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Starr says Whitewater report to be issued 'well before' Election Day
August 9, 1999 ATLANTA (CNN) -- Independent Council Ken Starr said Monday he will make his final Whitewater report "well before next year's election" -- a report "that does not engage in characterization." Starr said in an interview with CNN that "it was clear that the Congress did not want the final report to be an avenue alleging that one or more individuals had actually engaged in criminal conduct." "I would anticipate that the final report will come at the earliest practical moment. The reason I don't want to get into a specific prediction is that we still have two areas of the investigation under way," he said. Starr would not discuss what areas were still under investigation. While first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton has been a central figure in Starr's investigations, a spokesman indicated she is not concerned about Starr's final report. Howard Wolfson, a spokesman for the Hillary Clinton Senate exploratory committee, said, "We're not really focusing on that. We're here in the great city of New York listening to New Yorkers talk about issues that concern them the most. That's what we are going to continue doing." Starr was in Atlanta to address the American Bar Association convention, the same convention President Bill Clinton addressed later in the day. Clinton was impeached by the House but acquitted by the Senate based on Starr's findings. Starr's appearance at the ABA convention coincided with the fifth anniversary of his appointment to probe Whitewater. Since his appointment, Starr's investigations have ranged from the Whitewater land deals in Arkansas to Monica Lewinsky. Starr told CNN that upon reflection he wished he had lobbied Congress harder not to release the explicit details of his report on Clinton's relationship with Monica Lewinsky. "To release it, and to release it without examining the materials -- Congress frequently receives very sensitive information -- and we sent the information up under circumstances that indicated that we viewed this as sensitive information," he said. Starr said his final report will cover all aspects of his investigation including the Clintons' Whitewater real estate dealings and the president's affair with Lewinsky. He also criticized the House of Representatives for publicly releasing the sexually explicit report he sent to Congress. CNN's Bob Franken and The Associated Press contributed to this report. |
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MORE STORIES:Monday, August 9, 1999
• Starr says Whitewater report to be issued 'well before' Election Day • Rep. Lazio to announce intentions on Senate race • Mills turns down White House counsel job • Republicans plan to avoid another government shutdown • U.S. Postal Service approves online stamp sales • Clinton warns against complacency from Kosovo victory • Senator says U.S. will make an example of suspected terrorist • Clinton criticizes attempts to eliminate program funding • Yellow pages typo directs White House surfers to porn site • Clinton prods Senate to pass nuclear test ban treaty • In California, politicians in a frenzy after fund-raising law thrown out • AIDS activists disrupt Gore speech • Administration creating new council to combat overseas propaganda | |||||||||