    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book II)]
    [December 29, 1997]
    [Page 1826]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Statement on the Health Care Task Force Civil Case
    December 29, 1997

        While the Department of Justice is still reviewing whether to appeal
    Judge Lamberth's ruling, I am quite
    confident that Mr. Magaziner acted
    appropriately. Any suggestion to the contrary is unfair and unsupported
    by the facts and the findings of the U.S. Attorney's Office in its 1995
    investigation of this matter.
        The U.S. Attorney's Office concluded that ``there is no basis to
    conclude that Mr. Magaziner committed a criminal offense in this matter.
    There is no significant evidence that his declaration was factually
    false, much less that it was willfully and intentionally so.''
        Mr. Magaziner is, and will remain, a
    valued member of my administration.

    Note: In the statement, the President referred to U.S. District Judge
    Royce C. Lamberth.