take care of its own interest. This is not the first time that I referred somebody, and what I know is, is that if a person being referred does not meet the [[Page S1232]]
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MORE STORIES:Friday, February 5, 1999
• Transcript highlights from the witness depositions • Bipartisan group moves to open Senate deliberations • Straw poll focuses attention on potential women candidates • Secret Service concerned over Chelsea Clinton cover story • GOP told to develop post-impeachment message • Starr lawyers discuss impeachment • President to establish race relations office • Is Chelsea Clinton a valid journalistic subject? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
