On January 5, 1996, a new development thrust the travel office matter again to the forefront. A two-year-old memo from White House director of administration David Watkins surfaced that identified First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton as the motivating force behind the firings, with the additional involvement of Vince Foster and Harry Thomason.
[39] "Foster regularly informed me that the First Lady was concerned and desired action. The action desired was the firing of the Travel Office staff."
[40] Written in fall 1993, apparently intended for McLarty, the Watkins memo also said "we both know that there would be hell to pay" if "we failed to take swift and decisive action in conformity with the First Lady's wishes."
[39] This memo contradicted the First Lady's previous statements in the GAO investigation, that she had played no role in the firings and had not consulted with Thomason beforehand; the White House also found it difficult to explain why the memo was so late in surfacing when all the previous investigations had requested all relevant materials.
[40] House committee chair Clinger charged a
cover-up was taking place and vowed to pursue new material.
[39]
New York Times columnist
William Safire had endorsed Bill Clinton in 1992, but by 1996 he was Hillary Clinton's most infamous critic and his nose a metaphorical target for Bill Clinton's ire.
These developments, following Hillary Clinton's prior disputed statements about her
cattle futures dealings and
Whitewater, led to a famous exchange in which high-profile
New York Times columnist
William Safire, who had endorsed Bill Clinton in the previous election, wrote that many Americans were coming to the
"sad realization that our First Lady—a woman of undoubted talents who was a role model for many in her generation—is a congenital liar,"[41]followed by White House Press Secretary
Mike McCurry saying that "the President, if he were not the President, would have delivered a more forceful response to that—on the bridge of Mr. Safire's nose."
[42][43]
As a result of the discovery of the Watkins memo, and based upon a suggestion from the Office of Independent Counsel, on March 20, 1996, Attorney General
Janet Reno requested that
Whitewater Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr expand his inquiry to specifically include the travel office affair, in particular allegations that White House employees had lied about Hillary Clinton's role in the firings,
[8] and that David Watkins or Hillary Clinton had made false statements in previous testimony to the GAO, Congress, or the Independent Counsel.
[44]
The Congressional investigation continued; on March 21, 1996,
Hillary Clinton submitted a deposition under oath to the House Government Reform and Oversight Committee, again acknowledging concern about irregularities in the Travel Office but denying a direct role in the firings and expressing a lack of recollection to a number of questions.
[26] A battle of wills took place between the legislative and executive branches. On May 9, 1996, President Clinton refused to turn over additional documents related to the matter, claiming
executive privilege.
[45] House committee chair Clinger
threatened a contempt of Congress resolution against the president, and the White House partially backed down on May 30, surrendering 1,000 of the 3,000 documents the committee asked for.
[46]