Dan Burton: “I rise today to make some observations about the White House efforts to avoid accountability to the American people. It…”

“I rise today to make some observations about the White House efforts to avoid accountability to the American people. It is very apparent that there has been a concerted White House attack on independent counsel Kenneth Starr, the independent counsel who has been investigating a number of serious allegations against the Clinton administration. First, regarding all these attacks on Ken Starr: Attorney General Janet Reno approved the expansion of Starr's investigation into the Lewinsky-related matters as well as the Travelgate and Filegate matters of 1996. Three Federal judges approved expansions of Mr. Starr's jurisdiction each time serious allegations arose. There was overwhelming approval of these actions from the Justice Department, according to reports. In the past, the President said he was in the cooperation business with investigators. That simply has not been the experience of anyone investigating anything to do with this administration. What we have here is an orchestrated attack on Kenneth Starr, the independent counsel, in order to change the subject and avoid answering the real questions. The Clinton White House has a history of engaging in smear campaigns against anyone conducting legitimate investigations.”