There’s Little Joy in This Muddle : Washington seems awash in corruption probes

The fact that some investigation is under way does not necessarily prove anything wrong was done, and a charge of corruption or malfeasance in Washington can sometimes mean nothing more than politics-as-usual. But these disclaimers having been noted, it also must be said that for someone who campaigned on a promise of bringing back the highest ethical standards to Washington, President Clinton soon may have a lot to answer for.

If just one investigation was in progress or just one official was under a cloud, that could be understood, though not excused. But consider the who’s-under-the-heat-lamp list, because it’s growing:

--Two official probes, one into the questionable dealings of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Henry G. Cisneros and the other into former Agriculture Secretary Mike Espy, who resigned.

--A full-fledged probe by Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr into the President’s own Whitewater dealings.

--And this week the decision of Atty. Gen. Janet Reno to ask a panel of federal judges to appoint an independent counsel to look into the murky financial affairs of Commerce Secretary Ronald H. Brown.

It’s possible, of course, that all these investigations will come up empty, not only dispelling the growing cloud around the Clinton presidency but in fact letting the American people know that the former Arkansas governor delivered on his promise to maintain and police the highest ethical standards. But it’s impossible to believe that all this smoke comes from no flicker of flame whatsoever. Thus it’s good that these probes, however costly they prove to be, have been launched. Let the sun shine in.

The Clinton Administration faces potential consequences far beyond the matter of who may have committed what crime or impropriety. For the Senate has just voted, 96-3, to impanel a Republican-dominated Special Senate Committee to probe Whitewater. This was the complex real estate deal in the 1980s that raised questions about the nature of Clinton’s personal and campaign finances before he became President.

This panel, chaired by Sen. Alfonse M. D’Amato (R-N.Y.), will proceed apace with its probe even as Starr proceeds with his; worse yet for the Administration and other Democrats, the Senate panel’s investigators are not scheduled to fold up their tent until February, on the very eve of the presidential primary season.

It’s sad to see the ethical hopes and political potential of the Clinton Administration seemingly fall so short. No one, Republican or Democrat, should welcome the post-Nixon trend toward political dysfunction at the highest level. But if one has to choose between getting all the facts out and sweeping the dirt under the rug, then this is the better way.