August 9, 1995 - Part 1
August 9, 1995 - Part 1
(09:29:30) Opens to various shots of the Senate Committee Room where media, Senators and audience gather and mingle (09:36:06) Hearing begins: INVESTIGATION OF WHITEWATER DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION AND RELATED MATTERS WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 9, 1995 U.S. SENATE, COMMITTEE ON BANKING, HOUSING, AND URBAN AFFAIRS, SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE THE WHITEWATER DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION AND RELATED MATTERS, Washington, DC. The Committee met at 10:00 a.m., in room 216 of the Hart Senate Office Building, Senator Alfonse M. D'Amato (Chairman of the Committee) presiding. OPENING COMMENTS OF CHAIRMAN ALFONSE M. DAMATO The CHAIRMAN. I would just like to make an announcement. We are scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m. We are going to delay that, why don't we say, until 10:00 a.m. The reason for the delay is that a vote is starting within the next 5 minutes. Mr. Nussbaum, good to see you. As I was saying, while we were scheduled to start at 9:30 a.m., the reason the other Senators are not here is because a vote will start within the next 5 minutes. That vote will take at least 15 minutes to complete, plus they have another 5 minutes, so I'm going to suggest that we be prepared to start at 10:00 a.m. (09:36:58) [Recess.] (09:37:00) Various shots of Senate Hearing room where media and audience come and go and mingle, eventually Senators and witness BERNARD NUSSBAUM return and as well mingle (10:07:48) The CHAIRMAN. The Committee will come to order. Mr. Nussbaum, would you stand for the purposes of the oath SWORN TESTIMONY OF BERNARD W. NUSSBAUM, FORMER COUNSEL TO THE PRESIDENT OF TIRE UNITED STATES The CHAIRMAN. Mr. Nussbaum, I understand that you have a prepared statement that you would like to give to the Committee for the record, and we would be prepared to receive your testimony 101, it at this point. Mr. NUSSBAUM. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr Chairman, Senator Sarbanes, and Members of the Committee_ The CHAIRMAN. May I interrupt at this moment? Would you have a copy so we can have copies made for the Committee? NUSSBAUM. Yes, we have copies, and we'll The CHAIRMAN. If you could just wait a moment, we'll have some copies made. I'm not going to hold you up, but if your counsel could get a copy, we'll run some off. 1202 Mr. FITZPATRICK. We have copies. The CHAIRMAN. Pardon me? Mr. FITZPATRICK. We have copies. They're coming. Mr. NUSSBAUM. Copies are coming, Mr. Chairman. The CHAIRMAN. Why don't you proceed as long as we have them. Mr. NUSSBAUM. Thank you. Mr. Chairman, let me say I appreciate the opportunity to deliver this opening statement. I should tell you at the outset, and I know this will not surprise you, since we have all met before, that I intend to respond in detail to each of the issues and to all of the innuendoes raised in this hearing room during the past several weeks. I intend to do so with facts, not fantasies, and with a discussion of how a lawyer is obliged to act with respect to a client's confidences. So let me begin. As you know, I was Counsel to the President of the United States from January 20, 1993 until April 5, 1994. Vincent Foster was my Deputy. He was a superb lawyer, an individual of great integrity, and a magnifi cent human being. Vince was the co-senior partner of the little law firm we created in the White House, the White House Counsel's Office. It is hard to imagine having a finer colleague. I miss him. I miss him a great deal, So do so many others who knew him well.