Starr – A Reassessment - Hardcover

Wittes, Benjamin

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0300092520 ISBN 13: 9780300092523

Publisher: Yale University Press, 2002

Synopsis

How is Kenneth Starr's extraordinary term as independent counsel to be understood? Was he a partisan warrior out to get the Clintons, or a saviour of the Republic? An unstoppable menace, an unethical lawyer, or a sex-obsessed Puritan striving to enforce a right-wing social morality? This volume is designed to offer an evaluation and critique of Starr's tenure as independent counsel. Relying on lengthy, revealing interviews with Starr and many other players in Clinton-era Washington, "Washington Post" journalist Benjamin Wittes arrives at an understanding of Starr and the part he played in one of American history's most enthralling public sagas. Wittes offers a portrait of a decent man who fundamentally misconstrued his function under the independent counsel law. Starr took his task to be ferreting out and reporting the truth about official misconduct, a well-intentioned but nevertheless misguided distortion of the law, Wittes argues. At key moments throughout Starr's probe - from the decision to reinvestigate the death of Vincent Foster, to the repeated prosecutions of Susan McDougal and Webster Hubbell to the failure to secure Monica Lewinsky's testimony quickly - the prosecutor avoided the most sensible prosecutorial course, fearing that it would compromise the larger search for truth. This approach not only delayed investigations enormously, but it gave Starr the appearance of partisan zealotry and an almost maniacal determination to prosecute the president. Wittes provides in this account of Starr's term a reinterpretation of the man, his performance, and the controversial events that surrounded the impeachment of President Clinton.

About this title

Review:

"...Although Wittes's scrupulous fair-mindedness may discomfit partisans on both sides of the political spectrum, he has created something unique: an argument that is principled, convincing, and entirely unexpected." -- Jeffrey Rosen, author of The Unwanted Gaze: The Destruction of Privacy in America

"Benjamin Wittes, who conducted hours of no-holds-barred interviews with Starr and immersed himself in the facts, convincingly portrays Starr as an honourably (and apolitically) motivated man who fundamentally misconstrued his role. A meticulously reasoned analysis by a deeply perceptive writer." -- Stuart Taylor, Jr., National Journal columnist and Newsweek contributor.

About the Author:

Benjamin Wittes is an editorial writer for the Washington Post, who writes on matters involving the federal courts, major federal investigations, law, and criminal justice. He wrote extensively about the Starr investigation and the impeachment of President Clinton.

About this edition

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0300092520
• ISBN 13: 9780300092523
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256