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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Clinton Says Fbi Kept Him In Dark Fbi Denies Telling Nsc Staffers To Keep Quiet About China’s Attempt To Sway U.S. Politics

Robert A. Rankin Knight-Ridder

In an extraordinary public dispute, the White House and the FBI all but accused each other of lying Monday as they tangled over what the FBI had told the White House about China’s involvement in U.S. elections.

First, President Clinton said the FBI was wrong to tell two White House staffers last summer that they could not inform their superiors - including him - that China may have been making illegal donations to U.S. congressional campaigns.

Four hours after Clinton spoke, the FBI denied doing that.

Minutes later, Clinton spokesman Mike McCurry issued a statement concluding that “the White House considers the FBI statement to be in error.”

The rare round of public finger-pointing between the White House and the FBI was the latest twist in the campaign-finance controversy that has bedeviled Clinton since October.

The fuss started when the White House reported that the FBI had told two National Security Council aides last June about suspicions regarding China - and that the FBI insisted on ground rules requiring the aides to keep the information to themselves.

Clinton and other senior White House officials did not know about the FBI’s information until mid-February, when news reports alerted them, the White House reported.

That was a mistake, Clinton complained at a White House news conference.

“First of all, yes, the president should know,” Clinton said. The president said if he had known about the reports earlier, it would have raised “a red flag” to be on guard.

The FBI fired back in early evening, insisting that it had not kept the president in the dark on this sensitive matter of foreign policy. The FBI confirmed that senior bureau officials had briefed two NSC staff members “about the possible covert activities of a foreign government in the United States,” but added that:

“The FBI placed no restriction whatsoever on the dissemination up the chain-of-command at the NSC on any information provided to the NSC senior staff by the FBI during the June 3, 1996 briefing.”

McCurry then issued this retort:

“The White House legal counsel had very specific conversations with the NSC staffers in question and they are adamant in recalling specifically they were urged not to disseminate the information outside the briefing room. Therefore the White House considers the FBI statement to be in error.”

The White House maintains that it still does not know why the FBI muzzled the NSC intelligence officers, which was a highly unusual procedure, if indeed it occurred.

White House officials said their inquiries to the Justice Department about the matter received guarded responses because of the ongoing Justice investigation into fund-raising practices that involve Clinton and Vice President Al Gore.

At the same time, Clinton holds final responsibility for the conduct of U.S. foreign policy, and the FBI’s information on China obviously falls within that realm.

Moreover, the FBI saw fit to inform many Democratic members of Congress directly about the possible Chinese intrusion into their elections; news reports say between six and 30 Democratic lawmakers got FBI briefings last summer warning them about improper Chinese activities.

In addition, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said FBI agents warned her in San Francisco as early as 1991 that China “is going to attempt to get funds into campaigns in the United States.” Pelosi asked then Attorney General William Barr about the matter at a 1992 hearing, but Barr did not respond.

Speaking at a Capitol Hill news conference, Pelosi said she heard nothing more until last June, when the FBI repeated similar warnings.

Both of California’s Democratic U.S. senators - Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer - have acknowledged that they got such FBI warnings.

Why members of Congress but not the president?

Clinton was outwardly calm when discussing all this, but when asked why he didn’t “seem particularly angry” about not being informed on such an important matter, the president responded this way:

“Well, what I seem and what I feel may be two different things.”

Clinton stressed that these FBI reports were only “allegations” - albeit “very serious” ones - that have not been conclusively confirmed.

Nonetheless, the president said if he had known about the reports, he would have directed his staff to evaluate them and determine if any safeguards were needed.

Clinton said he has directed White House legal counsel Charles Ruff and National Security Adviser Sandy Berger to find out why the FBI acted as it did and to report back to him.

White House spokesman McCurry said they have been seeking answers since Feb. 17, but they are unsure when they might complete their inquiry because the FBI and Justice Department are being so guarded.

Asked why Clinton didn’t just call FBI Director Louis Freeh on the telephone, McCurry said the White House doesn’t want to be perceived as impeding an ongoing inquiry.

McCurry said Clinton retains confidence in Freeh as FBI director. Earlier however, in response to a suggestion that the FBI’s failure to inform the president was “appalling,” the White House spokesman said, “that’s an idea that has not gone unnoticed.”