Independent Counsel Law Expires Today
The independent counsel law, born of scandal and steeped in controversy at a cost of nearly $150 million so far, expires today at age 21.
The relevant provisions of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 once were hailed as a bipartisan response by Congress to the Saturday Night Massacre, in which two attorneys general resigned rather than carry out President Nixon’s 1973 demand that Watergate special prosecutor Archibald Cox be fired.
But support for the law eroded after investigations spanning the administrations of four presidents--Carter, Reagan, Bush and Clinton--focused on allegations of, among other things, cocaine use, Mafia ties and marital infidelity.
Kenneth W. Starr, the independent counsel who for over four years has investigated President Clinton and his administration, even told Congress he favored the law’s abolition.
Atty. Gen. Janet Reno says her Justice Department stands ready to take over the job of appointing special prosecutors to investigate misconduct by high-ranking government officials.
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