August 4, 1994 - Part 8
August 4, 1994 - Part 8
(17:15:57) The CHAIRMAN. I've just asked Senator DAmato if I could ask one clarifying question here on your point. Maybe I didn't get this right, but do I understand that the information on the meetings or. the criminal referrals, that you got that information, and it was given by the White House to The Washing-ton Post? Is that how they got it, or did I misunderstand? Mr. PODESTA. Excuse me? No, I think the details of the meeting-I don't think The Post knew about the meeting on the 29th, They were pursuing this meeting issue, and I think we The CHAIRMAN. See Mr. PODESTA. We raised-we gave them that information that there was a meeting on the 29th between Nussbaum, Hanson and The CHAIRMAN. But you realize that puts us in a position where it was given to The Washington Post before it was given to this Committee which had asked for it. Mr. PODESTA. Senator-Mr. Chairman, I actually thought that the reverse sequence had happened, That was my understanding. The CHAIRMAN. You thought it had been. Mr. PODESTA. I raised it with Mr. Altman. Mr. Altman was pursuing the matter. I was informed that you had been sent the letter. I assumed you knew all this, frankly. The CHAIRMAN. But you now know that was not the case. It was in the other sequence. Senator Bennett. Senator BENNETT. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Mr. Podesta, I have a copy of some handwritten notes from the White House attributed to Dee Dee Myers. She says "John, Neil, Cliff, met to review Roger's testimony and make sure we're accurate. John P. then talked to Roger, told him that he had misspoken. Could be misleading." Do you remember talking to Roger Altman about that? Mr. PODESTA- I described my conversation with Mr. Altman. Senator BENNETT. Is that the conversation she's referring to? Mr. PODESTA. Yes. I think she's referring to my conversation on March 1st between myself and Mr. Altman. Senator BENNETT. Did you tell him what you thought could be misleading? Mr. PODESTA. I have-go back at it one more time. I think the thing we thought was misleading--could be misleading-I don't know that I used that word with Dee Dee and I don't think I used it with Mr. Altman, but I'll describe the conversation. I had a conversation about the fall meetings, I think the answers, not to my knowledge, could be fairly viewed by this Committee as misleading, and we wanted to correct it. Senator BENNETT. And of course, "misleading" is a very serious verb. You say you don't think you used it with her but it showed up in her notes. 383 Mr. PODESTA. I'm just saying I have no recollection of using that with Ms. Myers. There were six people in the meeting, so someone else could have conceivably characterized it that way. Senator BENNETT. We may return to that. Let me go to-just a moment. Well, I'll perhaps return to that on another round, Did any of you watch this thing until we closed last night? Mr. STEPHANOPOULOS. No, sir. Senator BENNETT. So you missed the Chairman's closing speech. I'd like to refer to the Chairman's closing speech because it goes to an issue that you were discussing with Senator Gramm. Senator Gramm sometimes puts things in very colorful language and he talked about this being like the St. Valentine's Day Massacre and nobody can remember a shot being fired. But the key point that the Chairman emphasized last night is that it happened. That is, that Roger Altman went into the White House, determined to recuse himself, having been instructed-not instructed, having been advised to recuse himself by the General Counsel of his Department, having talked with the Secretary of his Department, his boss who himself now cannot remember the advice, but others testified that Secretary Bentsen advised him to recuse himself. And Secretary Bentsen said he can't contradict that, he just doesn't recall, went into the White House with that kind of background, came out of the White House saying that he would consider it, and in less than 24 hours went back to the White House with a formal meeting, called at his request so he can report to senior officials of the White House that he has changed his mind. Something happened. Maybe no one can remember, but something happened.