-Caveat Lector- http://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/29/politics/29ROGE.html The New York Times June 29, 2001 House Committee Asks Roger Clinton to Explain Some Ties to Pardon Requests By ALISON LEIGH COWAN Congressional investigators have asked Roger Clinton to explain how he obtained $250,000 in traveler's checks, most of which were issued by banks in Taiwan and Venezuela. In a letter to Mr. Clinton's lawyer, Bart Williams, the investigators also asked for more information on five people who were seeking presidential pardons. None were successful, but the House Committee on Government Reform is examining whether Mr. Clinton peddled his access to his half-brother, President Bill Clinton. According to the committee, the traveler's checks were deposited in Roger Clinton's bank accounts on three occasions: Dec. 15, 1998, July 12, 1999, and Nov. 30, 1999. It is not clear who bought the checks, and the committee is asking the foreign banks involved for their records. Mr. Williams said in a letter to the committee on Wednesday that he objected to the "ever-broadening scope" of its questions, especially those delving into whether Mr. Clinton failed to comply with tax or customs laws. In an interview on Wednesday, Mr. Williams asserted that the inquiry was politically motivated, a sentiment shared by some Democrats. Mr. Williams did not return phone calls yesterday. The House committee is also looking into Roger Clinton's efforts on behalf of Rosario Gambino, a convicted heroin trafficker whose daughter, Anna, wrote Mr. Clinton a $50,000 check in Sept. 27, 1999. Mr. Gambino, who prosecutors have said is an associate of the Gambino crime family, is serving a 45- year sentence in California. In the final days of the Clinton administration, the White House counsel's office told the Justice Department he was under consideration for a pardon and asked the department to review his criminal record. President Clinton pardoned or granted clemency to 177 people on his last day in office. Mr. Gambino was not among them, but the House committee is now examining how his case came to the attention of White House lawyers. A lawyer for Meredith Cabe, the associate White House counsel who asked the department to perform the background check, said his client had made hundreds of such requests and could not recall who had proposed Mr. Gambino for a pardon. Congressional investigators said they were intrigued by credit card receipts showing that Roger Clinton and Mr. Gambino's son Tommy traveled to Washington together in March 1999. A person close to the Gambino children acknowledged yesterday that the two men went to Washington but declined to describe the visit further. Mr. Williams has said that Tommy Gambino and his client have been friends for years. Mr. Clinton's activities are also being scrutinized by the United States attorney for the Southern District of Manhattan, Mary Jo White. A grand jury in White Plains has already heard testimony from a Texas man who says his family paid at least $225,000 to Roger Clinton for a pardon he did not receive. In interviews, Roger Clinton has denied any wrongdoing in connection with presidential pardons, saying that he interceded on behalf of a handful of "dear friends" and that no money changed hands. In the letter to Mr. Clinton's lawyer, the House committee identified the five pardon seekers as J. T. Lundy, Blume Loe, John Ballis, Steve Griggs, and Mark St. Pe. All but Mr. Lundy have applications on file with the Justice Department for some form of clemency. It could not be learned yesterday whether any of them were considered by the Clinton White House for pardons. Mr. Lundy is serving time in a Florida prison for a conviction on fraud charges in February 2000. He could not be reached yesterday. But John Drinkwater, who is married to Mr. Lundy's former wife, said Mr. Lundy gave Roger Clinton a job on his horse farm after Mr. Clinton completed his prison sentence for cocaine distribution. Mr. Drinkwater said Mr. Lundy asked Roger Clinton to return the favor after he was convicted in Houston for bank fraud. "He had appealed to Roger for a pardon," Mr. Drinkwater said, and was quite upset when it did not materialize. Gary Rupkin, a lawyer for Mr. Griggs, said his client did not know Mr. Clinton personally until introduced by a common acquaintance. He said he believed that Mr. Griggs or his family had paid Mr. Clinton for help with a pardon. Mr. Rupkin said he did not know further details. Mr. Griggs is in a federal penitentiary in Fort Worth after being convicted of manufacturing and distributing methamphetamine. Mr. Loe's wife, Lisa, said she was baffled why her husband had made the Congressional investigators' list of people who might be linked to Roger Clinton. She said she and her husband met Mr. Clinton in the late 1970's when they were students at University of Arkansas and Mr. Clinton played in a band that entertained college crowds. Her husband, who is temporarily in an Oklahoma City transfer center, asked the Justice Department for a commutation of his 24-month sentence in November 2000, not long after he was convicted of making false statements on his tax return. She and her husband might have discussed going to Roger Clinton for help, Ms. Loe said, "but we didn't know how to contact him." . "I wouldn't call us a dear friend," she said. "We haven't talked to him in over 20 years." Philip Schiliro, the minority staff director on the House's Government Reform Committee, said he was troubled by the questions being asked of Roger Clinton, whom he considered a private citizen. If there was wrongdoing, Mr. Schiliro said, federal prosecutors are far better equipped than Congress to pursue it. "If he's friends or associates with a Gambino and they gave him $50,000, that's really dumb for him to take the money," Mr. Schiliro said, "but he's a private citizen. It may offend good taste and good judgment but it doesn't violate any law." Copyright 2001 The New York Times Company ======================================================= Kadosh, Kadosh, Kadosh, YHVH, TZEVAOT FROM THE DESK OF: *Michael Spitzer* <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> The Best Way To Destroy Enemies Is To Change Them To Friends ======================================================= <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance�not soap-boxing�please! 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