''He's been completely boxed in,'' the lawyer said. ''It's checkmate.''
Clinton Boxed in by Lewinsky Move
An Ap News Analysis
By RON FOURNIER
Tuesday, July 28, 1998; 5:42 p.m. EDT
WASHINGTON (AP) -- As former White House intern Monica
Lewinsky moves into prosecutor Kenneth Starr's orbit, the president is left
with few options -- and none are very attractive.
''Ill winds are blowing,'' one Clinton backer said Tuesday after Ms.
Lewinsky agreed to testify against her former boss.
The rapid-fire advances of the last several days caused some of President
Clinton's allies to conclude that Starr had outfoxed his vaunted damage
control team. ''Checkmate,'' one called it. In the span of a week, the
prosecutor:
--Issued a subpoena for Clinton to testify.
--Won a court victory on attorney-client privilege that forces confidante
Bruce Lindsey to testify.
--Conducted five hours of talks with Ms. Lewinsky and sealed a deal that
gives the 25-year-old complete immunity.
If Clinton heeds the grand jury subpoena, his testimony could be
challenged by the recollections of Ms. Lewinsky and her mother, who also
was given immunity, plus dozens of other grand jury witnesses. If he
refuses to testify, a political price would be paid.
Don't assume, as many now do, that he will honor the subpoena.
When the order to testify hit the desk of Clinton attorney David Kendall,
the president's attorneys decided to pre-empt the public relations
bombshell; they had press secretary Mike McCurry announce that
Kendall was negotiating with Starr over ways Clinton could provide
information to the grand jury.
McCurry's announcement created the impression that Clinton had decided
not to fight the subpoena. More important, it weakened his best argument
for refusing to testify: If Clinton was willing to negotiate with Starr, then he
must think a presidential subpoena is constitutional.
''After entering negotiations to provide testimony at the grand jury it might
be difficult now to pull back and make a constitutional argument to avoid
testifying all together,'' said Jane Sherburne, a Washington attorney who
once worked in Clinton's White House legal shop.
Some members of Clinton's legal team are said to be reluctant to mount a
constitutional argument after practically conceding by negotiations that
Clinton would testify in some form.
Kendall doesn't belong in that category: As the president's private
attorney, he would fight the subpoena if it is in the president's personal
interest, said an official familiar with his thinking. With the former intern
now in Starr's corner, Kendall might decide Clinton needs to stay mum.
Indeed, the attorney is said to be trying to delay a grand jury appearance,
telling Starr's office that the president will be busy or on vacation until
mid-September. Beside giving Clinton a chance to free up his schedule
and prepare for such high-stakes testimony, a delay would give Kendall a
chance to assess the impact of Ms. Lewinsky's immunity deal.
In Washington's close-knit legal community, Kendall might expect that
he'll hear from fellow defense attorneys about what Ms. Lewinsky has told
Starr or the grand jury.
It is possible, said a lawyer in the president's camp, that Starr subpoenaed
Clinton to put pressure on him to testify -- while quietly approaching Ms.
Lewinsky with an immunity deal that makes testifying dangerous for
Clinton.
''He's been completely boxed in,'' the lawyer said. ''It's checkmate.''
A longtime Clinton adviser said the president has not ruled out fighting the
subpoena. Kendall has indicated that Clinton would submit to a deposition
under oath at the White House; if Starr refuses those terms, it could give
the lawyers an excuse to challenge the subpoena.
Clinton could argue that he wants to tell the grand jury everything it needs
to know, but he doesn't want to be the first president who marches into a
grand jury room. With Starr so unpopular with the public, the president
thinks he could win that argument.
His advisers also think Clinton could survive a he-said, she-said battle
with Ms. Lewinsky, who they claim would be a terrible witness. They note
that Ms. Lewinsky and Clinton have sworn under oath that they didn't
have sex -- and Clinton is not the one who is changing his story.
McCurry was careful not to criticize Ms. Lewinsky on Tuesday, telling
reporters that Clinton ''is pleased that things are working out for her.''
But only if things work out for him.
------
EDITOR'S NOTE: Ron Fournier, the AP's political reporter, covered the
Clinton White House for four years.
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