104TH CONGRESS REPORT 2d Session SENATE 104±280 "! INVESTIGATION OF WHITEWATER DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION AND RELATED MATTERS F I N A L R E P O R T OF THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE WHITEWATER DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION AND RELATED MATTERS TOGETHER WITH ADDITIONAL AND MINORITY VIEWS JUNE 17, 1996.ÐOrdered to be printed Filed under authority of the order of the Senate of June 13, 1996 INVESTIGATION OF WHITEWATER DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION AND RELATED MATTERSÐFINAL REPORT 1 104TH CONGRESS REPORT 2d Session SENATE 104±280 "! INVESTIGATION OF WHITEWATER DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION AND RELATED MATTERS F I N A L R E P O R T OF THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE WHITEWATER DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION AND RELATED MATTERS TOGETHER WITH ADDITIONAL AND MINORITY VIEWS JUNE 17, 1996.ÐOrdered to be printed Filed under authority of the order of the Senate of June 13, 1996 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 25±225 WASHINGTON : 1996 SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE WHITEWATER DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION AND RELATED MATTERS ALFONSE M. D'AMATO, New York, Chairman RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama PAUL S. SARBANES, Maryland CHRISTOPHER S. BOND, Missouri CHRISTOPHER J. DODD, Connecticut CONNIE MACK, Florida JOHN F. KERRY, Massachusetts LAUCH FAIRCLOTH, North Carolina RICHARD H. BRYAN, Nevada ROBERT F. BENNETT, Utah BARBARA BOXER, California ROD GRAMS, Minnesota CAROL MOSELEY-BRAUN, Illinois PETE V. DOMENICI,* New Mexico PATTY MURRAY, Washington ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah PAUL SIMON, Illinois FRANK H. MURKOWSKI, Alaska HOWARD A. MENELL, Staff Director ROBERT J. GIUFFRA, Jr., Chief Counsel PHILIP E. BECHTEL, Deputy Staff Director STEVEN B. HARRIS, Democratic Staff Director and Chief Counsel MICHAEL CHERTOFF, Special Counsel RICHARD BEN-VENISTE, Democratic Special Counsel ALICE S. FISHER, Deputy Special Counsel LOUIS J. GICALE, Deputy Special Counsel EVERETT C. JOHNSON, Jr., Deputy Special Counsel JAMES B. COMEY, Deputy Special Counsel NEAL E. KRAVITZ, Democratic Principal Deputy Special Counsel LANCE COLE, Democratic Deputy Special Counsel STEVEN BANKLER, Investigative Accountant H. CHRISTOPHER BARTOLOMUCCI, Associate Special Counsel GABRIEL BERG, Democratic Legal Intern JULIUS J. BONAVOLANTA, Special Investigator MARK J. BRENNER, Assistant Special Counsel ROBERT H. BUCHANAN, Staff Intern DAVID CARLE, Democratic Press Secretary WILLIAM S. CASTLE, Senior Investigator LORI A. CONLON, Administrative Assistant VINCENZO A. DELEO, Special Investigator VIET D. DINH, Associate Special Counsel DOUGLAS A. EPSTEIN, Democratic Counsel CHRISTOPHER FARRO, Staff Intern STEVEN H. FROMEWICK, Democratic Assistant Special Counsel SOPHIA HARDY, Democratic Intern NGUYEN-HONG HOANG, Democratic Legal Intern DAVID KAUFMAN, Staff Intern DAVID M. LUNA, Democratic Law Clerk JOSEPH MITCHELL, Staff Intern TIMOTHY P. MITCHELL, Democratic Professional Staff Member MICHAEL P. O'CALLAGHAN, Associate Special Counsel RICHARD J. O'CONNELL, Special Investigator JAMES S. PORTNOY, Democratic Associate Special Counsel JAMES F. REDFERN, Special Investigator ANDREW M. SCHAUER, Democratic Assistant Special Counsel JENNIFER M. SWARTZ, Senior Investigator MEGAN H. TINKER, Senior Investigator AMY R. WENDT, Democratic Staff Assistant JEFFREY H. WINTER, Democratic Special Assistant STEPHANIE H. WOMACK, Democratic Special Assistant * Appointed to replace Senator Bill Frist pursuant to S. Res. 184 (October 12, 1995). (II) III Page PETER C. BARRETT, Staff Assistant YAEL BELKIND, Democratic Staff Assistant SLOAN DEERIN, Staff Assistant MITCHELL FEUER, Democratic Counsel EMILY L. FRYDRYCH, Assistant to the Democratic Staff Director MARTIN J. GRUENBERG, Democratic Senior Counsel MARK D. HOFFMAN, Executive Assistant to the Staff Director GLENN IVEY, Democratic Counsel JOSEPH A. JIAMPIETRO, Counsel JOSEPH R. KOLINSKI, Chief Clerk/Computer Systems Administrator ANDREW LOWENTHAL, Democratic Professional Staff Member DORIS R. MAHONEY, Executive Assistant CHARLES MARR, Democratic Professional Staff Member E. RICHARD MILLS, Press Secretary JOSEPH N. MONDELLO, Jr., Counsel PATRICK A. MULLOY, Democratic Chief International Counsel DOUGLAS R. NAPPI, Counsel LENDEL PORTERFIELD, Financial Institutions Subcommittee Staff Director AMY C. RANDEL, Democratic Staff Assistant SARAH BLOOM RASKIN, Democratic Counsel MADELYN SIMMONS, Professional Staff Member PAUL WEECH, Professional Staff Member EDWARD M. MALAN, Editor GEORGE E. WHITTLE, Editor IRENE C. WHISTON, GPO Editorial Assistant DONNA LEE KRAUSE, GPO Editorial Assistant C O N T E N T S Page Preface ...................................................................................................................... 1 Phase ÐÐÐThe Foster Phase ............................................................................... 6 Conclusions of the Special Committee ............................................................ 8 1. By the time of Vincent Foster's death in July 1993, the Clinton's had established a pattern of concealing their involvement with Whitewater and the McDougals' Madison Guaranty S&L ............. 10 2. The Clintons and their associates were aware, at the time of Mr. Foster's death, that the Clintons' involvement with Whitewater and the Madison Guaranty S&L might subject them to liability ............................................................................................ 12 3. At the time of his death, Mr. Foster's office contained damaging evidence about the Whitewater and Travelgate affairs .................. 13 4. White House officials engaged in highly improper conduct in han- dling documents in Vincent Foster's office following his death ..... 14 5. Mrs. Clinton was closely involved in the handling of documents in Mr. Foster's office following his death and directed that inves- tigators be denied ``unfettered access'' to Mr. Foster's office .......... 17 6. Senior White House officials and other Clinton associates provided incomplete and inaccurate testimony to the Special Committee ... 20 7. The Office of the White House Counsel was misused to impede ongoing investigations and to serve the purely personal legal interests of the President, Mrs. Clinton and their associates ........ 21 Background ....................................................................................................... 22 I. Mr. Foster's Involvement in the Clintons' Personal Matters ........... 23 II. The Traditional Independence of the White House Counsel's Office ................................................................................................... 33 Summary of the Evidence ................................................................................ 36 I. The Contents of Vincent Foster's Office at the Time of his Death ... 36 II. July 20, 1993 ........................................................................................ 42 A. The Discovery of Mr. Foster's Body ............................................ 42 B. The Park Police Notify the White House and the Foster Fam- ily .................................................................................................. 44 C. The White House Ignores Repeated Park Police Requests to Seal Mr. Foster's Office .............................................................. 44 D. Mrs. Clinton Learns of Mr. Foster's Death and Begins to Contact Close Associates ............................................................ 46 E. Mrs. Clinton Calls the White House on an Unlisted Trunk Line .............................................................................................. 47 F. Helen Dickey's Telephone Call to the Arkansas Governor's Mansion ....................................................................................... 48 G. The Handling of Trash and Burn Bags in Mr. Foster's Office . 50 H. Senior White House Officials Conduct a Late-Night Search of Mr. Foster's Office .................................................................. 51 I. Secret Service Officer Henry O'Neill Observes Margaret Wil- liams Remove Documents from Mr. Foster's Office ................. 53 III. July 21, 1993 ...................................................................................... 55 A. Mr. Foster's Office is Finally Sealed ........................................... 55 B. The White House Impedes Initial Park Police Efforts to Search Mr. Foster's Office .......................................................... 57 C. The White House Counsel and Deputy Attorney General agree on a Search Protocol for the Documents in Mr. Foster's office ............................................................................................. 58 D. The White House Finalizes the Agreement on the Search Protocol ........................................................................................ 60 IV. July 22, 1993 ...................................................................................... 63 A. The White House Counsel's Office Interferes with Park Police Interviews of White House(V) Staff ................................................ 63 VI Page Phase ÐÐÐThe Foster PhaseÐContinued Summary of the EvidenceÐContinued IV. July 22, 1993ÐContinued B. The First Lady, Margaret Williams, Susan Thomases and Bernard Nussbaum Conduct a Series of Early Morning Tele- phone Calls .................................................................................. 64 C. The White House Breaks its Agreement with the Justice De- partment: ``A Terrible Mistake'' ................................................. 67 D. The Window Dressing Review of the Documents in Mr. Fos- ter's Office ...................................................................................