2. April 12-13: Telephone Conversations

Ms. Lewinsky testified that the President telephoned her the following Friday, April 12, 1996, at home. They talked for about 20 minutes. According to Ms. Lewinsky, the President said he had checked on the reason for her transfer:

[H]e had come to learn . . . that Evelyn Lieberman had sort of spearheaded the transfer, and that she thought he was paying too much attention to me and I was paying too much attention to him and that she didn't necessarily care what happened after the election but everyone needed to be careful before the election.⁽³⁴³⁾

According to Ms. Lewinsky, the President told her to give the Pentagon a try, and, if she did not like it, he would get her a job on the campaign.⁽³⁴⁴⁾

In the grand jury, Ms. Lieberman testified that the President asked her directly about Ms. Lewinsky's transfer:

After I had gotten rid of her, when I was in there, during the course of a conversation, [President Clinton] said, "I got a call about --" I don't know if he said her name. He said maybe "-- an intern you fired." And she was evidently very upset about it. He said, "Do you know anything about this?" I said, "Yes." He said, "Who fired her?" I said, "I did." And he said, "Oh, okay."⁽³⁴⁵⁾

According to Ms. Lieberman, the President did not pursue the matter further.⁽³⁴⁶⁾

Three other witnesses confirm that the President knew why Ms. Lewinsky was transferred to the Pentagon. In 1997, the President told Chief of Staff Erskine Bowles "that there was a young woman -- her name was Monica Lewinsky -- who used to work at the White House; that Evelyn . . . thought she hung around the Oval Office too much and transferred her to the Pentagon."⁽³⁴⁷⁾ According to Betty Currie, the President believed that Ms. Lewinsky had been unfairly transferred.⁽³⁴⁸⁾ The President's close friend, Vernon Jordan, testified that the President said to him in December 1997 that "he knew about [Ms. Lewinsky's] situation, which was that she was pushed out of the White House."⁽³⁴⁹⁾

After Ms. Lewinsky began her Pentagon job on April 16, 1996, she had no further physical contact with the President for the remainder of the year. She and the President spoke by phone (and had phone sex) but saw each other only at public functions. Ms. Lewinsky grew frustrated after the election because the President did not bring her back to work at the White House.

A. Pentagon Job

On April 16, 1996, Ms. Lewinsky began working at the Pentagon as Confidential Assistant to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs.⁽³⁵⁰⁾

B. No Physical Contact

According to Ms. Lewinsky, she had no physical contact with the President for the rest of 1996.⁽³⁵¹⁾ "I wasn't alone with him so when I saw him it was in some sort of event or group setting," she testified.⁽³⁵²⁾

C. Telephone Conversations

Ms. Lewinsky and the President did talk by telephone, especially in her first weeks at the new job.⁽³⁵³⁾ By Ms. Lewinsky's estimate, the President phoned her (sometimes leaving a message) four or five times in the month after she started working at the Pentagon, then two or three times a month thereafter for the rest of 1996.⁽³⁵⁴⁾ During the fall 1996 campaign, the President sometimes called from trips when Mrs. Clinton was not accompanying him.⁽³⁵⁵⁾ During at least seven of the 1996 calls, Ms. Lewinsky and the President had phone sex.⁽³⁵⁶⁾

According to Ms. Lewinsky, the President telephoned her at about 6:30 a.m. on July 19, the day he was leaving for the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, and they had phone sex, after which the President exclaimed, "[G]ood morning!" and then said: "What a way to start a day."⁽³⁵⁷⁾ A call log shows that the President called the White House operator at 12:11 a.m. on July 19 and asked for a wake-up call at 7 a.m., then at 6:40 a.m., the President called and said he was already up.⁽³⁵⁸⁾ In Ms. Lewinsky's recollection, she and the President also had phone sex on May 21, July 5 or 6, October 22, and December 2, 1996.⁽³⁵⁹⁾ On those dates, Mrs. Clinton was in Denver (May 21), Prague and Budapest (July 5-6), Las Vegas (October 22), and en route to Bolivia (December 2).⁽³⁶⁰⁾

Ms. Lewinsky repeatedly told the President that she disliked her Pentagon job and wanted to return to the White House.⁽³⁶¹⁾ In a recorded conversation, Ms. Lewinsky recounted one call:

[A] month had passed and -- so he had called one night, and I said, "Well," I said, "I'm really unhappy," you know. And [the President] said, "I don't want to talk about your job tonight. I'll call you this week, and then we'll talk about it. I want to talk about other things" -- which meant phone sex.⁽³⁶²⁾

She expected to talk with him the following weekend, and she was "ready to broach the idea of . . . going to the campaign," but he did not call.⁽³⁶³⁾

Ms. Lewinsky and the President also talked about their relationship. During a phone conversation on September 5, according to Ms. Lewinsky, she told the President that she wanted to have intercourse with him. He responded that he could not do so because of the possible consequences. The two of them argued, and he asked if he should stop calling her. No, she responded.⁽³⁶⁴⁾

D. Public Encounters

During this period, Ms. Lewinsky occasionally saw the President in public. She testified:

I'm an insecure person . . . and I was insecure about the relationship at times and thought that he would come to forget me easily and if I hadn't heard from him . . . it was very difficult for me . . . . [U]sually when I'd see him, it would kind of prompt him to call me. So I made an effort. I would go early and stand in the front so I could see him . . . .⁽³⁶⁵⁾

On May 2, 1996, Ms. Lewinsky saw the President at a reception for the Saxophone Club, a political organization.⁽³⁶⁶⁾ On June 14, Ms. Lewinsky and her family attended the taping of the President's weekly radio address and had photos taken with the President.⁽³⁶⁷⁾ On August 18, Ms. Lewinsky attended the President's 50th birthday party at Radio City Music Hall, and she got into a cocktail party for major donors where she saw the President.⁽³⁶⁸⁾ According to Ms. Lewinsky, when the President reached past her at the rope line to shake hands with another guest, she reached out and touched his crotch in a "playful" fashion.⁽³⁶⁹⁾ On October 23, according to Ms. Lewinsky, she talked with the President at a fundraiser for Senate Democrats.⁽³⁷⁰⁾ The two were photographed together at the event.⁽³⁷¹⁾ The President was wearing a necktie she had given him, according to Ms. Lewinsky, and she said to him, "Hey, Handsome -- I like your tie."⁽³⁷²⁾ The President telephoned her that night. She said she planned to be at the White House on Pentagon business the next day, and he told her to stop by the Oval Office. At the White House the next day, Ms. Lewinsky did not see the President because Ms. Lieberman was nearby.⁽³⁷³⁾ On December 17, Ms. Lewinsky attended a holiday reception at the White House.⁽³⁷⁴⁾ A photo shows her shaking hands with the President.⁽³⁷⁵⁾

E. Ms. Lewinsky's Frustrations

Continuing to believe that her relationship with the President was the key to regaining her White House pass, Ms. Lewinsky hoped that the President would get her a job immediately after the election. "I kept a calendar with a countdown until election day," she later wrote in an unsent letter to him. The letter states:

I was so sure that the weekend after the election you would call me to come visit and you would kiss me passionately and tell me you couldn't wait to have me back. You'd ask me where I wanted to work and say something akin to "Consider it done" and it would be. Instead I didn't hear from you for weeks and subsequently your phone calls became less frequent.⁽³⁷⁶⁾

Ms. Lewinsky grew increasingly frustrated over her relationship with President Clinton.⁽³⁷⁷⁾ One friend understood that Ms. Lewinsky complained to the President about not having seen each other privately for months, and he replied, "Every day can't be sunshine."⁽³⁷⁸⁾ In email to another friend in early 1997, Ms. Lewinsky wrote: "I just don't understand what went wrong, what happened? How could he do this to me? Why did he keep up contact with me for so long and now nothing, now when we could be together?"⁽³⁷⁹⁾

A. Resumption of Meetings with the President

1. Role of Betty Currie

a. Arranging Meetings

In 1997, with the presidential election past, Ms. Lewinsky and the President resumed their one-on-one meetings and sexual encounters. The President's secretary, Betty Currie, acted as intermediary.

According to Ms. Currie, Ms. Lewinsky would often call her and say she wanted to see the President, sometimes to discuss a particular topic.⁽³⁸⁰⁾ Ms. Currie would ask President Clinton, and, if he agreed, arrange the meeting.⁽³⁸¹⁾ Ms. Currie also said it was "not unusual" that Ms. Lewinsky would talk by phone with the President and then call Ms. Currie to set up a meeting.⁽³⁸²⁾ At times, Ms. Currie placed calls to Ms. Lewinsky for President Clinton and put him on the line.⁽³⁸³⁾

The meetings between the President and Ms. Lewinsky often occurred on weekends.⁽³⁸⁴⁾ When Ms. Lewinsky would arrive at the White House, Ms. Currie generally would be the one to authorize her entry and take her to the West Wing.⁽³⁸⁵⁾ Ms. Currie acknowledged that she sometimes would come to the White House for the sole purpose of having Ms. Lewinsky admitted and bringing her to see the President.⁽³⁸⁶⁾ According to Ms. Currie, Ms. Lewinsky and the President were alone together in the Oval Office or the study for 15 to 20 minutes on multiple occasions.⁽³⁸⁷⁾

Secret Service officers and agents took note of Ms. Currie's role. Officer Steven Pape once observed Ms. Currie come to the White House for the duration of Ms. Lewinsky's visit, then leave.⁽³⁸⁸⁾ When calling to alert the officer at the West Wing lobby that Ms. Lewinsky was en route, Ms. Currie would sometimes say, "[Y]ou know who it is."⁽³⁸⁹⁾ On one occasion, Ms. Currie instructed Officer Brent Chinery to hold Ms. Lewinsky at the lobby for a few minutes because she needed to move the President to the study.⁽³⁹⁰⁾ On another occasion, Ms. Currie told Officer Chinery to have Ms. Lewinsky held at the gate for 30 to 40 minutes because the President already had a visitor.⁽³⁹¹⁾

Ms. Lewinsky testified that she once asked the President why Ms. Currie had to clear her in, and why he could not do so himself. "[H]e said because if someone comes to see him, there's a list circulated among the staff members and then everyone would be questioning why I was there to see him."⁽³⁹²⁾

b. Intermediary for Gifts

Ms. Lewinsky also sent over a number of packages -- six or eight, Ms. Currie estimated.⁽³⁹³⁾ According to Ms. Currie, Ms. Lewinsky would call and say she was sending something for the President.⁽³⁹⁴⁾ The package would arrive addressed to Ms. Currie.⁽³⁹⁵⁾ Courier receipts show that Ms. Lewinsky sent seven packages to the White House between October 7 and December 8, 1997.⁽³⁹⁶⁾ Evidence indicates that Ms. Lewinsky on occasion also dropped parcels off with Ms. Currie or had a family member do so,⁽³⁹⁷⁾ and brought gifts to the President when visiting him.⁽³⁹⁸⁾ Ms. Currie testified that most packages from Ms. Lewinsky were intended for the President.⁽³⁹⁹⁾

Although Ms. Currie generally opened letters and parcels to the President, she did not open these packages from Ms. Lewinsky.⁽⁴⁰⁰⁾ She testified that "I made the determination not to open" such letters and packages because "I felt [they were] probably personal."⁽⁴⁰¹⁾ Instead, she would leave the package in the President's box, and "[h]e would pick it up."⁽⁴⁰²⁾ To the best of her knowledge, such parcels always reached the President.⁽⁴⁰³⁾

c. Secrecy

Ms. Currie testified that she suspected impropriety in the President's relationship with Ms. Lewinsky.⁽⁴⁰⁴⁾ She told the grand jury that she "had concern." In her words: "[H]e was spending a lot of time with a 24-year-old young lady. I know he has said that young people keep him involved in what's happening in the world, so I knew that was one reason, but there was a concern of mine that she was spending more time than most."⁽⁴⁰⁵⁾ Ms. Currie understood that "the majority" of the President's meetings with Ms. Lewinsky were "more personal in nature as opposed to business."⁽⁴⁰⁶⁾

Ms. Currie also testified that she tried to avoid learning details of the relationship between the President and Ms. Lewinsky. On one occasion, Ms. Lewinsky said of herself and the President, "As long as no one saw us -- and no one did -- then nothing happened." Ms. Currie responded: "Don't want to hear it. Don't say any more. I don't want to hear any more."⁽⁴⁰⁷⁾

Ms. Currie helped keep the relationship secret. When the President wanted to talk with Ms. Lewinsky, Ms. Currie would dial the call herself rather than go through White House operators, who keep logs of presidential calls made through the switchboard.⁽⁴⁰⁸⁾ When Ms. Lewinsky phoned and Ms. Currie put the President on the line, she did not log the call, though the standard procedure was to note all calls, personal and professional.⁽⁴⁰⁹⁾ According to Secret Service uniformed officers, Ms. Currie sometimes tried to persuade them to admit Ms. Lewinsky to the White House compound without making a record of it.⁽⁴¹⁰⁾

In addition, Ms. Currie avoided writing down or retaining most messages from Ms. Lewinsky to the President. In response to a grand jury subpoena, the White House turned over only one note to the President concerning Ms. Lewinsky -- whereas evidence indicates that Ms. Lewinsky used Ms. Currie to convey requests and messages to the President on many occasions.⁽⁴¹¹⁾

When bringing Ms. Lewinsky in from the White House gate, Ms. Currie said she sometimes chose a path that would reduce the likelihood of being seen by two White House employees who disapproved of Ms. Lewinsky: Stephen Goodin and Nancy Hernreich.⁽⁴¹²⁾ Ms. Currie testified that she once brought Ms. Lewinsky directly to the study, "sneaking her back" via a roundabout path to avoid running into Mr. Goodin.⁽⁴¹³⁾ When Ms. Lewinsky visited the White House on weekends and at night, being spotted was not a problem -- in Ms. Currie's words, "there would be no need to sneak" -- so Ms. Lewinsky would await the President in Ms. Currie's office.⁽⁴¹⁴⁾

According to Ms. Lewinsky, she once expressed concern about records showing the President's calls to her, and Ms. Currie told her not to worry.⁽⁴¹⁵⁾ Ms. Lewinsky also suspected that Ms. Currie was not logging in all of her gifts to the President.⁽⁴¹⁶⁾ In Ms. Lewinsky's evaluation, many White House staff members tried to regulate the President's behavior, but Ms. Currie generally did as he wished.⁽⁴¹⁷⁾

2. Observations by Secret Service Officers

Officers of the Secret Service Uniformed Division noted Ms. Lewinsky's 1997 visits to the White House. From radio traffic about the President's movements, several officers observed that the President often would head for the Oval Office within minutes of Ms. Lewinsky's entry to the complex, especially on weekends, and some noted that he would return to the Residence a short time after her departure.⁽⁴¹⁸⁾ "It was just like clockwork," according to one officer.⁽⁴¹⁹⁾ Concerned about the President's reputation, another officer suggested putting Ms. Lewinsky on a list of people who were not to be admitted to the White House. A commander responded that it was none of their business whom the President chose to see, and, in any event, nobody would ever find out about Ms. Lewinsky.⁽⁴²⁰⁾

B. Valentine's Day Advertisement

On February 14, 1997, the Washington Post published a Valentine's Day "Love Note" that Ms. Lewinsky had placed. The ad said:

HANDSOME

With love's light wings did

I o'er perch these walls

For stony limits cannot hold love out,

And what love can do that dares love attempt.

-- Romeo and Juliet 2:2

Happy Valentine's Day.

M⁽⁴²¹⁾

C. February 24 Message

On February 24, Ms. Lewinsky visited the White House on Pentagon business.⁽⁴²²⁾ She went by Ms. Currie's office.⁽⁴²³⁾ Ms. Currie sent a note to the President -- the only such note turned over by the White House in response to a grand jury subpoena: "Monica Lewinsky stopped by. Do you want me to call her?"⁽⁴²⁴⁾