Clinton ‘Anxious’ to Testify for Panel

President Clinton, commenting publicly for the first time about his Aug. 17 testimony, said he will “completely and truthfully” answer prosecutors’ questions about former White House intern Monica S. Lewinsky. “I am anxious to do it,” he said Friday.

New details emerged about the plans for that testimony. A legal source familiar with the arrangements, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the grand jury will be allowed to view the testimony live by closed-circuit television and give prosecutors questions for Clinton.

Originally, Clinton’s lawyer disclosed only that the testimony would be videotaped.

As his investigation enters a crucial phase, independent counsel Kenneth W. Starr abruptly eliminated one past source of criticism by taking an unpaid leave from his private law firm. He had juggled both jobs for nearly four years.

“Mr. Starr said he wanted to fulfill his moral commitment to his private clients, which he has done, and he is taking an unpaid leave of absence from the firm until he has completed his public duties,” said spokesman Charles G. Bakaly III.

Clinton, meanwhile, spoke out about the agreement that clears the way for him to testify to the grand jury investigating an alleged presidential affair and cover-up.

“No one wants to get this matter behind us more than I do, except maybe all the rest of the American people,” Clinton told reporters in the Rose Garden.

“I am looking forward to the opportunity in the next few days of testifying. I will do so completely and truthfully. I am anxious to do it,” he said.

“But I hope you can understand why, in the interim, I can and should have no further comment on these matters.”

He ignored questions about whether he stands by his earlier denials of a sexual relationship with Lewinsky. He also ignored a question asking if he would voluntarily give a DNA sample to the FBI.

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Meanwhile, Paula Corbin Jones, the former Arkansas state employee whose now-dismissed sexual harassment charges against Clinton sparked the Lewinsky investigation, pleaded with a federal appeals court in St. Louis to reinstate her suit and restore “fundamental principles of decency, humanity and respect for the law.”

In legal papers, Jones’ lawyers argued that “Mr. Clinton’s behavior toward Ms. Lewinsky is evidence of his habit of making aggressive sexual advances to young, low-ranking employees.”

U.S. District Judge Susan Webber Wright ruled Lewinsky-related material off-limits in January, saying it was not closely enough related to the core of Jones’ civil lawsuit.

The lawsuit was tossed out April 1, when a judge said Jones couldn’t prove key elements of sexual harassment, particularly any proof that Clinton transformed the state economic development office, where she worked, into a hostile environment.