George Miller: “the vote we take today to release the Starr report without the opportunity for the President to review and formulate his…”

“the vote we take today to release the Starr report without the opportunity for the President to review and formulate his simultaneous response is fundamentally unfair. The charges alleged in this report are very grave. The admitted actions of the President are both serious and sober. But no matter what charges are made, the President is entitled to a fundamental fairness at every step of the process. This first step, the wholesale release of one-sided allegations and evidence to the media and the Internet violates that fairness. Every person in this chamber understands the ramifications of the instantaneous release of harmful information in both our political and justice system, the inability of any later considered response getting any type of equal attention. Surely there can be no harm in giving the President an opportunity to review the material before a proper and full public disclosure of the Starr report. The release of this information may very well be the first step in commencing the process of impeachment against an elected President of the United States of America. The fairness of that process should be preserved at every level. This rule fails to do so. The public is clearly entitled to this information, but it is our obligation to provide for its responsible release.”