Losing faith in the Independent Counsel Act

Only the courts have been able to restrain Mr. Starr, opposing his tactics of keeping Susan McDougal in prison and threatening to send Webster Hubbell back in attempts to force them to testify against Mr. Clinton. The court in the Hubbell case accused Mr. Starr of overreaching.

Mr. Starr has managed to alienate a majority of the public by his mistakes, his ruining the reputations and bank accounts of little people and minor players, authorizing and orchestrating a wire-tapping sting that is inadmissible in court, harassing people to testify his way or risk prosecution, committing acts that bordered on entrapment, possibly violating Justice Department regulations against divulging information. Also, he wants to turn Secret Service agents into spies on the presidency. And, while not illegal, many Americans find it unseemly to pit mother against daughter, even in a split family such as Monica Lewinsky's.

Americans have finally indicated that they do not want an open-ended search of a president's sex life, conduct that is not a violation of federal law. As for me, I expect a person -- yes, even the president -- to deny having an affair, as if it were my business. Unless crimes of state were involved, the perjury that followed should be left alone.

The appalling excesses of Mr. Starr's offices in manipulating grand juries and employing sledge-hammer tactics on some people who do not say what he wants to hear are similar to those used everyday by prosecutors across the country, usually against people without the resources to defend themselves adequately.

When the Independent Counsel Act expires next year, I say let it rest in peace. That may be the best legacy left by Mr. Starr.

Paul Delaney is a Baltimore writer.

Pub Date: 7/05/98