Tripp May Be Starr's Last Hope
Independent counsel Kenneth Starr may be pinning his last hopes on Linda Tripp as he reels from a week of embarrassing upsets in his investigation of President Clinton.
Tripp is to return, possibly next week, for a third day of questioning before a grand jury. The former White House staffer's secret taping of former White House intern Monica Lewinsky started an investigation of a possible cover-up of an alleged affair with Mr. Clinton.
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Starr came across the greatest roadblock to his investigation this week when a U.S. district judge tossed out the tax case Tuesday against former Clinton aide Webster Hubbell, saying "the subpoena served on Mr. Hubbell was the quintessential fishing expedition."
CBS News Consultant Bob Beckel, a Democratic strategist, said the judge's action was "very damaging because it comes from an independent observer, a jurist whose job it is to make sure the laws are upheld."
"It just adds to the growing sense that Starr is out of control," Beckel told CBS 'This Morning.'
Tripp's long-awaited testimony signals the start of an endgame for prosecutor Starr, though legal battles and big decisions still lie ahead.
Tripp, 48, is essential to Starr's task of focusing the grand jury on the core of the prosecution's case: allegations of obstruction of justice and perjury.
"Linda is an important witness, because there's really only two other important names left, and one of them has made it clear he is not going to cooperate. I'm referring to the president," CBS News Consultant Fred Barnes, a conservative commentator, told CBS News.
The president has sent a clear signal he would not volunteer testimony, and Lewinsky has yet to reach a deal on cooperation.
Joe Murtha, one of Tripp's lawyers, said his client is "very encouraged by the quality and content of the questions presented by the grand jurors and the prosecutors."
He told reporters that her testimony "is actually so comprehensive that to release any of Linda's testimony, in fact, wouldn't serve any purpose." Tripp had not been told the date of her return, Murtha said.
Tripp's motives have been called into question by President Clinton's supporters, who have suggested she had her eye on a book deal, was out to get the president, and tried to lure Lewinsky, 24, into making damaging statements about Mr. Clinton.
Tripp says she taped Lewinsky and tok the tapes to Starr to avoid being pulled into a scheme to commit perjury on the president's behalf.
The latest pieces of evidence to emerge are Tripp's emails to Lewinsky, saying her coworker had put her in a terrible situation by confiding a relationship with President Clinton.
The 20 hours of "girl talk" Tripp tape-recorded with Lewinsky prompted the investigation. But it may be the so-called sting tape recorded by the FBI that proves crucial to the grand jury's deliberation.
The day after Tripp made the sting tape, Lewinsky handed Tripp three pages of talking points that have been widely interpreted as an effort to get Tripp to back up the former White House intern's denial of an affair with Mr. Clinton. The president also has denied having a sexual affair with her.
The talking points also suggest how Tripp can back away from earlier statements regarding presidential accuser Kathleen Willey, who says Mr. Clinton made a sexual advance to her inside the White House. The authorship of the talking points is one of the questions of Starr's probe.
The grand jury that has reviewed the case for nearly six months must decide whether Lewinsky was acting on her own or at the direction of Mr. Clinton and presidential confidant Vernon Jordan, and whether any indictments are warranted.
One option, if Mr. Clinton continues to refuse to voluntarily tell his story, is a subpoena. That would prompt a legal battle over whether a president can be compelled against his will to testify.
As for Lewinsky, Starr options include giving her full immunity from prosecution as her lawyers have sought, forcing her to testify with a grant of partial immunity, or indicting her.Click here for an explanation of immunity by CBS News Legal Correspondent Kristin Jeannette-Meyers.
Then Starr must decide whether to send an impeachment report to Congress.Click here for an explanation of the impeachment process by CBS News Legal Correspondent Kristin Jeannette-Meyers.