August 9, 1995 - Part 3
August 9, 1995 - Part 3
(11:30:00)(tape #10137 begins) Senator HATCH. .assistant or office manager, is that a fair characterization? Mr. NUSSBAUM. She was one of my senior secretaries is the more accurate way of Senator HATCH. She's testified before the Committee that she remembers you receiving a phone call from the First Lady during this time, and that's on page 23 of the transcript from her appearance before the Committee. Maybe we could place that up on the Elmo and let me just read the following from that. Question: What about the First Lady, do you have a recollection of her having a telephone conversation with Mr. Nussbaum? Ms. TRIPP. I don't have a clear recollection of the First Lady speaking to him during that time frame. Question: Do you have some kind of a recollection of it? 1225 Ms. TRIPP. I know at one point there was a telephone conversation between Mr. Nussbaum and Mrs. Clinton. I don't recall when that was. (11:30:44) Question: Do you recall that it occurred during this period of time in the day or two after Mr. Foster's death? Ms. TRIPP, I thought so, yes. Do you have any reason to question Ms. Tripp's recollection? Mr. NUSSBAUM. All I can do, Senator, is give you my recollection. Senator HATCH. But you don't recall? Mr. NUSSBAUM. In my recollections, I don't recall such a conversation. I would note that even with respect to these questions, she first indicates that she doesn't have a clear recollection. Then two questions later or three questions later she says she thinks it was in that time frame. But whatever she said , all I can give you is my recollection and I don't have a recollection of such a conversation. Senator HATCH. My time is up' but I thank you for your answers. The CHAIRMAN. Senator Sarbanes. OPENING COMMENTS OF SENATOR PAUL S. SARBANES Senator SARBANES. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. First of all, I just want to put on the record what I think are facts. There are tough, experienced, and even combative lawyers outside of places like New York, elsewhere in the country, who are also very capable. I think it's important to just add that dimension. Mr. Nussbaum, I first want to complete the record on the questioning that Senator Hatch put to you from your deposition (11:32:06)(tape #10136 ends) because the next question, on page 143, if you have it there? Mr. NUSSBAUM. Yes, Senator. Senator SARBANES. The question put to you was: Did she say people were concerned about giving unfettered access to the law enforcement people to the documents? And your attorney said those words, and Mr. Chertoff said, in substance, that they had that particular concern. The Witness: No, no. What I remember, it was not a concern about giving people access to documents. There was a sense of this notion of people's privacy shouldn't be invaded, that kind of sense, that people were concerned that any procedure that's followed is done with appropriate regard for people 's privacy interests. Now, I want to ask you a bit about this concern about people's privacy. You and Vince Foster became close friends, I take it. Is that correct? Mr. NUSSBAUM. Yes, Senator. Senator SARBANES. Had you known one another before you went to work in the White House Counsel's Office? Mr. NUSSBAUM. No, as I said to Senator Hatch, we met in December 1992. We sort of interviewed each other for the job, although he had the job before I had the job. While we are a different kind of people we, over the months, became quite close, even surprisedly so. I don't know, maybe he was an Arkansas litigator, a tough Arkansas litigator. I was a New York litigator as now the whole world knows. In the crucible of the White House, which we had to make fast decisions, a lot of times every day, trying to do our best, it sort of was like, I don't know, like combat maybe, like being in a foxhole together. Sometimes that tears people apart, but it didn't do that to us. We formed a very close professional relationship which got stronger and stronger as time went on, Senator SARBANES. Now, did you speak at a meeting of all of the White House staff about Vince on the I guess it was the day after his death? Mr. NUSSBAUM. Yes, it was the day after his death. It was July 21. Senator SARBANES. Do you recall what you said? Mr. NUSSBAUM. It was a very emotional time. I think I told a story which I've been telling now to this Committee about how the President of the United States was wise enough to first retain a Deputy Counsel before he retained a White House Counsel because he'd retained a great Deputy Counsel. I talked about that. I talked about our first meeting and maybe how we interviewed each other for the job, the kind of thing I just said to you.