[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 42 (Thursday, April 10, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H1396]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    JUSTICE DEPARTMENT NEEDS TO ACT

  (Mr. BOEHNER asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. BOEHNER. Mr. Speaker, last December while I was on vacation with 
my family, I used my wife's cell phone to talk to some of my 
colleagues. A few weeks later I found that the conversation was all 
over the newspapers, and I had found out that a couple of Democrat 
activists had broken the law and eavesdropped on my conversation, the 
equivalent of wiretapping. I saw them all over the television talking 
about how they had come to Washington and given this tape to Democrats 
in this House; yes, in this very House; and how just a day or two later 
transcripts of my private conversation wound up in the newspapers.
  Mr. Speaker, I was mad, and so were some of my colleagues, and we 
demanded that the Justice Department get to the bottom of this matter.
  Well, Mrs. Reno can move pretty quickly when she wants to. She got a 
grand jury together within days after a Republican committee chairman 
was accused by a Democrat activist of improper activities, but when it 
came to IRS agents snooping in our taxpayers' files or Democrats 
snooping in on private phone conversations or the Democrat National 
Committee accepting Chinese campaign checks, or the Vice President 
making telephone calls from the White House, she can drag her heels 
along with the best of them.
  Mr. Speaker, Tapegate is so open and shut of a case that even Barney 
Fife could have solved it in a day. I have written her that I want an 
answer by tomorrow, and so far I have not heard a peep.

                              {time}  1030

  If we do not hear by tomorrow, we are going to have to hold the 
Democrats in this House accountable for what they did.

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