-Caveat Lector- Can Bush Undo a Pardon? Rollback: The new team eyes ways to keep the heat on Marc Rich By Daniel Klaidman and Mark Hosenball NEWSWEEK Feb. 5 issue — Bill Clinton had done it one last time: left the GOP hopping mad. When the exiting president issued his eleventh-hour pardon of Marc Rich, the fugitive financier living in Switzerland, Republicans immediately went on the attack, accusing Clinton of abusing power and once again diminishing the dignity of the Oval Office. EVEN MORE FRUSTRATING: there was nothing they could do about it. The pardon was a done deal the moment Clinton signed it. Or so it appeared. Just days after the pardon was announced, NEWSWEEK has learned, a handful of Bush Justice Department lawyers began searching for a way to block it. Young and zealous, they hit the law books, convinced they could find something that would give their new boss the power to undo the damage. They found what they were looking for in a series of obscure, 19th-century court cases. According to the Bush lawyers’ interpretation, a pardon is much like a warrant—it must be served on the person or his lawyer to be valid. Some of Clinton’s pardons, though signed by the president, hadn’t been processed at the Justice Department and awaited delivery. Rich’s was among them. The discovery touched off a weekend debate among Justice lawyers. Could—or should—Bush order the department not to deliver Rich’s pardon to his lawyer, thereby invalidating it? It was more than just an academic debate. What would the political fallout be if the new president simply brushed aside the judgment of his predecessor? Some argued Bush shouldn’t even try, since it would inevitably touch off a media and legal hailstorm that would distract the president from his agenda. Then again, the move might enjoy bipartisan support—and could endear Bush to prosecutors. By Saturday night, sources told NEWSWEEK, the lawyers were still hunkered down, arguing the pros and cons. CLINTON HANGOVER It was the latest twist in a week during which the Clinton hangover competed hard for attention with Bush’s first days. The former president may have retired to New York, but he left behind enough controversy and ill will to keep him front and center on talk TV—and Capitol Hill—for weeks. Rep. Dan Burton, the conservative Indiana Republican who made a career of investigating Clinton’s questionable behavior, fueled the controversy, announcing he would begin an official inquiry of the Rich pardon. The facts of the case certainly provoked questions. Why would Clinton want to help an indicted tax swindler living on the lam? It probably didn’t hurt that Rich’s ex-wife had given generously to Bill and Hillary Clinton’s campaigns. But according to Clinton aides, it was former White House counsel Jack Quinn, hired by Rich, who persuaded the president to give Rich the nod—despite opposition from Justice Department officials. Now Burton and other Republicans want to know why he made the list. Burton has already sent a letter to the Justice Department asking for documents on the case, and has requested copies of Quinn’s billing records. Quinn says he’ll cooperate with any investigation. A spokesman added Quinn was so moved by Rich’s arguments that he did not charge him for his work over the last several months. Clinton is also taking heat for shortening the prison sentences of four men convicted of swindling the government out of millions of dollars. The men, Hasidic Jews from New Square, a small village outside New York City, had set up a phony religious school and used it to steal federal grants. Republicans now accuse Hillary of buying the town’s votes with promises of shortened jail time for their brethren. In November, New Square had voted overwhelmingly for Hillary, while surrounding Hasidic towns voted 20 to 1 for her opponent. Last August, Mrs. Clinton visited New Square and met with its spiritual leader, Rabbi David Twersky. But her spokesman, Howard Wolfson, insists she first heard about the imprisoned men after the election, when Twersky visited the Oval Office shortly before Christmas to push the president for clemency. WHITE HOUSE IN RUINS? There was one small consolation for Clinton: his staff may not have trashed the White House quite as badly as the Bushies claimed earlier in the week. They said they found the place in ruins, with power cords ripped from machines and furniture destroyed. In fact, aside from a few lame attempts at humor—W’s were removed from some computer keyboards—the offices were intact, as Clinton transition staff hastened to announce. The specter of scandalous behavior, the justifications and spin—maybe private life won’t be all that different for Clinton after all. ================================================================= Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh, YHVH, TZEVAOT FROM THE DESK OF: *Michael Spitzer* <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Best Way To Destroy Enemies Is To Change Them To Friends ================================================================= <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. 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