All the President's Fault

The only way Hillary Clinton can avoid lawsuits over Travelgate is to blame her husband.

Michael McMenamin & James Oliphant from the April 1996 issue

(Page 3 of 3)

January 1996. David Watkins's memo regarding Hillary's role in the Travel Office firings is made public. Mrs. Clinton claims that Watkins misconstrued her "mere expression of concern" over the Travel Office. The president's Paula Jones lawyer, Robert Bennett, goes on national television and continues the White House smear campaign using a proposed misdemeanor plea bargain from Billy Dale improperly leaked by Clinton's Justice Department. Clinton is impressed by Bennett's performance and asks him to take a more active role in defending the White House on Travelgate. The Travelgate Seven testify on Capital Hill. Clinton agrees to sign a GOP bill paying all legal expenses of the Travel Office employees--in excess of $400,000. The president, apparently realizing that Justice Department rules have been broken again, reverses himself and publicly rebukes his lawyer Bennett for "objectionable" comments about Dale's proposed plea bargain. The GAO issues a critical audit of Clinton's new Travel Office, finding that it failed to balance its books during the first eight months of 1995, neglecting to record some $200,000 in deposits. Meanwhile, Hillary is interviewed by Maria Shriver on national television and further smears the reputation of the Travelgate Seven by falsely claiming "financial mismanagement" was the reason they were fired:

Mrs. Clinton: "I have consistently said when reports about financial mismanagement in the White House Travel Office were first raised, I and others said, my goodness, you know, that sounds like something that needs to be examined. Other people did the work of determining that indeed there was financial mismanagement. Other people--appropriately, the chief of staff, and others under his authority--made the decisions. But I don't have any apologies for in any way saying I've heard there are reports of financial mismanagement."

Shriver: "But did you want those people fired? Did you think that was appropriate?"

Mrs. Clinton: "You know, once the accounting firm found that there was financial mismanagement, the White House, I believe, acted the only way it could have. Now there have been--"

Shriver: "By firing the people?"

Mrs. Clinton: "Well, yes, by saying, you know, we have found evidence of this." (All italics added.)

My goodness, indeed. Hillary, you sure do make it tough on your lawyers. We're starting to believe Robert Bennett earns every penny of the $400 an hour he's charging you and the president over the Paula Jones indiscretion. Oh, well, on to the task. Tortious interference, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and defamation. Can we get her off? Perhaps. If she pays attention, takes careful notes and listens to her lawyers, some of the claims against her could be knocked out of the box before she ever has to face a jury of her peers.

The most worrisome claim would be the one alleging tortious interference with employment. As a private citizen, Mrs. Clinton was not privileged to intercede in White House employment decisions. If there is credible evidence she did--and Watkins's memo is enough for that--then a jury is going to have to decide who's telling the truth.

This is not good. Hillary needs to come clean, to reconsider her mere-expressions-of-concern posture. And the way to do this goes against her ambitious, über-feminist grain like lacquered nails on a chalkboard. She must invoke a defense as traditional as country-fried steak in Arkansas. She must blame her spouse: "It was my husband's fault," Mrs. Clinton should say. "It was Bill who was deeply involved in the Travel Office conspiracies. It was Bill who met with Thomason in February and March, and twice during the week of May 10. We talked about it at night. Everybody knew it was Bill, even that turncoat, Janet Green. I didn't get involved until May 10, and then only because Bill wanted me to. I was just relaying Bill's concerns. I was only a conduit, a buffer. What do I know about government airplanes or charters or the press being gouged by the Travel Office? Why the hell would it matter to me if the press were being gouged anyway? Like I care?"

Look what the truth does. Instantly, Hillary's off the hook for tortious interference. Her husband, the president, had every legal right to interfere with the employment of the seven staffers. After all, he employed them, and he has immunity for firing them. Mr. Clinton, for his part, should then say something to the effect of: "You know what? She's right. I did it, and I'm glad. What are friends for?" Sure, the president will have to confess that he lied about Travelgate in 1993, but it won't be a new experience for him. He'll get over it. It might even help his re-election, demonstrating his devotion to family values by saving his wife. The conservatives will love him for his chivalry.

Our defense to an emotional-distress claim is similar. The outrageous and extreme nature of the firings, the improper use of the FBI and IRS, the rumor spreading, and the humiliating expulsion from the White House form the gist of this charge. In her defense, Mrs. Clinton must again come clean and blame the men: "It's not my fault. Vince Foster called the FBI in. It's his fault. I told him it was wrong. I knew it was wrong because of my service as a congressional staff lawyer during the Watergate hearings. Vince felt badly about it, too. He even mentioned it in his suicide note. As for the humiliating manner in which the Travelgate Seven were fired, that's not my fault either. It's Watkins's fault. I know he tried to blame it on me in that self-serving memo where he says, 'In light of the First Lady's insistence...the abrupt manner of dismissal...was the only option.' But that's a bunch of crap--or rather, I mean, my goodness, people know that's not my style. I'm much more sensitive. I even sent birthday cards in late 1993 to two of those poor, unfortunate little people that my husband wanted kicked out in the cold to benefit Thomason and Cornelius--boy, did Watkins have her pegged right. But that's the only thing he had right. If I had been in charge instead of the incompetents my husband had around him in 1993--you notice they're all gone now, every one of them--we wouldn't be in this fix today."

See? The truth gets Hillary off on the emotional-distress claim as well. Now for the defamation. Well, maybe not. We only agreed to devote 4,000 words to our pro bono legal strategy, and REASON seems disinclined to give us any more space. This is a good thing, because the truth won't save her this time. She doesn't have a prayer of keeping a libel case from reaching a jury. Repeating to Maria Shriver the lie that the audit discovered financial mismanagement, and this was the only reason they were fired, was not her finest moment. If Hillary wants to be defended on this, she ought to go see the lawyers who gave her advice before the Shriver interview.

On second thought, since the truth won't help her here, what Hillary really needs is the same stall-and-delay approach being used in the Paula Jones case. Tell her to call Bob Bennett.

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