Ex-White House Counsel Faces Starr Inquiry
A federal appeals court authorized Whitewater prosecutor Kenneth W. Starr on Friday to investigate whether former White House Counsel Bernard Nussbaum lied to Congress about First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and the FBI files controversy.
At issue is whether Hillary Clinton had anything to do with the hiring of D. Craig Livingstone, the former director of the White House personnel security office. Livingstone was questioned about the Clinton administration’s improper collection of hundreds of FBI background files, many on Republicans from previous administrations.
The month after Nussbaum denied knowing who hired Livingstone and denied discussing him with Hillary Clinton, an FBI report surfaced quoting Nussbaum as saying, in 1993, that Hillary Clinton “highly recommended” Livingstone for the job of security manager. The report turned up in a review of Livingstone’s FBI file.
Nussbaum has denied making the statement. White House officials have said that the first lady had no knowledge of Livingstone’s hiring.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
