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Quoth the fox: <<Nobody here but us chickens>>
By Jeanne Cummings
Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal
WASHINGTON -- Peter S. Knight, a longtime ally of Vice President Al
Gore, told a House committee he didn't use his political connections to win an
increase in a government contract for a waste-removal firm that had hired him
as a lobbyist.
In testimony before the House Commerce Committee yesterday, Mr. Knight,
chairman of the Clinton-Gore re-election campaign, also denied that he
encouraged Molten Metal Technology Inc. officials to contribute to the
Democratic Party in order to influence the contract process.
Mr. Knight testified in the first of what Commerce Chairman Joe L. Barton
(R., Texas) said will be a series of hearings exploring the relationships between
Mr. Knight, former Energy Assistant Secretary Thomas P. Grumbly and
Molten Metal of Waltham, Mass. The company hired Mr. Knight as a lobbyist
in 1993 and ultimately received $33 million in government money to develop
methods for disposing of radioactive waste.
"Like many companies, Molten Metal supports political leaders in both
parties," Mr. Knight said, noting that it gave $47,000 to the Democrats in
1996 and $34,000 to Republicans.
"Molten Metal received Department of Energy funding on the merits of its
promising technology," he added, noting that the first $1.2 million contract was
awarded to Molten by the Bush administration.
Messrs. Knight and Grumbly both worked for Mr. Gore since his days in
Congress, and both were involved in Mr. Gore's 1988 presidential bid. Mr.
Knight was on the 1992 presidential transition team when Mr. Grumbly was
nominated to head the Energy Department's research and development unit.
William M. Haney III, Molten Metal president, is a Chattanooga, Tenn.,
developer who is also a longtime supporter of Mr. Gore.
Senate Republicans say that as Molten Metal's government contract grew, so
did its contributions to the Democratic Party and Clinton-Gore campaign. And
it is that same series of contract enhancements and political contributions that
has captured the attention of the Justice Department.
A Senate committee probing campaign financing passed on the issue when no
clear link to Mr. Gore could be established. But House Republicans chose to
go forward despite an internal memo, made public yesterday, warning there
was "no smoking gun" linking Mr. Gore to the government activity.
Among the reasons for a hearing noted in the memo were an opportunity to
make the key players deny the allegation under oath, and a chance to generate
substantial publicity.
Parts of the internal memo were published in the New York Times yesterday,
and Democrats immediately accused Republicans of conducting a witch hunt.
Meanwhile, Republicans began the difficult task of using a public hearing to
build a largely circumstantial case that alleges Mr. Knight used Mr. Grumbly to
benefit both his client, Molten Metal, and the Democratic Party.
Among the evidence Republicans produced was a $15,000 contribution by
Molten to the Democratic National Party on the same day Molten won a $9
million increase in its government grant.
And, there were committee records that show Molten officials and employees
contributed $10,000 to the Clinton-Gore '96 primary campaign on the same
day the Energy Department increased Molten's contract by another $10
million.
Between 1994 and 1996, Molten and its officials, often at Mr. Knight's urging,
contributed more than $175,000 to Democratic committees or projects close
to Mr. Gore, including a $50,000 donation made by Mr. Haney to the
University of Tennessee in honor of the vice president's sister, who died from
lung cancer.
In written testimony, Mr. Haney noted that his company has a history of
bipartisan giving. "None of these contributions was connected to our DOE
contracts," Mr. Haney said.
Earlier in the day, Mr. Grumbly testified that he was unaware of Molten's
contributions and that he expanded the firm's research and development
contract based on merit.
Tomorrow, the committee is expected to hear from Energy Department
employees familiar with the handling of the Molten contracts.
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