Jan Meyers: “today I introduce a resolution of inquiry in an effort to obtain factual answers to a few of the questions raised by a…”

“today I introduce a resolution of inquiry in an effort to obtain factual answers to a few of the questions raised by a complicated web of prominent persons, events, and federally insured or licensed institutions. This growing embarrassment is now known simply as Whitewater. As you know, a resolution of inquiry is a mechanism available to Members under the Rules of the House of Representatives to obtain information from the President of the United States and heads of executive departments. According to long-standing practice is this body, this resolution is considered privileged because it has special standing in the legislative process. We have protected that privilege by requesting factual answers to specific questions, not opinions, from the President. My fellow cosponsors and I do not take this step lightly. We do have a constitutional obligation, however, to the American people to discover the truth--good or bad--and hold our public figures responsible for their actions. To that end, we must use the avenues provided to Members under the rules of the House to obtain facts otherwise made unavailable to us. Mr. Speaker, as ranking Republican on the Small Business Committee, I have been working to investigate the activities of Capital Management Services, Inc., a specialized small business investment company [SSBIC] in Arkansas. The information we have obtained, to date, on the operations of this federally licensed entity has been extraordinarily disturbing.”