-Caveat Lector- <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/"> </A> -Cui Bono?- March 30, 2000 ESSAY / By WILLIAM SAFIRE The 100,000 E-Mail Gap WASHINGTON -- Charles Ruff, President Clinton's defense counsel in the impeachment trial, was also the last special prosecutor of President Nixon in Watergate; he surely must remember the furor surrounding the unexplained "18 1/2-minute gap" on the tapes. Thanks to a lawsuit filed four years ago by Judicial Watch, we now discover that Ruff presided over the concealment of the Clinton administration's "100,000 e-mail gap." These were the messages sent to the White House between 1996 and 1998, all required by law to be archived, and all part of the "universe of information" required to be reviewed by the White House counsel to respond to subpoenas by prosecutors and Congress. Ruff blithely claims ignorance of technology. When informed of the "glitch" as the impeachment firestorm gathered in 1998, his associates say, Ruff assumed the problem was fixed and the search for subpoenaed evidence was under way. But it was not. And Ruff is neither negligent nor prone to easy assumptions. Three non-government technicians who were called in to examine the White House computers testified that they had been told to keep their mouths shut about the unsearched files, on pain of jail. One of their harassers at first denied making such threats, before the House Government Reform Committee this week, then changed her testimony to admit she had told the dismayed technicians to stay mum "because it was sensitive." As a result, investigators looking into Asian campaign contributions, invasions of privacy and possible presidential perjury have been kept in the dark for the past two years. There can be no innocent reason for that deliberate decision by the Clinton White House to remain silent. Asked yesterday about his e-mail problem, Clinton said, "I believe that was known years ago." Sure; he knew and Ruff knew. But no grand jury or Congressional committee was told. As this deliberate suppression of the truth about the unsearched e-mails came to light, the Justice Department reacted with The Old Reno Trick: obstruction by in-house investigation. Here's how it worked before. When the "Asian Connection" to Clinton-Gore money-raising was broken in this space on Oct. 5, 1996, and The Los Angeles Times unearthed the Gore Buddhist temple fund-raising scandal, the U.S. Attorney in L.A., Stephen Mansfield, moved quickly to investigate. But Lee Radek, Reno's chief protector of higher-ups, informed him, "your office should take no steps to investigate these matters." Radek's Washington office assumed authority and allowed witnesses to skip the country. He used the excuse that an independent counsel might be needed, but, after the trail cooled sufficiently, fought the attempt of a real prosecutor and the F.B.I. to appoint one. Result: wrist slaps for small fry, neither Clinton nor Gore even questioned. Clinton Justice is now trying the same trick in the e-mail case. Judicial Watch, in a civil suit, forced out the truth and a federal judge is hitting pay dirt. Department of Justice lawyers may have assisted a Clinton archivist in submitting a misleading affidavit about the e-mails last year. But true to form, now that its misfeasance is public, Reno Justice is launching its own "criminal investigation," the intent of which is to seize control of the productive civil case until after the coming election. The same crew at Justice that kept the Asian fund-raising scandal away from the White House is now throwing its protective blanket over the White House aides who intimidated whistle-blowers in the e-mail concealment. Justice's criminal division will "investigate" its civil division, and insiders will have a good laugh at chairman Dan Burton's call for outside counsel. Why do I pop off at these arrant cover-ups? Because popping off at power abuse has a public-policy purpose. The investigation triggered by published outrage at Filegate has ended such routine invasion of privacy, and completely changed the slavish attitude toward White House aides at the F.B.I. If that cost $10 million, it was well worth it. Same with concealing the 100,000 e-mail gap. Not all wrongdoing is criminal. But when presidential counsel artfully skirt the law, contemptuous of court or Congress or individual citizens, they must be closely examined and called to public account. ================================================================= Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh, YHVH, TZEVAOT FROM THE DESK OF: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> *Mike Spitzer* <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ~~~~~~~~ <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> The Best Way To Destroy Enemies Is To Change Them To Friends Shalom, A Salaam Aleikum, and to all, A Good Day. ================================================================= <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soap-boxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
