Schippers: Impeachment Trial Rigged by Republican Leadership Justice Department obstructed inquiry By MARVIN LEE Speaking out after the failed impeachment of President Clinton, Republican counsel David Schippers says that the House Impeachment managers were betrayed by the Republican leadership in the Senate. In an interview with Human Events, he said: SCHIPPERS: I think the most important factor that the public should know that they don't know is that, before we ever appeared on the floor of the United States Senate, the House impeachment managers and I were told that there was no way we could win. QUESTION: Who told you that? SCHIPPERS: Six Republican senators. Members of the leadership. QUESTION: Members of the Republican leadership came over to you? SCHIPPERS: No, we were over there. We were discussing the kind of method by which we would try the case, and we, the managers and myself, were told, "Look we're just trying to keep you from embarrassing yourselves." I mean, this is after a vote of the House of Representatives impeaching the President. In that same meeting one of the senators -- and because I do not know which one it was, I will not name any of the senators -- turned to Henry Hyde and he said, "Henry, I don't care. No way are you going to get 67 votes." This was before anything had occurred on the floor of the Senate. And Henry Hyde said, "Well, you know Senator, we have other materials over there in that room that were furnished by Mr. Starr and I think that some of them may have to do with assaults or things like that. And the senator said, "Henry" -- this is a direct quote -- "I don't care if you have proof that he raped a woman, stood up and shot her dead, you're still not going to get 67 votes." At that point I raised my hand and I said, "Senator, are you telling me I just watched a hundred senators raise their right hand to God and swear to do equal and impartial justice and that they will ignore that oath too?" And the senator said, "You're darn right they are." From that moment on I knew that we were in a rigged ball game. In Chicago we'd refer to it as a First Ward election. David Schippers further complained about an obstruction of the impeachment effort by the Justice Department itself: SCHIPPERS: The FBI at every stage of the investigation -- at every stage of oversight, impeachment, or anything else -- gave us nothing but 100% full cooperation from the bureau. The problems always came between the bureau and us because interposed between us was the Justice Department, and they were not about to give up anything that might embarrass the President or the Administration. QUESTION: Your feeling is they were covering up for the President? SCHIPPERS: I feel they were covering up for the President. Published in the Jun. 7, 1999 issue of The Washington Weekly. Copyright © 1999 The Washington Weekly (http://www.federal.com). Reposting permitted with this message intact.
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