By KHIRSTIN WHITE
United States Attorney General Janet Reno has called for a 30-day review of President Clinton’s campaign fund-raising activities.
In that time Clinton’s defense attorney’s will try to show that an extended 90-day review is unnecessary.
Clinton’s 1996 fund-raising activities are in question after allegations were made that he and Vice President Al Gore solicited campaign funds from telephones in the White House.
Gore admitted to making 46 solicitous calls from the White House, while Clinton said he didn’t remember making any calls for campaign funds during the campaign period.
Kelley Patterson, Professor of Political Science, is certain that a special prosecutor will be called to delve deeper into the issue. Pressure from Congress and the public will inevitably push Reno to appoint a counsel addressing the 1883 federal law that “prohibits government officials from soliciting campaign donations from a government building or on a government property,” stated an Associated Press news release.
“The crux of the issue is interpretation of the law. The rules are vaguely written,” said Patterson. “President Clinton is someone that is willing to test the limits of the law. He is a shrewd politician, pushing the boundaries of aggressive fund-raising. He takes chances to raise money in order to make his party competitive.”
According to Reuters, Clinton sent a letter to the Senate Minority, the Democratic Party in which he said of campaign fund-raising reform, “This measure is of the utmost importance and it deserves full consideration on the Senate floor. I encourage you to act responsibly and support passage of this long-overdue, bipartisan legislation.”
The release of the letter appears to be an attempt by Clinton to divert attention away from his current direct involvement with questionable campaign fund-raising tactics.
Use of hard money versus soft money is another issue at the heart of campaign fund-raising. According to the Associated Press, “Hard money is limited under federal law and goes directly toward federal campaigns. Soft money, which may be contributed without limit, is supposed to go to party-building activities.”
Money is speculated to have gone into hard money accounts for the Democratic party rather than the soft money accounts where the funds were specified for.
Clinton’s campaign tactics are more extensive than possible phone calls made from the White House. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, commented on the President’s proclamation establishing the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in 1996.
“He did it 48 days prior to conclusion of the 1996 election in order to placate a particular interest group, at the suggestion of a campaign advisor,” said Sen. Hatch. “We now know more about the secretive, clandestine process utilized by the Administration to create this monument.”
The consequences of the illegalities will not lead to downfall of the presidency however the issue of mismanagement will undoubtedly tarnish the President’s image. “Public confidence will be the big loser,” said Patterson. People are prone to distrust their political leaders after the investigation is over.
