Kenneth Starr

We have a new Whitewater special counsel (Aug. 6). Kenneth Starr is an active Republican partisan, served in both the Bush and Reagan administrations, recently volunteered to write a legal brief opposing President Clinton’s interests, and has never handled an investigation, thereby making him unqualified for the position. The new counsel was appointed by a panel of predominantly Republican judges, one of whom manufactured partisan legal arguments to reverse the convictions of Oliver North. That pretty well disposes of “perceptions of conflict” in the appointment of the special counsel.

It appears that Republican judges are as unwilling as Republican legislators to act from nonpartisan motives for the general good of the country.

CYNTHIA J. SMITH

Long Beach

* Regarding your editorial (Aug. 8): You state that the independent counsel law stipulates that the special counsel was to be named by neither Republicans or Democrats but by a panel of three federal judges.

What you failed to state was that, of the three-judge panel, two were fervent Republicans appointed by Presidents Reagan and Bush and one of them (David Sentelle) is a strong supporter of Sen. Jesse Helms (R-N.C.) and is one of the judges who reversed the Iran-Contra convictions of North, John Poindexter and Lyn Nofziger on technicalities.

You also failed to note that this “start over again” sham will not only cost the taxpayers more money (I thought the Republicans were the holy guardians of our taxes), but will, of course, prolong the life of this right-wing red herring closer to the 1996 election.

Does anyone actually doubt that the deck has been shamelessly stacked against President Clinton?

ALLEN JOSEPH

Los Angeles