Congress 'will not impeach for a single
mistake'
By Hugh Davies in Washington
"A SINGLE human mistake" by President Clinton would not be
enough to consider impeachment, Newt Gingrich, the House
Speaker, said yesterday.
Republicans were interested in removing the President only if "a
pattern of felonies" emerged, he said, as he began preparing
America for the Congressional investigation. He said: "It's not about
scandals in the gossipy sense, or sexual behaviour in the gossipy
sense. It's about whether or not the law has been violated and, if so,
it is a pattern of violation or is in a one-time event."
Mr Gingrich spoke as Democratic fears grew that lurid details of the
kind of sex Mr Clinton indulged in with Miss Lewinsky during one
daytime session in his Oval Office study could startle Americans. A
worry is that they may emerge during November's mid-term
elections. Networks already regularly broadcast warnings to parents
that some reports by White House correspondents are unfit to be
watched by children.
With Monica Lewinsky likely to be the star witness in public
hearings on Capitol Hill, the nation could be plunged into a
"protracted and crippling process", according to Sam Nunn, the
respected former Democratic senator. To spare America such
anguish, Mr Clinton "may even" be required to resign.
Mr Gingrich said that he, too, was worried about "the turmoil" an
impeachment inquiry could cause. He said his plan was to turn
Kenneth Starr's report over to the House Judiciary Committee, amid
strict secrecy under new House rules. An executive summary,
which he said could be the length of a book, would "probably be
available" to the public. However, the accompanying evidence,
which could fill numerous boxes, would remain confidential.
Observers wonder if this can happen, given that even supposedly
ultra-secret grand jury testimony from the President leaked within
hours.
The Speaker said it was vital that politicians moved cautiously in
deciding on impeachment. "The mountain is all on the side of those
who say there is a case. It's not just a presumption of innocence,
there's a presumption of stability, a presumption of authority, a
presumption of the way the nation runs."
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