August 1, 1994 - Part 5
August 1, 1994 - Part 5
(17:25:33) Senator DODD. As a detailee, in effect? Ms. HANSON, Not as a detailee. The term "detailee" has specific meanings. I continued to, at all times, fulfill my Treasury functions and, in addition, took on, from time to time as he asked me, RTC related functions. Senator DODD. Was there ever a conversation between you and Mr. Altman that established this relationship with regard to the RTC? Did he ever say to you, by the way, because I've been saddled with this responsibility until we get a permanent CEO, I'm asking you to perform this function as well? Ms. HANSON. I don't recall that there was a specific conversation. I don't think it was necessary. You have to keep in mind also that Secretary Bentsen is the Chairman of the oversight board---- Senator DODD. I understand that. Ms. HANSON. -and Treasury has, historically, always been involved, to one extent or another, in RTC matters. Senator DODD. I appreciate that and I'm not questioning that, I just seemed to be making that linkage because it seems-again we all discussed earlier today the benefit of maybe going back and revisiting this-the law requires Senate confirmed personnel to assume the responsibilities when a vacancy occurs. I think that's a legitimate question for the Senate to consider. Let me ask a series of questions. You've been a sworn witness here and these are very important questions. They go, as far as I'm concerned-this Senator is concerned-to the heart of the matter, and that has to do with whether or not any, actions were taken which in any way have thrown these cases off track. I'd like to address a series of questions to you regarding your actions that might have contributed, in any way, to sharing information that caused these cases to be treated differently than they have been. Ms. Hanson, when you learned about the criminal referrals in September 1993, did you take any action, or did you direct anyone under your authority to take any action, to obstruct to impede the handling of, or forwarding of these referrals to the Department of Justice? Ms. HANSON. Absolutely not. Senator DODD. Did you ever actually read the criminal referrals? Ms. HANSON. No, sir. Senator DODD. Did any officials at the White House ask you to take any action, or instruct you to have anyone else take any action, an action, to obstruct or impede the RTC's handling of these criminal referrals? Ms. HANsON. No, sir. Senator DODD. To our knowledge, did anyone at the Treasury, the RTC, the White House, or any other agency take any action to impede, or in any way interfere with, the criminal referrals? 110 Ms. HANSON. Not to my knowledge. Senator DODD. Did you, or anyone else that you're aware of ob- struct, or otherwise interfere with, the RTC's civil case involving Madison? Ms. HANSON. Absolutely not. Senator DODD. Mr. Chairman, those, to me, are the important questions. I know it's been raised by others that someone may have done something with the information, but trying to prove a no tive gets very, very, very difficult. So, at that point, Mr. Chairman, I'll be glad to yield my time. The CHAMMAN. Thank you, Senator Dodd. Senator Gramm. Senator DAMATO. Mr. Chairman, if I might, I'd like to- yield to Senator Mack, so he can continue along his line of questioning. The CHAiRmAN. Senator Mack. Senator MACK, I thank my friend, and thank you, Mr. Chairman, ' I want to pick up on the confidentiality issue for a moment. I understand that you 've had lots of conversations and you're not going to remember everything, but in both his testimony this morning and in his earlier deposition, Mr. Roelle went on at some length about the discussion about confidentiality, saying, in essence, it really should be only for the CEO, Mr. Altman's ears, nobody else. Does an of this ring a bell? Ms. HANSON. No, sir. Senator MACK. I understand that, then, after you were tasked by by Mr. Altman ' you had a meeting with Mr. Nussbaum and Cliff Sloan on September 29, 1993, and discussed the fact that the criminal referrals were on their way to the Department of Justice. Is that correct? Ms. HANsON. I had a conversation with Mr. Nussbaum and Mr. Sloan about the press leaks. Senator MACK. Let's talk about that. You just said you knew there were going to be press leaks, but there was no discussion about what was going to be leaked? Ms. HANSON, We had a discussion. I don't remember the specifies of the discussion, sir, but we had a discussion that criminal referrals, in which the President and Mrs. Clinton were named as possible witnesses, were going to-information relating to the criminal referrals would be leaked to the press.