Documents Stir Clinton-Jones Case
It might be the most beautiful weekend of the year in the nation's capital with the cherry blossoms in bloom, but there's no spring break in the ongoing investigations of President Clinton. Instead, there are new allegations.
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"Clearly there has been in this instance again obstruction of justice," said Rep. Bob Barr (R-Ga.) of the House Judiciary Committee.
At the Little Rock, Ark., courthouse, there is a strong reaction to court papers filed this weekend by attorneys for Paula Jones, who is charging Mr. Clinton with sexual harassment.
The documents accuse the president of "gross suppression of evidence" for failing to turn over letters and notes subpoenaed months ago from former White House staffer Kathleen Willey.
The White house publicly released the documents the morning after Willey appeared on CBS News 60 Minutes earlier this month accusing Mr. Clinton of groping her against her will.
"It raises another very troubling instance where the Clinton administration—the president himself and his lawyers—are completely throwing the norms of judicial process out the window," Barr said.
But the president's attorney denies any attempt to obstruct justice. And the White House describes as "outrageous" and "false" other allegations in the new Jones documents—unsubstantiated claims that Bill Clinton raped a woman back in 1978 when he was Arkansas' attorney general, then suppressed her story through "bribes and/or threats."
Outraged Clinton defenders say the woman is on the record denying that it ever happened.
"It isn't simply that there is supporting evidence on this rape charge which would make it outrageous enough for it to be in the Jones materials, it's that there's actually a sworn affidavit where the woman claimed this did not happen," Sen. Robert Torricelli (D-N.Y.) told Fox News Sunday.
And adding to the confusion: when we asked the woman's attorney about the rape allegation Sunday, he told CBS News, "We do not deny it, we do not admit it," and added that "People will have to judge this kind of crock on their own."
But with overlapping investigations and sealed documents, that's going to be hard to do.
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