Whitewater Information Interchange I mean Watergate, don't I? Was Vince Foster Murdered? Politics Now Scandal Sheet

THE long-awaited decision by the Whitewater prosecutor, Kenneth Starr, as to how deeply President Clinton and his wife, Hillary, were involved in a cover-up of the scandal appeared to be near last night.

He was said to be evaluating whether to pursue criminal charges of perjury and obstruction of justice. These might be linked to testimony given under oath by the President, as well as Mrs Clinton's billing records as a lawyer, which vanished during the 1992 presidential campaign and mysteriously turned up at the White House.

It is believed they were secretly removed from the office of Vincent Foster, the White House lawyer, after his death in contested circumstances in 1993.

Sources close to the inquiry spoke of "new and important information" emerging from the couple's former partner in Arkansas, James McDougal. The once flamboyant McDougal, 56, now frail after a stroke, is co-operating with Mr Starr to gain leniency in a sentence for fraud and conspiracy in the affair. Otherwise, he faces the prospect of never leaving jail, as his crimes carry a maximum of 84 years' imprisonment.

His ex-wife, Susan, has accused him of cutting a deal with Mr Starr because he is a broken and bitter man. She is still in jail for refusing to tell a grand jury about the President's possible Whitewater role.

Inquiry sources said that McDougal had corroborated a story initially told by David Hale, a former Arkansas judge, who said that the President, as state governor, asked him to make a fraudulent $300,000 loan to Mrs McDougal. In sworn evidence, Mr Clinton has branded the claim a lie.

Sources said that among the many questions being studied by Mr Starr, whose dossier is hundreds of pages long, was whether there was credible information that would constitute grounds for impeachment. If so, he must submit it to Congress.

26 November 1996: Clinton launches his 'Starr' wars
3 February 1997: 'Mafia links' of a Clinton guest

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