Clinton Steps Up Efforts to Contain Scandal Damage

The White House shifted into overdrive Tuesday to contain the damage from President Clinton’s admission of an affair with Monica S. Lewinsky. But some members of Congress--even some Democratic allies--were so infuriated by his private behavior and public conduct that it was clear the sordid spectacle would not be put to rest quickly.

After an historic day of grand jury testimony Monday, Clinton called on the country--and independent counsel Kenneth W. Starr--to move on from the embarrassing episode.

But both of California’s senators, Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, expressed dissatisfaction with Clinton’s handling of the matter, and other Democrats complained that he did much less than he could have to put the scandal behind him and his party.

“His remarks . . . leave me with a deep sense of sadness in that my trust in his credibility has been badly shattered,” Feinstein said in a sharply critical statement.

Starr, meanwhile, moved ahead with his investigation and planned to recall Lewinsky to testify on Thursday.

The first family traveled Tuesday to Martha’s Vineyard to start a two-week vacation, but White House officials said that Clinton likely would interrupt his holiday to make policy-oriented day trips to show the public that he is determined to do his job.

It was Clinton’s steadfast effort to remain focused on his domestic and foreign policy priorities over the last seven months that enabled him to keep the public’s support--in spite of the high-profile investigation into his sex life and alleged efforts to cover it up--White House officials said.

“Whatever success we’ve had in weathering this storm is because the people did see the president addressing the agenda he was elected to address,” spokesman Mike McCurry said.

Instant polls showed that the majority of Americans were satisfied with the president’s statement and wanted the matter dropped. In an ABC-TV News poll, 69% said that Starr’s investigation should end.

But a USA Today/CNN/Gallup Poll had bad news for the president. It found that Clinton’s favorable rating--as opposed to his still-high job approval rating--plunged from 60% last week to 40% immediately after the address. However, almost three-quarters of respondents said that it would be better for the country if he remained in office.

Although the president’s advisors worked the phones to try to diminish the negative fallout from the president’s admission, no one did more toward achieving that aim than First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. Through spokeswoman Marcia Berry, Mrs. Clinton announced that she had forgiven her husband and remains “committed” to her marriage.

Vice President Al Gore reiterated his support for Clinton in a televised address from Hawaii, where he is vacationing with his family.

“Late last night I spoke to President Clinton and I expressed to him that I felt he showed courage in acknowledging his mistakes before the American people and accepting responsibility for his actions,” Gore said. “I am proud of him because he is a great president, and I am honored to have him as a friend.”

Talks Focus on Domestic Agenda

The president returned phone calls of support from roughly a dozen members of Congress, most of them Democratic senators, McCurry said. But he used the time to talk about how best to return the public’s attention to his domestic agenda in coming months--not about his affair with Lewinsky.

Before leaving for a two-week vacation in the afternoon, Clinton spent time in his residence in the morning and then went to his office for a short meeting on domestic issues and a longer one on foreign policy.

It was his staff that did the more awkward work of speaking with the vast majority of the people who had stood up for the president since January while he was denying a relationship with Lewinsky or keeping his silence.

Staffers called members of the Cabinet, members of Congress, representatives of interest groups and Democratic contributors and party leaders in an effort to diffuse the sense of crisis, calm people’s anger and make it clear that the president was in control.

“We’re the White House,” said one senior advisor. “We fan out and call people and find out who is there for us.”

Although many of the people on the other end of the line expressed support for Clinton, the vast majority of those contacted conveyed their deep sadness over the situation and some--like Feinstein--were so agitated that they could not be assuaged.

“I do not know whether the president’s remarks bring this most unfortunate period to an end,” Feinstein said in her statement.

Senators Unhappy at Admission

Both California senators had been in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on Jan. 26 when Clinton issued his denial of a sexual relationship with Lewinsky.

In a conversation with a senior White House official, Feinstein appeared deeply distressed. She said she had taken the president at his word and feared that she had marred her own credibility by appearing with him at the child-care event where he denied having “sexual relations” with Lewinsky, the official said.

Boxer also had some surprisingly negative comments, given that she is related to Clinton by marriage.

“I think he should have told us the truth seven months ago and we could have put this behind us,” said Boxer, whose daughter is married to Mrs. Clinton’s brother. “That relationship was wrong--clear, black-and-white, no-room-for-ambiguity wrong.”

Many Democrats said it was politically unwise for Clinton to attack Starr in his public statement.

Some of Clinton’s biggest fund-raisers also expressed disappointment--privately--in both his behavior and the defiant tone of his speech. One even expressed hope that he would give another, more contrite, speech.

While staff members worked to keep the administration on track, many had to deal with their own personal feelings. Although their reactions varied, there was almost a unanimous sense of sorrow, especially for Mrs. Clinton and daughter Chelsea.

“There are some folks whose illusions were shattered,” said one senior advisor who has been with the president since his first presidential campaign. “But I’ve been [with him] since ’91. I was there with Gennifer Flowers. I was there when he said: ‘I didn’t inhale.’ So when January happened, I said I’m going to put this away in a box because I can’t control it.”

The advisor was one of several top officials who went to see Clinton after his speech to offer encouragement and let him know that they still are behind him.

Few members of Congress, however, have that kind of commitment to Clinton’s presidency.

House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-Ga.) recommended that Americans reserve judgment until Starr delivers his investigative report to Congress, possibly as early as next month.

Some other Republicans, however, were not so reserved. Several members of the House Judiciary Committee, which would play a key role in congressional impeachment hearings, warned that they believe Clinton’s presidency is still at risk.

Rep. Bill McCollum (R-Fla.), a ranking member of the committee leadership, said that “if there is clear evidence he lied under oath in a court proceeding, I would vote to impeach him.”

Rep. George W. Gekas (R-Pa.) said that, at the least, Clinton should be censured by the House now that he has admitted sexual misconduct. And if Starr can prove the president committed perjury in either his testimony before the grand jury or in the Paula Corbin Jones civil lawsuit, then the penalty should be much more severe, he said.

“That’s enough to constitute the beginnings of an inquiry into impeachment,” Gekas said.

Wait-and-See Attitude Predicted

Political analysts suggested that most members of Congress would be unlikely to assert firm positions on the proper punishment for Clinton until they see Starr’s report and determine how the president’s scandal plays in their districts.

Art Torres, chairman of the California Democratic Party, said he is confident that Clinton’s statement will have no impact on November’s elections in the Golden State.

“The president’s not on the ballot in California,” Torres said in an interview from Fresno, where he was preparing for Tuesday night’s debate between the two major party candidates for governor. “As much as the Republicans want to bring up the president’s problems, it’s not resonating. In a small town here in Central California, just asking ordinary people in restaurants and in the streets--they want it done with.”

Polls taken immediately after the speech showed little change in public opinion, but pollsters cautioned that it was too early to draw firm conclusions. The surveys showed that large majorities approved of Clinton’s job performance, believed he should remain in office and wanted Starr’s investigation to end--but the percentages were little changed from before the speech.

A CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll taken Monday night found contradictory sentiments: 53% of those surveyed said that they were satisfied with Clinton’s explanation of his conduct; 63% agreed with the president that his affair with Lewinsky was a private matter; 72% said that he should remain in office; but only 35% said they were confident that he told the truth to the grand jury, while 46% said they believed he did not.

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Times staff writers Richard A. Serrano and Jodi Wilgoren and Washington Bureau Chief Doyle McManus contributed to this story.

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Join a continuing discussion of the Monica S. Lewinsky matter on The Times’ Web site. Go to: https://www.latimes.com/scandal

More Coverage

* STARR MOVE: Independent counsel summons Lewinsky for further testimony. A15

* WORLD WATCHES: Global reaction mixes derision, dismay and disbelief. A15

* HISTORY’S JUDGMENT: Clinton’s legacy will be tarnished by the scandal, historians believe. A16

* HOWARD ROSENBERG: Before and after the confession, the network and cable channels were in full chatter. F1