Robert Torricelli: “on a separate second issue I want to address this morning the larger context of the continuing downward spiral in the…”

“on a separate second issue I want to address this morning the larger context of the continuing downward spiral in the national political dialogue, and specifically how it addresses the case of a single American. We have tragically in our time witnessed this deterioration in the public dialogue. We are now witnessing how its venom can influence the life of a single citizen. I am addressing, of course, the Whitewater investigation and the actions of independent prosecutor Kenneth Starr. Mr. President, I claim no expertise in the question of the Whitewater investigation. Indeed, it is not the focus of my remarks this morning. And I hold no brief for either President Clinton or the First Lady as I address this issue. Indeed, the injustice of which I speak does not involve anyone in the President's family, but rather a simple 42-year-old woman named Susan McDougal. Since September 9, 1996, Susan McDougal has been imprisoned for refusing to testify to an Arkansas grand jury convened by the independent prosecutor Kenneth Starr.”