[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 80 (Thursday, June 22, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5654-S5656]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
CAMPAIGN FINANCE TASK FORCE CHIEF PROSECUTOR INVESTIGATES VICE
PRESIDENT GORE REGARDING CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS
Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, I want to share some thoughts tonight
about a major development concerning the investigation involving the
financing of the Vice President's 1996 reelection campaign. First,
however, I would like to say that this matter should have been over
some time ago, but the Attorney General declined to appoint an
Independent Counsel. The Justice Department attorneys who were involved
in the investigation of the campaign financing matter have recently
testified before the Subcommittee of the Judiciary Committee, which is
chaired by Senator Specter and of which I am a
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member. In my opinion, these attorneys have not produced credible and
justifiable reasons for the lack of an appointment of an Indpendent
Counsel or for the extraordinary delays that have incurred in the
campaign finance investigation.
My 15 years of experience as a prosecutor in the Department of
Justice convince me that if the Department of Justice was not going to
call for an outside prosecutor--an Independent Counsel--to investigate
Vice President Gore, it had an imperative obligation to investigate the
matter thoroughly, promptly, and fairly and to bring it to a
conclusion. But the attorneys for the Department of Justice who have
been involved in this matter for years did not do that.
Late this afternoon, the Associated Press and the New York Times
reported that Robert Conrad, the new head of the Justice Department's
Campaign Finance Task Force, has requested that Attorney General Reno
appoint a ``special counsel.'' After the expiration of the Independent
Counsel Statute, Attorney General Reno has the authority to appoint a
special counsel to investigate Vice President Gore's involvement in the
1996 campaign fundraising matters.
This is the most recent in a long line of highly respected officials
within and without the Department of Justice who have asked for a
complete and independent investigation of various aspects of the Vice
President's fundraising activities. Unfortunately, each and every
previous request for an independent investigation has been denied.
FBI Director Louis Freeh, himself a former Federal judge and a former
experienced and skilled Federal prosecutor who personally prosecuted
some of this country's most complex cases, recommended the appointment
of an Independent Counsel in the fall of 1996.
FBI General Counsel Larry Parkinson also recommended an Independent
Counsel.
The former head of the Justice Department's Campaign Finance Task
Force, Mr. Charles La Bella, also recommended that an Independent
Counsel be appointed. He actually did so several times after he took
over as head of the task force in the fall of 1997. He eventually
resigned from that position.
Chief FBI Investigator DeSarno joined in La Bella's recommendations.
Ms. Judy Feigin, Mr. La Bella's chief prosecutor in 1998, also
recommended that an Independent Counsel be appointed in the campaign
finance matter.
Finally, Principal Associate Deputy Attorney General Bob Litt--the
associate Attorney General third in line to Janet Reno at the
Department of Justice, an individual she picked and was approved by the
President--recommended the appointment of an Independent Counsel. He
switched his position after opposing such an appointment for some time.
Even Mr. Litt recommended an Independent Counsel in 1998. But no
independent investigation has been approved to date.
Mr. Conrad testified before our subcommittee a few days ago. He
impressed me as a solid prosecutor with over 10 years experience, with
a substantial record of trying courtroom cases. He understood his duty.
He was soft spoken. He was solid. He would never be led into saying
things he did not think were proper. We were very impressed with him.
Since his involvement with the case began approximately six months ago,
some five people have pleaded guilty or been convicted of criminal
offenses arising from the financing of the 1996 Clinton-Gore campaign.
So his recommendation for an independent investigation is entitled to
substantial weight and is very, very important for America.
I sincerely and earnestly request that the Attorney General not deny
this most recent request to investigate the Vice President regarding
the receipt of illegal campaign contributions.
Yesterday, at our hearing, chaired by Senator Specter, Mr. Conrad
testified that he had personally interviewed Vice President Gore in
April. Mr. Radek, a top Department of Justice official, has recently
confirmed, in an NBC Meet the Press interview, that Vice President
Gore's Buddhist temple fundraiser is ``still under investigation by the
task force. And if any evidence shows up that Vice President Gore knew
about the crimes that were involved there, of course, that would,
again, cause a triggering of the now independent counsel regulations in
the department.'' I believe Mr. Radek was referring to the new special
counsel provisions.
News accounts in the New York Post recently reported that at the
interview, the Vice President ``blew his top . . . because they asked
about his illegal Buddhist temple fundraiser for the first time.''
Further, the Vice President ``seemed stunned'' and ``fumed'' when
confronted with these allegations, and the interview ``ended in a
yelling match between Gore and federal investigators.''
These are the investigations of Mr. Conrad. After four years, finally
Vice President was asked about this. That is the description of that
interview. I would think the Vice President would want to clear up the
matter and be candid and forthcoming with the investigator. It would
certainly be better for the country. It would certainly allow the
matter to have been concluded sooner.
What is this campaign financing matter about? Why is it that this
Buddhist temple matter simply will not go away?
On April 29, 1996, in Hacienda Heights, California, Vice President
Gore held a fundraiser at a Buddhist temple--a tax-exempt institution
where you shouldn't be able to hold a fundraiser. Several questions
arose from this fundraiser.
Who were the people surrounding Vice President Gore at this event?
Were the people involved in this event involved in illegal foreign-
source contributions?
What was the role of the Vice President's staff and DNC staff
regarding this event? What was the Vice President's role regarding this
fund-raising event?
The poster shows a picture of Vice President Gore at the Buddhist
temple fund raiser. To his far right is Maria Hsia, his long-time
friend and fund-raiser of more than 10 years, who was recently
convicted on 5 felony counts. Her convictions stem directly from the
Buddhist temple fund-raiser. It is important to note that the
investigation by the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee concluded
that Maria Hsia is an ``agent of the Chinese government, that she acted
knowingly in support of it, and that she has attempted to conceal her
relationship with the Chinese government.''
To Vice President Gore's immediate left is Ted Sieong, who fled the
country as soon as he was implicated in the fund-raising scandals and
who we believe remains under criminal investigation. Ted Sioeng is an
overseas businessman who has been tied to hundreds of thousands of
dollars in illegal contributions during the 1996 campaign, and the
Senate Governmental Affairs Committee concluded that he ``worked, and
perhaps still works, on behalf of the Chinese government.'' Behind and
to Vice President Gore's right is John Huang, a Vice Chairman of the
DNC staff who helped the Vice President plan the Buddhist temple event.
Mr. Huang also subsequently pleaded guilty to a felony count. He raised
over a million in illegal foreign-source contributions.
Finally, behind the Vice President and to his far right is Man Ho
Shih a Buddhist Nun who admitted to another Committee of the Senate
that she and others set about destroying documents relating to the
temple fund raiser. According to one of her fellow monastics, those
documents were destroyed because they ``did not want to embarrass the
Vice President.'' She also fled the country before she was scheduled to
testify in a court of law, and is now under indictment, but evading
custody.
Moreover, another key piece of evidence which could shed some light
on this issue, the videotape of the event, has never been found. This
is a serious matter. The rule of law is a serious matter. A legitimate
investigation is required.
I make no suggestion that the Vice President is guilty of any crime
related to this event and I sincerely hope that he is not.
I am deeply troubled that senior officials in the Justice Department
have refused for four years to allow investigators the opportunity to
ask the necessary questions of the Vice President and other senior
administration officials so that this matter can be resolved one way or
the other.
[[Page S5656]]
Indeed, we had testimony in our subcommittee, and we went over it two
days ago with Mr. Mansfield the former Assistant United States Attorney
in Los Angeles who started the initial investigation of the Buddhist
temple fundraiser.
When this news broke late in the 1996 Presidential campaign, Mr.
Mansfield, who had previously and successfully prosecuted a Republican
Congressman for campaign fraud, was preparing his investigative plan
for this event. He testified that in these kind of cases you need to
move quickly to get records and documents and interview witnesses. But
he was stopped by a political appointee, the chief of the Public
Integrity Section in the Department of Justice, by written direction.
And he was not allowed to proceed to interview witnesses, or to issue
subpoenas for documents. And, indeed, the Department of Justice
subsequently declared that no Independent Counsel was required,
rejecting the suggestion of Senator McCain, who previously talked on
this floor and who wrote at that time calling for an Independent
Counsel to be appointed. And five other Members joined in that letter.
But the Department of Justice attorneys who stopped Mr. Mansfield's
investigation did not interview any witnesses or do any significant
investigation.
That is why I believe it is important that Mr. Conrad's request for
the appointment of a special counsel should be granted. The Attorney
General has one more chance to do what I believe is her duty.
Mr. Conrad has a reputation as a man of integrity and a solid
prosecutor who gets results. As the current chief prosecutor who has
been in place for only a few months, has done a fine job in securing 5
convictions and guilty plea agreements in several key cases. One of
these involved Pauline Kanchanalak, who was responsible for funneling
approximately $690,000 of illegal foreign money to the Democratic
National Committee and 5 state Democratic parties. More than $457,000
of this amount was related to one White House coffee on June 18, 1996,
organized by John Huang and attended by President Clinton. Another case
involved the conviction of Maria Hsia on March 2, 2000, which resulted,
in part, from her involvement in the California Buddhist Temple
fundraiser to funnel more than $100,000 of illegal foreign money into
the Clinton-Gore 1996 reelection campaign. Even after her conviction on
five felony counts, Maria Hsia is still not in jail. In fact, Judge
Friedman granted her request to have her passport returned so she can
travel freely between China and the United States.
At any rate, some progress apparently is being made. And I commend
the efforts of Mr. Conrad. I believe that his work has the potential to
restore the integrity of the Department of Justice, and I believe
Attorney General Reno should follow his advice and appoint a special
counsel to conclude this matter.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wisconsin is recognized.
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