Salon Newsreal | The dark prince

A L S O+T O D A Y

No apologies
By Debra Dickerson
How I learned to fight for my country, proudly

T A B L E+T A L K
Are Bill and Hillary fighting? Swap rumors and theories on the state of the first marriage in the Politics area of Table Talk
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Are you a political junkie? Check out barnesandnoble.com's great selection and deep discounts on the books you need to read!
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R E C E N T L Y
Down for the count
By C.D. Ellison
Now that the Supreme Court has barred Census "sampling," what are Republicans going to do to correct the scandalous undercount of minority voters?
(01/27/99)
Impeachment notebook
By Joshua Micah Marshall
Jesse Helms snores, Al Franken gets tossed, House managers look overmatched
(01/26/99)
Endgame?
By Joshua Micah Marshall
Republicans ratchet up the rhetoric while looking for a way out
(01/26/99)
Witness for the prosecution?
By Nicholas Confessore
Dick Morris, conspiracy theorist, could find a way to hurt the president again
(01/26/99)
Months of sleaze
By Jeff Stein
In an interview, Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle says that's what Monica Lewinsky's return to Washington could herald
(01/25/99)
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THE DARK PRINCE | PAGE 1, 2
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But the managers clearly have a political as well as legal agenda in calling Blumenthal. Deposing him lets them delve into Blumenthal's alleged role as the White House's leaker in chief of salacious gossip. Over the course of the last year Blumenthal has become the bête noire of conservatives who believe him responsible for almost every negative story that has surfaced about Republicans, from Henry Hyde's youthful indiscretions to a range of other reported sexual hi-jinks by GOP congressmembers. This makes Blumenthal an attractive witness for two reasons. Grilling him is red meat for conservatives, whatever he says. And it also lets them pry into what they can find out about other White House dirty tricks. If he testifies about other White House shenanigans, they reason, the momentum of the trial could change dramatically. And if he refuses to testify about certain issues, the tenor of the proceedings could instantly become deeply polarized as they try to compel his testimony.
There's only one problem. Despite Blumenthal's reputation as a consummate White House leaker and peddler of stories to the press, he's actually clean on most of the charges that conservatives have charged him with. According to one reporter who's covered the Lewinsky scandal, "If they hope to castigate Sid for polluting the political discourse by outing Henry Hyde, Dan Burton, Bob Livingston, etc., they will look dumb. Sid is clean on these matters." While William Kristol of the right-wing Weekly Standard boasted of "outing" Blumenthal as the source of the Hyde story -- which first appeared, for the record, in Salon -- journalists who tracked the story, including those at Salon, have all cleared Blumenthal. A feature in the December/January Brill's Content, "Who's Vicious Now?" concluded that while many of Blumenthal's detractors "are thrilled at the chance -- legitimate or not -- to watch him squirm," none of the charges of spreading sexual stories about Republicans had any merit.
Certainly Blumenthal is known for faxing friendly reporters his take on current events. And he is no doubt a partisan street fighter. "Sid believes in the right-wing conspiracy," says the same Washington reporter, "and he can do what the first lady cannot -- which is do battle with the right." He was the source of published reports that the president considered Monica Lewinsky a "stalker" -- but he admitted as much in his grand jury testimony. It's not clear what more the House managers hope to gain.
Moreover, admirers and enemies alike agree that whatever one can say about him, Blumenthal is brilliant. And despite a reputation for arrogance and a hot temper -- displayed in a September press conference when he blasted reports that he was the source of anti-Republican smears -- those who know him agree that he can be cool and affable when it counts. And it will never count more than during a deposition in a trial that could remove his boss, friend and sponsor, President Clinton.
Even with Wednesday's vote to call witnesses, Democrats may still get essentially what they want -- a rapid end to the trial, with witnesses deposed behind closed doors. That may explain the lack of a dramatic response from Senate Democrats after today's session, and Sen. Tom Daschle's relatively accommodating statements about negotiating procedures for the deposition of witnesses. For all the talk about how senators are notoriously independent operators, the Senate Republican caucus has actually demonstrated a remarkable degree of party discipline -- fending off erosions of support on both the right and the left. And they've managed to fashion a pared-down witness list, with private depositions only, and yet not have the House managers revolt.
But the moment of truth is still yet to come. Until now, for House Republicans, impeachment has meant not only never having to say you're sorry, but also never having to say it's over. At every stage that the crisis has seemed to trend toward its inevitable denouement, House Republicans have insisted on taking it to the next level. And the conservative activist core of the party has always threatened to crucify those who tried to shut it down. When Republican senators try to end the trial after the three witnesses are privately deposed, they are sure to face demands for more from the managers. At that point, they'd finally have to say it's over, and send "blue collar" Henry Hyde to shuffle off into that great good night, as he promised. Whether they'll be able to finally do that remains an open question.
SALON | Jan. 28, 1999
Joshua Micah Marshall, associate editor of the American Prospect, is covering the impeachment trial for Salon.
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Clinton in Crisis
Salon's complete coverage of the investigation, impeachment and trial of the president.

A L S O+T O D A Y No apologies By Debra Dickerson How I learned to fight for my country, proudly T A B L E+T A L K Are Bill and Hillary fighting? Swap rumors and theories on the state of the first marriage in the Politics area of Table Talk ___________________ Are you a political junkie? Check out barnesandnoble.com's great selection and deep discounts on the books you need to read! ___________________ R E C E N T L Y Down for the count By C.D. Ellison Now that the Supreme Court has barred Census "sampling," what are Republicans going to do to correct the scandalous undercount of minority voters? (01/27/99) Impeachment notebook By Joshua Micah Marshall Jesse Helms snores, Al Franken gets tossed, House managers look overmatched (01/26/99) Endgame? By Joshua Micah Marshall Republicans ratchet up the rhetoric while looking for a way out (01/26/99) Witness for the prosecution? By Nicholas Confessore Dick Morris, conspiracy theorist, could find a way to hurt the president again (01/26/99) Months of sleaze By Jeff Stein In an interview, Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle says that's what Monica Lewinsky's return to Washington could herald (01/25/99) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Browse the Newsreal Archives - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
		THE DARK PRINCE \| PAGE 1, 2 - - - - - - - - - - But the managers clearly have a political as well as legal agenda in calling Blumenthal. Deposing him lets them delve into Blumenthal's alleged role as the White House's leaker in chief of salacious gossip. Over the course of the last year Blumenthal has become the bête noire of conservatives who believe him responsible for almost every negative story that has surfaced about Republicans, from Henry Hyde's youthful indiscretions to a range of other reported sexual hi-jinks by GOP congressmembers. This makes Blumenthal an attractive witness for two reasons. Grilling him is red meat for conservatives, whatever he says. And it also lets them pry into what they can find out about other White House dirty tricks. If he testifies about other White House shenanigans, they reason, the momentum of the trial could change dramatically. And if he refuses to testify about certain issues, the tenor of the proceedings could instantly become deeply polarized as they try to compel his testimony. There's only one problem. Despite Blumenthal's reputation as a consummate White House leaker and peddler of stories to the press, he's actually clean on most of the charges that conservatives have charged him with. According to one reporter who's covered the Lewinsky scandal, "If they hope to castigate Sid for polluting the political discourse by outing Henry Hyde, Dan Burton, Bob Livingston, etc., they will look dumb. Sid is clean on these matters." While William Kristol of the right-wing Weekly Standard boasted of "outing" Blumenthal as the source of the Hyde story -- which first appeared, for the record, in Salon -- journalists who tracked the story, including those at Salon, have all cleared Blumenthal. A feature in the December/January Brill's Content, "Who's Vicious Now?" concluded that while many of Blumenthal's detractors "are thrilled at the chance -- legitimate or not -- to watch him squirm," none of the charges of spreading sexual stories about Republicans had any merit. Certainly Blumenthal is known for faxing friendly reporters his take on current events. And he is no doubt a partisan street fighter. "Sid believes in the right-wing conspiracy," says the same Washington reporter, "and he can do what the first lady cannot -- which is do battle with the right." He was the source of published reports that the president considered Monica Lewinsky a "stalker" -- but he admitted as much in his grand jury testimony. It's not clear what more the House managers hope to gain. Moreover, admirers and enemies alike agree that whatever one can say about him, Blumenthal is brilliant. And despite a reputation for arrogance and a hot temper -- displayed in a September press conference when he blasted reports that he was the source of anti-Republican smears -- those who know him agree that he can be cool and affable when it counts. And it will never count more than during a deposition in a trial that could remove his boss, friend and sponsor, President Clinton. Even with Wednesday's vote to call witnesses, Democrats may still get essentially what they want -- a rapid end to the trial, with witnesses deposed behind closed doors. That may explain the lack of a dramatic response from Senate Democrats after today's session, and Sen. Tom Daschle's relatively accommodating statements about negotiating procedures for the deposition of witnesses. For all the talk about how senators are notoriously independent operators, the Senate Republican caucus has actually demonstrated a remarkable degree of party discipline -- fending off erosions of support on both the right and the left. And they've managed to fashion a pared-down witness list, with private depositions only, and yet not have the House managers revolt. But the moment of truth is still yet to come. Until now, for House Republicans, impeachment has meant not only never having to say you're sorry, but also never having to say it's over. At every stage that the crisis has seemed to trend toward its inevitable denouement, House Republicans have insisted on taking it to the next level. And the conservative activist core of the party has always threatened to crucify those who tried to shut it down. When Republican senators try to end the trial after the three witnesses are privately deposed, they are sure to face demands for more from the managers. At that point, they'd finally have to say it's over, and send "blue collar" Henry Hyde to shuffle off into that great good night, as he promised. Whether they'll be able to finally do that remains an open question. SALON \| Jan. 28, 1999 Joshua Micah Marshall, associate editor of the American Prospect, is covering the impeachment trial for Salon. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Clinton in Crisis Salon's complete coverage of the investigation, impeachment and trial of the president.