IX. October-November 1997:

United Nations' Job Offer

Having learned that she would not be able to return to the White House, Ms. Lewinsky sought the President's help in finding a job in New York City. The President offered to place her at the United Nations. After initial enthusiasm, Ms. Lewinsky cooled on the idea of working at the U.N., and she prodded the President to get her a job in the private sector.

A. October 10: Telephone Conversation

According to Ms. Lewinsky, the President telephoned her at approximately 2:00 to 2:30 a.m. on Friday, October 10.<⁽⁵⁹¹⁾ They spent much of the hour-and-a-half call arguing. "[H]e got so mad at me, he must have been purple," she later recalled.<⁽⁵⁹²⁾

According to Ms. Lewinsky, the President said: "If I had known what kind of person you really were, I wouldn't have gotten involved with you."<⁽⁵⁹³⁾ He reminded Ms. Lewinsky that she had earlier promised, "[i]f you just want to stop doing this, I'll

. . . be no trouble."<⁽⁵⁹⁴⁾ Ms. Lewinsky said she challenged the President: "[T]ell me . . . when I've caused you trouble."<⁽⁵⁹⁵⁾ The President responded, "I've never worried about you. I've never been worried you would do something to hurt me."<⁽⁵⁹⁶⁾

When the conversation shifted to her job search, Ms. Lewinsky complained that the President had not done enough to help her. He responded that, on the contrary, he was eager to help.<⁽⁵⁹⁷⁾ The President said that he regretted Ms. Lewinsky's transfer to the Pentagon and assured her that he would not have permitted it had he foreseen the difficulty in returning her to the White House.<⁽⁵⁹⁸⁾ Ms. Lewinsky told him that she wanted a job in New York by the end of October, and the President promised to do what he could.<⁽⁵⁹⁹⁾

B. October 11 Meeting

At approximately 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, October 11, according to Ms. Lewinsky, Ms. Currie called and told her that the President wished to see her.<⁽⁶⁰⁰⁾ Ms. Lewinsky entered the White House at 9:36 a.m. and departed at 10:54 a.m.<⁽⁶⁰¹⁾ The President entered the Oval Office at 9:52 a.m.<⁽⁶⁰²⁾

Ms. Lewinsky met with the President in the study, and they discussed her job search.<⁽⁶⁰³⁾ Ms. Lewinsky told the President that she wanted to pursue jobs in the private sector, and he told her to prepare a list of New York companies that interested her.<⁽⁶⁰⁴⁾ Ms. Lewinsky asked the President whether Vernon Jordan, a well-known Washington attorney who she knew was a close friend of the President and had many business contacts, might help her find a job.<⁽⁶⁰⁵⁾ According to Ms. Lewinsky, the President was receptive to the idea.<⁽⁶⁰⁶⁾

In a recorded conversation, Ms. Lewinsky said that, at the end of the October 11 meeting, she and the President joined Ms. Currie in the Oval Office. The President grabbed Ms. Lewinsky's arm and kissed her on the forehead.<⁽⁶⁰⁷⁾ He told her: "I talked to Erskine [Bowles] about . . . trying to get John Hilley to give you . . . a good recommendation for your work here."<⁽⁶⁰⁸⁾

Later, Ms. Lewinsky and Ms. Tripp discussed their concerns about the President's involvement in Ms. Lewinsky's job search. Specifically, Ms. Lewinsky was nervous about involving the President's Chief of Staff:

Ms. Lewinsky: Well, see, I don't really think -- I'm going to tell him that I don't think Erskine should have anything to do with this. I don't think anybody who works there should.

Ms. Tripp: I don't see how that's -- how that's a problem.

Ms. Lewinsky: Because look at what happened with Webb Hubbell.<⁽⁶⁰⁹⁾

Ms. Lewinsky preferred that Vernon Jordan assist her in her job search:

Ms. Tripp: Well, I don't remember during the Webb Hubbell thing, was Vernon mentioned?

Ms. Lewinsky: Yeah, but there's a big difference. I think somebody could construe, okay? Somebody could construe or say, "Well, they gave her a job to shut her up. They made her happy. . . . And he [Mr. Bowles] works for the government and shouldn't have done that." And with the other one [Mr. Jordan] you can't say that.<⁽⁶¹⁰⁾

C. October 16-17: The "Wish List"

On October 16, Ms. Lewinsky sent the President a packet, which included what she called a "wish list" describing the types of jobs that interested her in New York City.<⁽⁶¹¹⁾ The note began: My dream had been to work in Communications or Strategic Planning at the White House. I am open to any suggestions that you may have on work that is similar to that or may intrigue me. The most important things to me are that I am engaged and interested in my work, I am not someone's administrative/ executive assistant, and my salary can provide me a comfortable living in NY.<⁽⁶¹²⁾

She identified five public relations firms where she would like to work.<⁽⁶¹³⁾ Ms. Lewinsky concluded by saying of the United Nations:

I do not have any interest in working there. As a result of what happened in April '96, I have already spent a year and a half at an agency in which I have no interest. I want a job where I feel challenged, engaged, and interested. I don't think the UN is the right place for me.<⁽⁶¹⁴⁾

In a recorded conversation, Ms. Lewinsky said she wanted the President to take her list seriously and not ask her to settle for a U.N. job.<⁽⁶¹⁵⁾ She said she hoped "that if he starts to pick a bone with me and the U.N., he sure as hell doesn't do it on the phone. . . . I don't want to start getting into a screaming match with him on the phone."<⁽⁶¹⁶⁾

In addition to the "wish list," Ms. Lewinsky said she enclosed in the packet a pair of sunglasses and "a lot of things in a little envelope," including some jokes, a card, and a postcard.<⁽⁶¹⁷⁾ She said that she had written on the card: "Wasn't I right that my hugs are better in person than in cards?"<⁽⁶¹⁸⁾ The postcard featured a "very erotic" Egon Schiele painting.<⁽⁶¹⁹⁾ Ms. Lewinsky also enclosed a note with her thoughts on education reform.<⁽⁶²⁰⁾

Ms. Lewinsky testified that she felt that the President owed her a job for several reasons: Her relationship with him was the reason she had been transferred out of the White House; he had promised her a job and so far had done nothing to help her find one; and she had left the White House "quietly," without making an issue of her relationship with the President.<⁽⁶²³⁾

D. The President Creates Options

At some point around this time in the fall of 1997, Ms. Currie asked John Podesta, the Deputy Chief of Staff, to help Ms. Lewinsky find a job in New York.<⁽⁶²⁴⁾ Mr. Podesta testified that, during a Presidential trip to Latin America, he approached then-U.N. Ambassador William Richardson while aboard Air Force One and asked the Ambassador to consider a former White House intern for a position at the U.N.<⁽⁶²⁶⁾ At the time, Mr. Podesta could not recall the intern's name.<⁽⁶²⁷⁾ Ambassador Richardson and the President both testified that they never discussed Ms. Lewinsky with each other.<⁽⁶²⁸⁾

Ambassador Richardson returned from Latin America on Sunday, October 19.<⁽⁶²⁹⁾ Within a few days, his Executive Assistant, Isabelle Watkins, called Mr. Podesta's secretary and asked whether "she knew anything about a resume that John was going to send us."<⁽⁶³⁰⁾ Mr. Podesta's secretary knew nothing about it and asked Mr. Podesta what to do; he instructed her to call Ms. Currie.<⁽⁶³¹⁾ At 3:09 p.m. on October 21, Ms. Currie faxed Ms. Lewinsky's resume to the United Nations.<⁽⁶³²⁾

At 7:01 p.m., a six-minute call was placed to Ms. Lewinsky's apartment from a U.N. telephone number identified in State Department records as "Ambassador Richardson's line."<⁽⁶³³⁾ Ms. Lewinsky testified that she spoke to Ambassador Richardson. A woman called, Ms. Lewinsky testified, and said, "[H]old for Ambassador Richardson."<⁽⁶³⁴⁾ Then the Ambassador himself came on the line: "I remember, because I was shocked and I was . . . very nervous."<⁽⁶³⁵⁾ The purpose of the call was to schedule a job interview at a Watergate apartment the following week.<⁽⁶³⁶⁾ At odds with Ms. Lewinsky, the Ambassador and Ms. Watkins both testified that Ms. Watkins, not the Ambassador, spoke with Ms. Lewinsky.<⁽⁶³⁷⁾

A few days later, according to Ms. Lewinsky, the President called her. She had been upset because no one at the White House had prepared her for the Ambassador's recent call and because she did not want the White House to railroad her into taking the U.N. job.<⁽⁶³⁸⁾ She reiterated that she was eager to pursue other opportunities, especially in the private sector.<⁽⁶³⁹⁾ The President reassured her, promising that a U.N. position was just one of many options.<⁽⁶⁴⁰⁾

Ms. Lewinsky spoke to the President again one week later. Ms. Lewinsky testified that she told Ms. Currie to ask the President to call her to assuage her nervousness before the U.N. interview.<⁽⁶⁴¹⁾

According to Ms. Lewinsky, on October 30, the night before the interview, the President did call. She characterized the conversation as a "pep talk": "[H]e was trying to kind of build my confidence and reassure me."<⁽⁶⁴²⁾ The President told her to call Ms. Currie after the interview.<⁽⁶⁴⁴⁾ In his Jones deposition, the President indicated that he learned of her interview with Ambassador Richardson not from Ms. Lewinsky herself but from Ms. Currie.<⁽⁶⁴⁵⁾

E. The U.N. Interview and Job Offer

On Friday morning, October 31, Ambassador Richardson and two of his assistants, Mona Sutphen and Rebecca Cooper, interviewed Ms. Lewinsky at the Watergate.<⁽⁶⁴⁶⁾ According to Ambassador Richardson, he "listen[ed] while Mona and Rebecca were interviewing her."<⁽⁶⁴⁷⁾ Neither Ambassador Richardson nor any of his staff made inquiries, before or after the interview, about Ms. Lewinsky's prior work performance.<⁽⁶⁴⁸⁾

On Sunday, November 2, Ms. Lewinsky drafted a letter to Ms. Currie asking what to do in the event she received an offer from the U.N.<⁽⁶⁴⁹⁾ She wrote:

I became a bit nervous this weekend when I realized that Amb. Richardson said his staff would be in touch with me this week. As you know, the UN is supposed to be my back-up, but because VJ [Vernon Jordan] has been out of town, this is my only option right now. What should I say to Richardson's people this week when they call?<⁽⁶⁵⁰⁾

Ms. Lewinsky asked Ms. Currie to speak to the President about her problem: "If you feel it's appropriate, maybe you could ask 'the big guy' what he wants me to do. Ahhhhh . . . anxiety!!!!!"<⁽⁶⁵¹⁾ Ms. Lewinsky also mentioned the President's promise to involve Vernon Jordan in her job search:

I don't think I told you that in my conversation last Thursday night with him that he said that he would ask you to set up a meeting between VJ and myself, once VJ got back. I assume he'll mention this to you at some point -- hopefully sooner rather than later!<⁽⁶⁵²⁾

Before Ms. Lewinsky sent this letter, in her recollection, she received an offer from the U.N.<⁽⁶⁵³⁾ Phone records reflect that, at 11:02 a.m. on November 3, a three-minute call was placed to Ms. Lewinsky from the U.N. line identified in State Department records as Ambassador Richardson's.<⁽⁶⁵⁴⁾ Ms. Lewinsky stated that she believes she spoke to Ambassador Richardson, who extended her a job offer.<⁽⁶⁵⁵⁾

According to his assistant, Ambassador Richardson made the decision to hire Ms. Lewinsky. Ms. Sutphen testified:

I said, are you sure; and he said, yeah, yeah, I'm sure, why. And I said . . . are you sure, though you don't want to talk to anyone else . . . . And he said, no, no, I think it's fine; why don't you go ahead and give her an offer?<⁽⁶⁵⁶⁾

Ambassador Richardson and Ms. Sutphen both testified that Ms. Sutphen, not the Ambassador, extended the job offer to Ms. Lewinsky. They recalled that the offer was made a week or 10 days after the interview, though Ms. Sutphen, when shown the phone records, testified that the November 3 call to Ms. Lewinsky probably was the job offer.<⁽⁶⁵⁷⁾

Ms. Lewinsky testified that she told Ms. Currie about the offer and she probably also told the President directly.<⁽⁶⁵⁸⁾ Ms. Currie first testified that she had "probably" told the President about Ms. Lewinsky's U.N. offer, then testified that she had in fact told him, then testified that she could not remember, though she acknowledged that the President was interested in Ms. Lewinsky's getting a job.<⁽⁶⁵⁹⁾

When the President was asked in the Jones deposition whether he knew that Ms. Lewinsky had received the offer of a job at the U.N., he testified: "I know that she interviewed for one. I don't know if she was offered one or not."<⁽⁶⁶⁰⁾

F. The U.N. Job Offer Declined

Three weeks after she received an offer, on November 24, Ms. Lewinsky called Ms. Sutphen and asked for more time to consider the offer because she wanted to pursue possibilities in the private sector.<⁽⁶⁶¹⁾ Ms. Sutphen told Ambassador Richardson, who, according to Ms. Sutphen, said the delay would be fine.<⁽⁶⁶²⁾ Over a month later, on January 5, 1998, Ms. Lewinsky finally turned down the job.<⁽⁶⁶³⁾

X. November 1997: Growing Frustration

Ms. Lewinsky met with Vernon Jordan, who promised to help her find a job in New York. November proved, however, to be a month of inactivity with respect to both Ms. Lewinsky's job search and her relationship with the President. Mr. Jordan did not meet with Ms. Lewinsky again, nor did he contact anyone in New York City on her behalf. Ms. Lewinsky became increasingly anxious about her inability to see the President. Except for a momentary encounter in mid-November, Ms. Lewinsky did not meet with the President between October 11 and December 5.

A. Interrogatories Answered

On November 3, 1997, the President answered Paula Jones's Second Set of Interrogatories. Two of those interrogatories asked the President to list any woman other than his wife with whom he had "had," "proposed having," or "sought to have" sexual relations during the time that he was Attorney General of Arkansas, Governor of Arkansas, and President of the United States.<⁽⁶⁶⁴⁾ President Clinton objected to the scope and relevance of both interrogatories and refused to answer them.<⁽⁶⁶⁵⁾

B. First Vernon Jordan Meeting

In mid-October, the President had agreed to involve Vernon Jordan in Ms. Lewinsky's job search.<⁽⁶⁶⁶⁾ In a draft letter to Ms. Currie dated November 2, Ms. Lewinsky wrote that the President had "said he would ask you to set up a meeting between VJ and myself."<⁽⁶⁶⁷⁾ According to Ms. Lewinsky, on November 3 or November 4, Ms. Currie told her to call Vernon Jordan's secretary to arrange a meeting.<⁽⁶⁶⁸⁾ Ms. Currie said she had spoken with Mr. Jordan and he was expecting Ms. Lewinsky's call.<⁽⁶⁶⁹⁾ In Ms. Lewinsky's account, Ms. Currie sought Mr. Jordan's aid at the President's direction.<⁽⁶⁷⁰⁾ Mr. Jordan likewise testified that, in his understanding, the President was behind Ms. Currie's request.<⁽⁶⁷¹⁾

Ms. Currie testified at various points that she contacted Mr. Jordan on her own initiative; that the President "probably" talked with her about Ms. Lewinsky's New York job hunt; and that she could not recall whether the President was involved.<⁽⁶⁷²⁾ In his Jones deposition, the President was asked whether he did anything to facilitate a meeting between Mr. Jordan and Ms. Lewinsky. He testified:

I can tell you what my memory is. My memory is that Vernon said something to me about her coming in, Betty had called and asked if he [Mr. Jordan] would see her [Ms. Lewinsky]. . . . I'm sure if he said something to me about it I said something positive about it. I wouldn't have said anything negative about it.<⁽⁶⁷³⁾

When pressed, the President testified that he did not think that he was the "precipitating force" in arranging the meeting between Mr. Jordan and Ms. Lewinsky.<⁽⁶⁷⁴⁾

At 8:50 a.m. on November 5, Mr. Jordan spoke with the President by telephone for five minutes.<⁽⁶⁷⁵⁾ Later that morning, Mr. Jordan and Ms. Lewinsky met in his office for about twenty minutes.<⁽⁶⁷⁶⁾ She told him that she intended to move to New York, and she named several companies where she hoped to work.<⁽⁶⁷⁷⁾ She showed him the "wish list" that she had sent the President on October 16.<⁽⁶⁷⁸⁾ Mr. Jordan said that he had spoken with the President about her and that she came "highly recommended."<⁽⁶⁷⁹⁾ Concerning her job search, Mr. Jordan said: "We're in business."<⁽⁶⁸¹⁾

In the course of the day, Mr. Jordan placed four calls to Ms. Hernreich (whom he acknowledged calling when he wished to speak to the President<⁽⁶⁸²⁾) and one to Ms. Currie.<⁽⁶⁸³⁾ Mr. Jordan testified that he could not remember the calls, but "[i]t is entirely possible" that they concerned Monica Lewinsky.<⁽⁶⁸⁴⁾

Mr. Jordan also visited the White House and met with the President at 2:00 p.m. that day.<⁽⁶⁸⁵⁾ Again, Mr. Jordan testified that he had "no recollection" of the substance of his conversation with the President.<⁽⁶⁸⁶⁾

On November 6, the day after meeting with Mr. Jordan, Ms. Lewinsky wrote him a thank-you letter: "It made me happy to know that our friend has such a wonderful confidant in you."<⁽⁶⁸⁷⁾ Also on November 6, Ms. Lewinsky wrote in an email to a friend that she expected to hear from Mr. Jordan "later next week."<⁽⁶⁸⁸⁾ The evidence indicates, though, that Mr. Jordan took no steps to help Ms. Lewinsky until early December, after she appeared on the witness list in the Jones case.

Mr. Jordan initially testified that he had "no recollection of having met with Ms. Lewinsky on November 5."<⁽⁶⁸⁹⁾ When shown documentary evidence demonstrating that his first meeting with Ms. Lewinsky occurred in early November, he acknowledged that an early November meeting was "entirely possible."<⁽⁶⁹⁰⁾ Mr. Jordan's failure to remember his November meeting with Ms. Lewinsky may indicate the low priority he attached to it at the time.

C. November 13: The Zedillo Visit

On Thursday, November 13, while Ernesto Zedillo, the President of Mexico, was in the White House, Ms. Lewinsky met very briefly with President Clinton in the private study.<⁽⁶⁹¹⁾ Ms. Lewinsky's visit, which she described in an email as a "hysterical escapade," was the culmination of days of phone calls and notes to Ms. Currie and the President.<⁽⁶⁹²⁾

Over the course of the week that preceded November 13, Ms. Lewinsky made several attempts to arrange a visit with the President. On Monday, November 10, in addition to making frequent calls to Ms. Currie, she sent the President a note asking for a meeting.<⁽⁶⁹³⁾

She hoped to see him on Tuesday, November 11 (Veterans Day), but he did not respond.<⁽⁶⁹⁴⁾ By courier,<⁽⁶⁹⁵⁾ she sent the President another note:

I asked you three weeks ago to please be sensitive to what I am going through right now and to keep in contact with me, and yet I'm still left writing notes in vain. I am not a moron. I know that what is going on in the world takes precedence, but I don't think what I have asked you for is unreasonable.<⁽⁶⁹⁶⁾

She added: "This is so hard for me. I am trying to deal with so much emotionally, and I have nobody to talk to about it. I need you right now not as president, but as a man. PLEASE be my friend."<⁽⁶⁹⁷⁾

That evening, November 12, according to Ms. Lewinsky, the President called and invited her to the White House the following day.<⁽⁶⁹⁸⁾ In an email to a friend, Ms. Lewinsky wrote that she and the President "talked for almost an hour."<⁽⁶⁹⁹⁾ She added: "[H]e thought [N]ancy [Hernreich] (one of the meanies) would be out for a few hours on Thursday and I could come see him then."<⁽⁷⁰⁰⁾

The following morning, November 13, Ms. Lewinsky tried to arrange a visit with the President. She called repeatedly but suspected that Ms. Currie was not telling the President of her calls.<⁽⁷⁰¹⁾ Around noon, Ms. Currie told Ms. Lewinsky that the President had left to play golf. Ms. Lewinsky, in her own words, "went ballistic."<⁽⁷⁰²⁾

After the President returned from the Army-Navy Golf Course in the late afternoon, Ms. Lewinsky told Ms. Currie that she was coming to the White House to give him some gifts.<⁽⁷⁰³⁾ Ms. Currie suggested that Ms. Lewinsky wait in Ms. Currie's car in the White House parking lot. Ms. Lewinsky went to the White House only to find that the doors to Ms. Currie's car were locked. Ms. Lewinsky waited in the rain.<⁽⁷⁰⁴⁾

Ms. Currie eventually met her in the parking lot, and, in Ms. Lewinsky's words, they made a "bee-line" into the White House, sneaking up the back stairs to avoid other White House employees, particularly Presidential aide Stephen Goodin.<⁽⁷⁰⁵⁾ Ms. Lewinsky left two small gifts for the President with Ms. Currie, then waited alone for about half an hour in the Oval Office study.<⁽⁷⁰⁶⁾ In the study, Ms. Lewinsky saw several gifts she had given the President, including Oy Vey! The Things They Say: A Guide to Jewish Wit, Nicholson Baker's novel Vox, and a letter opener decorated with a frog.<⁽⁷⁰⁷⁾

The President finally joined Ms. Lewinsky in the study, where they were alone for only a minute or two.<⁽⁷⁰⁸⁾ Ms. Lewinsky gave him an antique paperweight in the shape of the White House.<⁽⁷⁰⁹⁾ She also showed him an email describing the effect of chewing Altoid mints before performing oral sex. Ms. Lewinsky was chewing Altoids at the time, but the President replied that he did not have enough time for oral sex.<⁽⁷¹⁰⁾ They kissed, and the President rushed off for a State Dinner with President Zedillo.<⁽⁷¹¹⁾

D. November 14-December 4: Inability to See the President

After this brief November 13 meeting, Ms. Lewinsky did not see the President again until the first week in December. Hoping to arrange a longer rendezvous, she sent the President several notes, as well as a cassette on which she recorded a message.<⁽⁷¹²⁾

Along with her chagrin over not seeing the President, Ms. Lewinsky was frustrated that her job search had apparently stalled. A few days before Thanksgiving, she complained to Ms. Currie that she had not heard from Mr. Jordan.<⁽⁷¹³⁾ Ms. Currie arranged for her to speak with him "before Thanksgiving," while Ms. Lewinsky was in Los Angeles. Mr. Jordan told her to call him the following week to arrange another meeting.<⁽⁷¹⁴⁾

In draft letters to the President, which were recovered from her Pentagon computer, Ms. Lewinsky reflected on the change in their relationship: "[B]oth professionally and personally, . . . our personal relationship changing has caused me more pain. Do you realize that?"<⁽⁷¹⁵⁾ She asked for the President's understanding: "I don't want you to think that I am not grateful for what you are doing for me now -- I'd probably be in a mental institute without it -- but I am consumed with this disappointment, frustration, and anger." Ms. Lewinsky rued the brevity of her November 13 visit with the President: "All you . . . . ever have to do to pacify me is see me and hold me," she wrote. "Maybe that's asking too much."<⁽⁷¹⁶⁾

XI. December 5-18, 1997:

The Witness List and Job Search

On Friday, December 5, Paula Jones's attorneys faxed a list of their potential witnesses -- including Ms. Lewinsky -- to the President's personal attorneys. The following day, President Clinton saw Ms. Lewinsky in an unscheduled visit and then discussed the Jones case with his attorneys and Deputy White House Counsel Bruce Lindsey. A few days later, Ms. Lewinsky met with Mr. Jordan at his office, and he arranged interviews for Ms. Lewinsky at three companies. In the middle of the night on December 17, the President called and informed Ms. Lewinsky that she was on the witness list and that she might have to testify under oath in the Jones case.

A. December 5: The Witness List

On Friday December 5, 1997, attorneys for Paula Jones identified Ms. Lewinsky as a potential witness in Ms. Jones's sexual harassment case.<⁽⁷¹⁷⁾ At 5:40 p.m., they faxed their witness list to the President's attorney, Robert Bennett.<⁽⁷¹⁸⁾ Ms. Lewinsky, however, would not learn of her potential involvement in the Jones case for twelve more days, when the President informed her.<⁽⁷¹⁹⁾

President Clinton was asked in the grand jury when he learned that Ms. Lewinsky's name was on the witness list. The President responded: "I believe that I found out late in the afternoon on the sixth."<⁽⁷²⁰⁾

B. December 5: Christmas Party at the White House

On Friday, December 5, Ms. Lewinsky returned from Department of Defense travel in Europe.<⁽⁷²¹⁾ She asked Ms. Currie if the President could see her the next day, but Ms. Currie said he was busy meeting with his lawyers.<⁽⁷²²⁾ In the late afternoon, she attended a Christmas party at the White House with a Defense Department colleague.<⁽⁷²³⁾ Ms. Lewinsky exchanged a few words with the President in the reception line.<⁽⁷²⁴⁾

The Christmas reception encounter heightened Ms. Lewinsky's frustration. On the evening of December 5, she drafted an anguished letter to the President.<⁽⁷²⁵⁾ "[Y]ou want me out of your life," she wrote. "I guess the signs have been made clear for awhile -- not wanting to see me and rarely calling. I used to think it was you putting up walls."<⁽⁷²⁷⁾ She had purchased several gifts for him, and, she wrote, "I wanted to give them to you in person, but that is obviously not going to happen."<⁽⁷²⁸⁾ Ms. Lewinsky reminded the President of his words during their October 10 telephone argument:

I will never forget what you said that night we fought on the phone -- if you had known what I was really like you would never have gotten involved with me. I'm sure you're not the first person to have felt that way about me. I am sorry that this has been such a bad experience.<⁽⁷²⁹⁾

She concluded the letter: "I knew it would hurt to say goodbye to you; I just never thought it would have to be on paper. Take care."<⁽⁷³⁰⁾

C. December 6: The Northwest Gate Incident

1. Initial Visit and Rejection

On the morning of Saturday, December 6, Ms. Lewinsky went to the White House to deliver the letter and gifts to the President. The gifts included a sterling silver antique cigar holder, a tie, a mug, a "Hugs and Kisses" box, and an antique book about Theodore Roosevelt.<⁽⁷³¹⁾ Ms. Lewinsky planned to leave the parcel with Ms. Currie, who had told Ms. Lewinsky that the President would be busy with his lawyers and unable to see her.<⁽⁷³²⁾

Ms. Lewinsky arrived at the White House at approximately 10:00 a.m. She told the Secret Service uniformed officers at the Northwest Gate that she had gifts to drop off for the President, but that Ms. Currie did not know she was coming.<⁽⁷³³⁾ Ms. Lewinsky and the officers made several calls in an attempt to locate Ms. Currie.<⁽⁷³⁴⁾ The officers eventually invited Ms. Lewinsky inside the guard booth.<⁽⁷³⁵⁾ When Ms. Currie learned that Ms. Lewinsky was at the Northwest Gate, she sent word that the President "already had a guest in the [O]val," so the officers should have Ms. Lewinsky wait there for about 40 minutes.<⁽⁷³⁶⁾

While Ms. Lewinsky was waiting, one officer mentioned that Eleanor Mondale was in the White House.<⁽⁷³⁷⁾ Ms. Lewinsky correctly surmised that the President was meeting with Ms. Mondale, rather than his lawyers, and she was "livid."<⁽⁷³⁸⁾ She stormed away, called and berated Ms. Currie from a pay phone, and then returned to her Watergate apartment.<⁽⁷⁴⁰⁾

Hands shaking and almost crying, Ms. Currie informed several Secret Service officers that the President was "irate" that someone had disclosed to Ms. Lewinsky whom he was meeting with.<⁽⁷⁴¹⁾ Ms. Currie told Sergeant Keith Williams, a supervisory uniformed Secret Service Officer, that if he "didn't find out what was going on, someone could be fired."<⁽⁷⁴²⁾ She also told Captain Jeffrey Purdie, the Secret Service watch commander for the uniformed division at the time, that the President was "so upset he wants somebody fired over this."<⁽⁷⁴³⁾

2. Ms. Lewinsky Returns to the White House

From her apartment, Ms. Lewinsky reached the President on the phone.<⁽⁷⁴⁵⁾ According to Ms. Lewinsky, the President was angry that she had "made a stink" and said that "it was none of my business . . . what he was doing."<⁽⁷⁴⁶⁾

Then, to Ms. Lewinsky's surprise, the President invited her to visit him.<⁽⁷⁴⁷⁾ She testified that "none of the other times that we had really fought on the phone did it end up resulting in a visit that day."<⁽⁷⁴⁸⁾ WAVES records reflect that Ms. Lewinsky was cleared to enter the White House at 12:52 p.m. and exited at 1:36 p.m.<⁽⁷⁴⁹⁾

During their meeting, Ms. Lewinsky told the President that Mr. Jordan had done nothing to help her find a job.<⁽⁷⁵⁰⁾ The President responded, "Oh, I'll talk to him. I'll get on it."<⁽⁷⁵¹⁾

Ms. Lewinsky testified that, overall, she had a "really nice" and "affectionate" visit with the President.<⁽⁷⁵²⁾ In an email to a friend a few days later, she wrote that, although "things have been crazy with the creep, . . . I did have a wonderful visit with him on Saturday. When he doesn't put his walls up, it is always heavenly."<⁽⁷⁵³⁾

3. "Whatever Just Happened Didn't Happen"

Later that day (December 6), the uniformed Secret Service officers at the Northwest Gate were told that no one would be fired -- so long as they remained quiet. According to Sergeant Williams, Ms. Currie said that, if the officers did not "tell a lot of people what had happened, then nothing would happen."<⁽⁷⁵⁴⁾

The President told Captain Jeffrey Purdie, the Secret Service watch commander for the uniformed division at the time, "I hope you use your discretion."<⁽⁷⁵⁵⁾ Captain Purdie interpreted the President's remark to mean that Captain Purdie "wasn't going to say anything," and he in turn told all of the officers involved not to discuss the incident.<⁽⁷⁵⁶⁾ One officer recalled that Captain Purdie told him and other officers, "Whatever just happened didn't happen."<⁽⁷⁵⁷⁾ Captain Purdie told another officer, "I was just in the Oval Office with the President and he wants somebody's ass out here. . . . As far as you're concerned, . . . [t]his never happened."<⁽⁷⁵⁸⁾ In response, that officer, who considered the Northwest Gate incident a "major event," "just shook [his] head" and "started making a set of [his] own notes" in order to document the incident.<⁽⁷⁵⁹⁾

Captain Purdie recommended to his supervisor, Deputy Chief Charles O'Malley, that "no paperwork be generated" regarding the Northwest Gate incident because "Ms. Currie was satisfied with the way things were handled."<⁽⁷⁶⁰⁾ According to Captain Purdie, Deputy Chief O'Malley agreed, and no record of the incident was made.<⁽⁷⁶¹⁾ Deputy Chief O'Malley testified that the meeting between the President and Captain Purdie was the only occasion he could recall in fourteen years at the White House where a President directly addressed a job performance issue with a uniformed division supervisor.<⁽⁷⁶²⁾

The President was questioned in the grand jury about the incident at the Northwest Gate. He testified that he knew that Ms. Lewinsky had become upset upon learning that Ms. Mondale was in the White House "to see us that day."<⁽⁷⁶³⁾ He testified: "As I remember, I had some other work to do that morning. . . . "<⁽⁷⁶⁴⁾ The President said that the disclosure of information that day was "inappropriate" and "a mistake," but he could not recall whether he wanted a Secret Service officer fired or gave any such orders.<⁽⁷⁶⁵⁾ He thought that the officers "were . . . told not to let it happen again, and I think that's the way it should have been handled."<⁽⁷⁶⁶⁾ When asked if he told Captain Purdie that he hoped that he could count on his discretion, the President stated, "I don't remember anything I said to him in that regard."<⁽⁷⁶⁷⁾

According to Ms. Lewinsky, the President later indicated to her that he had concerns about the discretion of the Secret Service uniformed officers. On December 28 she asked how Paula Jones's attorneys could have known enough to place her on the witness list. The President replied that the source might be Linda Tripp or "the uniformed officers."<⁽⁷⁶⁸⁾

D. The President Confers with His Lawyers

Deputy Counsel Bruce Lindsey testified that he met with the President and the President's personal attorney, Robert Bennett, at around 5:00 p.m. on December 6 to discuss the Jones case.<⁽⁷⁶⁹⁾ According to Mr. Lindsey, it was "likely" that he learned about Ms. Lewinsky's appearance on the witness list in that meeting.<⁽⁷⁷⁰⁾

Earlier in the day, at around 12:00 p.m. (after Ms. Lewinsky stormed away from the Northwest Gate but before she returned and saw the President), Mr. Lindsey had received a page: "Call Betty ASAP."<⁽⁷⁷¹⁾ Mr. Lindsey testified that he did not recall the page, nor did he know, at the time, that Ms. Lewinsky had visited the White House.<⁽⁷⁷²⁾

E. Second Jordan Meeting

The next day (Sunday, December 7), Mr. Jordan visited the White House and met with the President.<⁽⁷⁷⁴⁾ Mr. Jordan testified that he was "fairly certain" that he did not discuss the Jones suit or Ms. Lewinsky.<⁽⁷⁷⁵⁾

On Thursday, December 11, Ms. Lewinsky had her second meeting with Mr. Jordan.<⁽⁷⁷⁶⁾ Ms. Lewinsky testified that they discussed her job search, and Mr. Jordan told her to send letters to three business contacts that he provided her. Mr. Jordan noted that Ms. Lewinsky was anxious to get a job as quickly as possible, and he took action.<⁽⁷⁷⁷⁾ In the course of the day, Mr. Jordan placed calls on her behalf to Peter Georgescu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at Young & Rubicam; Richard Halperin, Executive Vice President and Special Counsel to the Chairman of MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings, Inc. (majority stockholder of Revlon); and Ursula Fairbairn, Executive Vice-President, Human Resources and Quality, of American Express.<⁽⁷⁷⁸⁾ Mr. Jordan told Ms. Lewinsky to keep him informed of the progress of her job search.<⁽⁷⁷⁹⁾

At one point in the conversation, according to Ms. Lewinsky, Mr. Jordan said, "[Y]ou're a friend of the President."<⁽⁷⁸⁰⁾ This prompted Ms. Lewinsky to reveal that she "didn't really look at him as the President"; rather, she "reacted to him more as a man and got angry at him like a man and just a regular person."<⁽⁷⁸¹⁾ When Mr. Jordan asked why Ms. Lewinsky got angry at the President, she replied that she became upset "when he doesn't call me enough or see me enough."<⁽⁷⁸²⁾ Ms. Lewinsky testified that Mr. Jordan advised her to take her frustrations out on him rather than the President.<⁽⁷⁸³⁾ According to Ms. Lewinsky, Mr. Jordan summed up the situation: "You're in love, that's what your problem is."<⁽⁷⁸⁵⁾

Mr. Jordan recalled a similar conversation, in which Ms. Lewinsky complained that the President did not see her enough, although he thought it took place during a meeting eight days later. He testified that he felt the need to remind Ms. Lewinsky that the President is the "leader of the free world" and has competing obligations.<⁽⁷⁸⁶⁾

Mr. Jordan is "certain" that he had a conversation with the President about Ms. Lewinsky at some point after this December 11 meeting.<⁽⁷⁸⁷⁾ He told the President that he would be trying to get Ms. Lewinsky a job in New York.<⁽⁷⁸⁸⁾ Mr. Jordan testified that the President "was aware that people were trying to get jobs for her, that Podesta was trying to help her, that Bill Richardson was trying to help her, but that she really wanted to work in the private sector."<⁽⁷⁸⁹⁾

F. Early Morning Phone Call

On December 15, 1997, Paula Jones's lawyers served President Clinton with her second set of document requests by overnight mail. These requests asked the President to "produce documents that related to communications between the President and Monica Lewisky" [sic].<⁽⁷⁹⁰⁾ This was the first Paula Jones discovery request to refer to Monica Lewinsky by name.

Ms. Lewinsky testified that in the early-morning hours of December 17, at roughly 2:00 or 2:30 a.m., she received a call from the President.<⁽⁷⁹¹⁾ The call lasted about half an hour.<⁽⁷⁹²⁾

The President gave Ms. Lewinsky two items of news: Ms. Currie's brother had died in a car accident, and Ms. Lewinsky's name had appeared on the witness list in the Jones case.<⁽⁷⁹³⁾ According to Ms. Lewinsky, the President said "it broke his heart" to see her name on the witness list.<⁽⁷⁹⁴⁾ The President told her that she would not necessarily be subpoenaed; if she were, he "suggested she could sign an affidavit to try to satisfy [Ms. Jones's] inquiry and not be deposed."<⁽⁷⁹⁵⁾

The President told Ms. Lewinsky to contact Ms. Currie in the event she were subpoenaed.<⁽⁷⁹⁶⁾ He also reviewed one of their established cover stories. He told Ms. Lewinsky that she "should say she visited the [White House] to see Ms. Currie and, on occasion when working at the [White House], she brought him letters when no one else was around."<⁽⁷⁹⁷⁾ The President's advice "was . . . instantly familiar to [Ms. Lewinsky]."<⁽⁷⁹⁸⁾ She testified that the President's use of this "misleading" story amounted to a continuation of their pre-existing pattern.<⁽⁷⁹⁹⁾

Later in the conversation, according to Ms. Lewinsky, the President said he would try to get Ms. Currie to come in over the weekend so that Ms. Lewinsky could visit and he could give her several Christmas presents.<⁽⁸⁰⁰⁾ Ms. Lewinsky replied that, since Ms. Currie's brother had just died, perhaps they should "let Betty be."<⁽⁸⁰¹⁾

In his grand jury appearance, the President was questioned about the December 17 phone call. He testified that, although he could not rule it out, he did not remember such a call.<⁽⁸⁰²⁾ The President was also asked whether in this conversation, or a conversation before Ms. Lewinsky's name came up in the Jones case, he instructed her to say that she was coming to bring letters. The President answered: "I might well have said that."<⁽⁸⁰³⁾

But when asked whether he ever said anything along these lines after Ms. Lewinsky had been identified on the witness list, the President answered: "I don't recall whether I might have done something like that."<⁽⁸⁰⁴⁾ He speculated that he might have suggested this explanation in the context of a call from a reporter.<⁽⁸⁰⁵⁾ Nonetheless, he testified, in the context of the Jones case, "I never asked her to lie."<⁽⁸⁰⁶⁾

G. Job Interviews

On December 18, Ms. Lewinsky had two job interviews in New York City. At MacAndrews & Forbes, she met with Executive Vice President and Special Counsel to the Chairman Richard Halperin, who viewed the interview as "an accommodation for Vernon Jordan."<⁽⁸⁰⁷⁾ At Burson-Marstellar, she interviewed with Celia Berk, Managing Director of Human Resources.<⁽⁸⁰⁸⁾ A few days later, on December 23, Ms. Lewinsky interviewed in Washington, D.C., with Thomas Schick, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs and Communications, of American Express.<⁽⁸⁰⁹⁾

XII. December 19, 1997 - January 4, 1998:

The Subpoena

Ms. Lewinsky was served with a subpoena in the Jones case on Friday, December 19. She immediately called Mr. Jordan, and he invited her to his office. Mr. Jordan spoke with the President that afternoon and again that evening. He told the President that he had met with Ms. Lewinsky, that she had been subpoenaed, and that he planned to obtain an attorney for her. On Sunday, December 28, the President met with Ms. Lewinsky, who expressed concern about the subpoena's demand for the gifts he had given her. Later that day, Ms. Currie drove to Ms. Lewinsky's apartment and collected a box containing some of the subpoenaed gifts. Ms. Currie took the box home and hid it under her bed.

A. December 19: Ms. Lewinsky Is Subpoenaed

On Friday, December 19, 1997, sometime between 3:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m., Ms. Lewinsky was served with a subpoena at her Pentagon office.<⁽⁸¹⁰⁾ The subpoena commanded her to appear for a deposition in Washington, D.C., at 9:30 a.m. on January 23, 1998.<⁽⁸¹¹⁾ The subpoena also required the production of certain documents and gifts. Among the items that Ms. Lewinsky was required to produce were "each and every gift including, but not limited to, any and all dresses, accessories, and jewelry, and/or hat pins given to you by, or on behalf of, Defendant Clinton," as well as "[e]very document constituting or containing communications between you and Defendant Clinton, including letters, cards, notes, memoranda, and all telephone records."<⁽⁸¹²⁾

Ms. Lewinsky testified that, after being served with the subpoena, she "burst into tears," and then telephoned Mr. Jordan from a pay phone at the Pentagon.<⁽⁸¹³⁾ Mr. Jordan confirmed Ms. Lewinsky's account; he said he tried to reassure Ms. Lewinsky: "[C]ome and talk to me and I will see what I can do about finding you counsel."<⁽⁸¹⁴⁾

According to records maintained by Mr. Jordan's law firm, Ms. Lewinsky arrived at his office at 4:47 p.m.<⁽⁸¹⁵⁾ White House phone records show that, at 4:57 p.m., the President telephoned Mr. Jordan; the two men spoke from 5:01 p.m. to 5:05 p.m.<⁽⁸¹⁶⁾ At 5:06 p.m., Mr. Jordan placed a two-minute call to a Washington, D.C., attorney named Francis Carter.<⁽⁸¹⁷⁾

Ms. Lewinsky and Mr. Jordan gave somewhat different accounts of their meeting that day. According to Ms. Lewinsky, shortly after her arrival, Mr. Jordan received a phone call, and she stepped out of his office. A few minutes later, Ms. Lewinsky was invited back in, and Mr. Jordan called Mr. Carter.<⁽⁸¹⁹⁾

Mr. Jordan testified that he spoke to the President before Ms. Lewinsky ever entered his office.<⁽⁸²⁰⁾ He told the President: "Monica Lewinsky called me up. She's upset. She's gotten a subpoena. She is coming to see me about this subpoena. I'm confident that she needs a lawyer, and I will try to get her a lawyer."<⁽⁸²¹⁾ Mr. Jordan told the President that the lawyer he had in mind was Francis Carter.<⁽⁸²²⁾ According to Mr. Jordan, the President asked him: "You think he's a good lawyer?" Mr. Jordan responded that he was.<⁽⁸²³⁾ Mr. Jordan testified that informing the President of Ms. Lewinsky's subpoena "was the purpose of [his] call."<⁽⁸²⁴⁾

According to Mr. Jordan, when Ms. Lewinsky entered his office, "[H]er emotional state was obviously one of dishevelment and she was quite upset. She was crying. She was -- she was highly emotional, to say the least."<⁽⁸²⁵⁾ She showed him the subpoena as soon as she entered.<⁽⁸²⁶⁾

Ms. Lewinsky also testified that she discussed the subpoena with Mr. Jordan.<⁽⁸²⁷⁾ She told him that she found the specific reference to a hat pin alarming -- how could the Jones's attorneys have known about it?<⁽⁸²⁸⁾ Mr. Jordan told her it was "a standard subpoena."<⁽⁸²⁹⁾ When he indicated to Ms. Lewinsky that he would be seeing the President that night, Ms. Lewinsky told him "to please make sure that he told the President" about her subpoena.<⁽⁸³⁰⁾

At some point, according to Mr. Jordan, Ms. Lewinsky asked him about the future of the Clintons' marriage.<⁽⁸³¹⁾ Because Ms. Lewinsky seemed "mesmerized" by President Clinton,<⁽⁸³²⁾ he "asked her directly had there been any sexual relationship between [her] and the President."<⁽⁸³³⁾ Mr. Jordan explained, "You didn't have to be Einstein to know that that was a question that had to be asked by me at that particular time, because heretofore this discussion was about a job. The subpoena changed the circumstances."<⁽⁸³⁴⁾ Ms. Lewinsky said she had not had a sexual relationship with the President.<⁽⁸³⁵⁾

Ms. Lewinsky testified, however, that at this time she assumed that Mr. Jordan knew "with a wink and a nod that [she] was having a relationship with the President."<⁽⁸³⁶⁾ She therefore interpreted Mr. Jordan's questions as "What are you going to say?" rather than "What are the [actual] answers . . .?"<⁽⁸³⁷⁾ When the meeting ended, she "asked [Mr. Jordan] if he would give the President a hug."<⁽⁸³⁸⁾

That evening, Mr. Jordan visited the President at the White House. According to Mr. Jordan, the two met alone in the Residence and talked for about ten minutes.<⁽⁸³⁹⁾ He testified:

I told him that Monica Lewinsky had been subpoenaed, came to me with a subpoena. I told him that I was concerned by her fascination, her being taken with him. I told him how emotional she was about having gotten the subpoena. I told him what she said to me about whether or not he was going to leave the First Lady at the end of the term.<⁽⁸⁴⁰⁾

Mr. Jordan asked the President "[t]he one question that I wanted answered."<⁽⁸⁴¹⁾ That question was, "Mr. President, have you had sexual relations with Monica Lewinsky?" The President told Mr. Jordan, "No, never."<⁽⁸⁴²⁾

Mr. Jordan told the President: "I'm trying to help her get a job and I'm going to continue to do that. I'm going to get her counsel and I'm going to try to be helpful to her as much as I possibly can, both with the lawyer, and I've already done what I could about the job, and I think you ought to know that."<⁽⁸⁴³⁾ Mr. Jordan testified: "He thanked me for telling him. Thanked me for my efforts to get her a job and thanked me for getting her a lawyer."<⁽⁸⁴⁴⁾

In his grand jury testimony, the President recalled that he met with Mr. Jordan on December 19; however, he testified that his memory of that meeting was somewhat vague:

I do not remember exactly what the nature of the conversation was. I do remember that I told him that there was no sexual relationship between me and Monica Lewinsky, which was true. And that -- then all I remember for the rest is that he said he had referred her to a lawyer, and I believe it was Mr. Carter.<⁽⁸⁴⁵⁾

Asked whether he recalled that Mr. Jordan told him that Ms. Lewinsky appeared fixated on him and hoped that he would leave Mrs. Clinton, the President testified: "I recall him saying he thought that she was upset with -- somewhat fixated on me, that she acknowledged that she was not having a sexual relationship with me, and that she did not want to be [brought] into that Jones lawsuit."<⁽⁸⁴⁶⁾

B. December 22: Meeting with Vernon Jordan

Mr. Jordan arranged for Ms. Lewinsky to meet with attorney Francis Carter at 11:00 a.m. on Monday, December 22.<⁽⁸⁴⁷⁾ On that morning, according to Ms. Lewinsky, she called Mr. Jordan and asked to meet before they went to Mr. Carter's office.<⁽⁸⁴⁸⁾ She testified: "I was a little concerned. I thought maybe [Mr. Jordan] didn't really understand . . . what it was that was happening here with me being subpoenaed and what this really meant."<⁽⁸⁴⁹⁾ She also wanted to find out whether he had in fact told the President of her subpoena. Mr. Jordan said that he had.<⁽⁸⁵⁰⁾ Ms. Lewinsky also told Mr. Jordan that she was worried that someone might have been eavesdropping on her telephone conversations with the President.<⁽⁸⁵¹⁾ When Mr. Jordan asked why she thought that would be of concern, Ms. Lewinsky said, "Well, we've had phone sex."<⁽⁸⁵²⁾

Ms. Lewinsky testified that she brought some of her gifts from the President, showed them to Mr. Jordan, and implied that these items were not all of the gifts that the President had given her.<⁽⁸⁵³⁾ Mr. Jordan, in contrast, testified that Ms. Lewinsky never showed him any gifts from the President.<⁽⁸⁵⁴⁾

C. December 22: First Meeting with Francis Carter

Mr. Jordan drove Ms. Lewinsky to Mr. Carter's office.<⁽⁸⁵⁵⁾ There, he introduced Ms. Lewinsky to Mr. Carter, explaining that she needed not only a lawyer but a "counselor."<⁽⁸⁵⁶⁾ Mr. Carter testified that, after the initial referral, he expected to have no further contact with Mr. Jordan about Ms. Lewinsky or her case.<⁽⁸⁵⁸⁾

Mr. Carter and Ms. Lewinsky then met for approximately an hour.<⁽⁸⁵⁹⁾ She explained that she did not want to be drawn into the Jones case and would strongly prefer not to be deposed.<⁽⁸⁶⁰⁾ He said that he would try to persuade Paula Jones's attorneys not to depose her.<⁽⁸⁶¹⁾ Ms. Lewinsky testified that she suggested filing an affidavit to avert a deposition.<⁽⁸⁶²⁾

According to Ms. Lewinsky, she asked Mr. Carter to get in touch with the President's personal attorney, Robert Bennett, just "to let him know that I had been subpoenaed in this case."<⁽⁸⁶³⁾ She wanted to make clear that she was "align[ing] [her]self with the President's side."<⁽⁸⁶⁴⁾ Mr. Carter testified that, while Ms. Lewinsky was in his office, he placed a call to Mr. Bennett to arrange a meeting.<⁽⁸⁶⁵⁾

On the morning of Tuesday, December 23, Mr. Carter met for an hour with two of the President's personal attorneys, Mr. Bennett and Katherine Sexton.<⁽⁸⁶⁶⁾ The President's attorneys told Mr. Carter that other witnesses had filed motions to quash their subpoenas, and they offered legal research to support such a motion.<⁽⁸⁶⁷⁾

D. December 23: Clinton Denials to Paula Jones

Throughout the sexual harassment case, Ms. Jones's attorneys attempted to obtain information about President Clinton's sexual relationships with any woman other than his wife. On December 11, 1997, the judge overseeing the Jones case, Susan Webber Wright, ruled that the President had to answer a written interrogatory naming every state and federal employee since 1986 with whom he had sexual relations or with whom he had proposed to have sexual relations. On December 23, 1997, the President answered the interrogatory: "None."<⁽⁸⁶⁸⁾

E. December 28: Final Meeting with the President

A day or two after Christmas, Ms. Lewinsky called Ms. Currie and told her that the President had mentioned that he had presents for her.<⁽⁸⁶⁹⁾ Ms. Currie called back and told her to come to the White House at 8:30 a.m. on Sunday, December 28.<⁽⁸⁷⁰⁾

That morning, Ms. Lewinsky met with the President in the Oval Office. WAVES records reflect that the visit was requested by Ms. Currie and that Ms. Lewinsky entered the White House at 8:16 a.m.<⁽⁸⁷¹⁾

After she arrived at the Oval Office, she, the President, and Ms. Currie played with Buddy, the President's dog, and chatted. Then, the President took her to the study and gave her several Christmas presents: a marble bear's head, a Rockettes blanket, a Black Dog stuffed animal, a small box of chocolates, a pair of joke sunglasses, and a pin with a New York skyline on it.<⁽⁸⁷²⁾

Ms. Lewinsky testified that, during this visit, she and the President had a "passionate" and "physically intimate" kiss.<⁽⁸⁷³⁾

Ms. Lewinsky and the President also talked about the Jones case.<⁽⁸⁷⁴⁾ In Ms. Lewinsky's account, she asked the President "how he thought [she] got put on the witness list."<⁽⁸⁷⁵⁾ He speculated that Linda Tripp or one of the uniformed Secret Service officers had told the Jones attorneys about her.<⁽⁸⁷⁶⁾ When Ms. Lewinsky mentioned her anxiety about the subpoena's reference to a hat pin, he said "that sort of bothered [him], too."<⁽⁸⁷⁷⁾ He asked whether she had told anyone about the hat pin, and she assured him that she had not.<⁽⁸⁷⁸⁾

At some point in the conversation, Ms. Lewinsky told the President, "[M]aybe I should put the gifts away outside my house somewhere or give them to someone, maybe Betty."<⁽⁸⁷⁹⁾ Ms. Lewinsky recalled that the President responded either "I don't know" or "Let me think about that."<⁽⁸⁸⁰⁾

When Ms. Lewinsky was asked whether she thought it odd for the President to give her gifts under the circumstances (with a subpoena requiring the production of all his gifts), she testified that she did not think of it at the time, but she did note some hesitancy on the President's part:

[H]e had hesitated very briefly right before I left that day in kind of packaging . . . all my stuff back up . . . I don't think he said anything that indicated this to me, but I thought to myself, "I wonder if he's thinking he shouldn't give these to me to take out." But he did.<⁽⁸⁸¹⁾

When asked in the Jones deposition about his last meeting with Ms. Lewinsky, the President remembered only that she stopped by "[p]robably sometime before Christmas" and he "stuck [his] head out [of the office], said hello to her."<⁽⁸⁸²⁾ The deposition occurred three weeks after this December 28 meeting with Ms. Lewinsky.

In the grand jury, the President acknowledged "talking with Ms. Lewinsky about her testimony, or about the prospect that she might have to give testimony. And she, she talked to me about that."<⁽⁸⁸³⁾ He maintained, however, that they did not discuss Ms. Lewinsky's subpoena: "[S]he was upset. She -- well, she -- we -- she didn't -- we didn't talk about a subpoena. But she was upset."<⁽⁸⁸⁴⁾ In the President's recollection, Ms. Lewinsky said she knew nothing about sexual harassment; why did she have to testify? According to the President, "I explained to her that it was a political lawsuit. They wanted to get whatever they could under oath that was damaging to me."<⁽⁸⁸⁵⁾

Ms. Lewinsky's friend, Catherine Allday Davis, testified about a conversation with Ms. Lewinsky on January 3, 1998. Ms. Lewinsky told Ms. Davis that she had met with the President and discussed the Jones case a few days earlier. Ms. Davis testified that Ms. Lewinsky and the President had "noted [that] there was no evidence" of their relationship.<⁽⁸⁸⁷⁾

E. December 28: Concealment of Gifts

In the afternoon of December 28, a few hours after Ms. Lewinsky's White House visit, Ms. Currie drove to Ms. Lewinsky's Watergate apartment and collected a box containing the President's gifts. Ms. Currie then took the box home and hid it under her bed. Ms. Lewinsky, Ms. Currie, and the President were all questioned as to why Ms. Currie retrieved the box of gifts from Ms. Lewinsky.

According to Ms. Lewinsky, the transfer originated in a phone call from Ms. Currie that afternoon. Ms. Lewinsky testified that Ms. Currie said, "I understand you have something to give me," or, "The President said you have something to give me."<⁽⁸⁸⁸⁾ Ms. Lewinsky understood that Ms. Currie was alluding to the gifts.<⁽⁸⁸⁹⁾ Ms. Currie said that she would stop by Ms. Lewinsky's apartment and pick up the items.<⁽⁸⁹⁰⁾ Ms. Lewinsky testified that she put many, but not all, of her gifts from the President into a box. Ms. Currie drove by her apartment and picked it up.<⁽⁸⁹¹⁾

Ms. Lewinsky was concerned because the gifts were under subpoena; she did not throw them away, however, because "they meant a lot to [her]."<⁽⁸⁹²⁾ The reason she gave the gifts to Ms. Currie, and not to one of her friends or her mother, was "a little bit of an assurance to the President . . . that everything was okay."<⁽⁸⁹³⁾ She felt that, because the gifts were with Ms. Currie, they were within the President's control: "Not that [the gifts] were going to be in his possession, but that he would understand whatever it was I gave to Betty and that that might make him feel a little bit better."<⁽⁸⁹⁴⁾

Ms. Lewinsky's account of the events of December 28 in her sworn statement of February 1, 1998, corroborates her later grand jury testimony:

"Ms. L . . . asked if she should put away (outside her home) the gifts he had given her or, maybe, give them to someone else. Ms. Currie called Ms. L later that afternoon as said that the Pres. had told her Ms. L. wanted her to hold onto something for her. Ms. L boxed up most of the gifts she had received and gave them to Ms. Currie. It is unknown if Ms. Currie knew the contents of the box."<⁽⁸⁹⁵⁾

Ms. Currie's testimony was somewhat at odds with Ms. Lewinsky's. Though her overall recollection was hazy, Ms. Currie believed that Ms. Lewinsky had called her and raised the idea of the gifts transfer.<⁽⁸⁹⁶⁾ Ms. Currie was asked about the President's involvement in the transfer:

Q: And did the President know you were holding these things for Monica?

BC: I don't know. I don't know.

Q: Didn't he say to you that Monica had something for you to hold?

BC: I don't remember that. I don't.

Q: Did you ever talk to the President and tell him you had this box from Monica?

BC: I don't remember that either.

Q: Do you think it happened, though?

BC: I don't know. I don't know.<⁽⁸⁹⁷⁾

When asked whether a statement by Ms. Lewinsky indicating that Ms. Currie had in fact spoken to the President about the gift transfer would be false, Ms. Currie replied: "Then she may remember better than I. I don't remember."<⁽⁸⁹⁸⁾

According to Ms. Currie, Ms. Lewinsky said that she was uncomfortable retaining the gifts herself because "people were asking questions" about them.<⁽⁸⁹⁹⁾ Ms. Currie said she drove to Ms. Lewinsky's residence after work, collected the box, brought it home, and put it under her bed.<⁽⁹⁰⁰⁾ Written on the top of the box were the words "Please do not throw away!!!"<⁽⁹⁰¹⁾ Ms. Currie testified that she knew that the box contained gifts from the President.<⁽⁹⁰²⁾

For his part, the President testified that he never asked Ms. Currie to collect a box of gifts from Ms. Lewinsky.<⁽⁹⁰³⁾ He said that he had no knowledge that Ms. Currie had held those items "until that was made public."<⁽⁹⁰⁴⁾

The President testified that he has no distinct recollection of discussing the gifts with Ms. Lewinsky on December 28: "[M]y memory is that on some day in December, and I'm sorry I don't remember when it was, she said, well, what if they ask me about the gifts you have given me. And I said, well, if you get a request to produce those, you have to give them whatever you have."<⁽⁹⁰⁵⁾

D. December 31: Breakfast with Vernon Jordan

Ms. Lewinsky testified that in late December 1997 she realized that she needed to "come up with some sort of strategy as to [what to do] if Linda Tripp" divulged what she knew.<⁽⁹⁰⁶⁾ On December 30, Ms. Lewinsky telephoned Mr. Jordan's office and conveyed either directly to him or through one of his secretaries that she was concerned about the Jones case.<⁽⁹⁰⁷⁾

The following day, Ms. Lewinsky and Mr. Jordan had breakfast together at the Park Hyatt Hotel.<⁽⁹⁰⁸⁾ According to Ms. Lewinsky, she told Mr. Jordan that a friend of hers, Linda Tripp, was involved in the Jones case. She told Mr. Jordan: "I used to trust [Ms. Tripp], but I didn't trust her any more."<⁽⁹⁰⁹⁾ Ms. Lewinsky said that Ms. Tripp might have seen some notes in her apartment. Mr. Jordan asked: "Notes from the President to you?" Ms. Lewinsky responded: "No, notes from me to the President." According to Ms. Lewinsky, Mr. Jordan said: "Go home and make sure they're not there." Ms. Lewinsky testified that she understood that Mr. Jordan was advising her to "throw . . . away" any copies or drafts of notes that she had sent to the President.<⁽⁹¹⁰⁾

After breakfast, Mr. Jordan gave Ms. Lewinsky a ride back to his office.<⁽⁹¹¹⁾ When Ms. Lewinsky returned home to her apartment that day, she discarded approximately 50 draft notes to the President.<⁽⁹¹²⁾

E. January 4: The Final Gift

On Sunday, January 4, 1998, Ms. Lewinsky called Ms. Currie at home and told her that she wanted to drop off a gift for the President.<⁽⁹¹³⁾ Ms. Currie invited Ms. Lewinsky to her home, and Ms. Lewinsky gave her the package.<⁽⁹¹⁴⁾ The package contained a book entitled The Presidents of the United States and a love note inspired by the movie Titanic.<⁽⁹¹⁵⁾