Jordan Denied Funds in Lewinsky Probe

[Freddie Stubbs]

WASHINGTON Sept. 30 — Vernon Jordan, the prominent Washington attorney who helped Monica Lewinsky find a job after she left the White House, will not be reimbursed for most of his legal bills arising from an investigation of then-President Bill Clinton's relationship with Lewinsky, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

Jordan asked the federal government to pay the $302,719 in fees he spent to defend himself during the investigation by the independent counsel's office. But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit said he was entitled to only $1,215.

The special three-judge panel rejected Jordan's argument that no other prosecutor would have conducted such an extensive investigation of his conduct and dismissed his assertion that he would never would have faced such an expensive, lengthy process if not for his position as a prominent lawyer and friend of the president.

"Nothing in Jordan's application or the supporting documentation supports the proposition that the investigation of Jordan was any longer or more intense than it would have been in the absence of" the law authorizing an independent counsel, the panel said.

more: http://abcnews.go.com/wire/US/ap20030930_1012.html

[soleft]

1. how much you want to bet this story gets equal footing on news tonight

timing sucks

[diplomats]

8. Don't worry

this will just remind people of what they used to think was a real scandal, back when peace and prosperity were taken for granted.

[BQueen]

2. Dupe Thread

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=140365

kiska beat you to it

I'd like to see how much they reimbursed on the Iran/Contra investigatees?

[mistertrickster]

3. We trump up the charges and you pay.

Sucks to be a friend of Bill during the night of the long knives.

But I'm sure the Supreme Court will reverse the decision <heavy sarcasm>.

[AP]

4. I vaguely remember seeing a list of Republicans investigated by SC

and how much of their legal bills were paid by gov't vs. Democrats.

It was like all the Republicans had all their bills paid (even though those investigations actually resulted in convictions like Oliver North's). And many of the Democrats got almost nothing.

[leetrisck]

5. This is really rotten

I know Mr.Jordan can afford it, but that isn't the point - almost everyone (probably all of them) were reimbursed from Republican admins. There are so many people who were dragged into the Whitewater thing over 8 years that had absolutely nothing to do with it. I don't know how many of them have gotten their money back. I had a list of those who had filed but no longer have that. Are you aware that Richard Mellon Scaife filed for reimbursement.

[Yupster]

6. He shouldn't have abused his positions

on the Boards of Trustees of companies like Revlon and American Express by using his positions to try to get jobs for his friend's bimbo.

That's not what Trustees are supposed to be doing. They're supposed to be representing the stock holders and looking out for their best interests, not their pals.

I don't have any sympathy for him.

I feel more for the Revlon stockholders who were hoping their company didn't go bankrupt a few years ago, and thinking their Trustees were representing them. Every dollar was dear to Revlon then, and the Trusee was trying to get $ 90,000 given to Monica to get her safely out of Washington.

[diplomats]

7. Vernon Jordan didn't know Monica had an affair with Clinton

at the time he was trying to help her.

[bluestateguy]

9. Why does a court get to "decide"

The law should mandate that legal fees are reimbursed automatically if a person is not indicted. End of story.

If someone is indicted but acquitted, then a court should decide if the money is refunded.

Evidently Ken Starr can spend $57,000 of taxpayer money on a copy machine, but an innocent man cannot be reimbursed for 2 years of legal harassment. I really feel bad for the people caught up in this who don't make the kind of money that Vernon Jordan does.