Death of American Virtue - Ken Gormley [249]
BERNIE Lewinsky had been sitting in the lounge at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, attending the annual meeting of the Southern California Radiation Oncology Society (of which he was president), when his beeper went off. His receptionist informed him, “Marcia, your wife, called, she wants you to call her immediately.” She added, “Monica is in deep trouble.” Bernie knew that this weekend, Monica was scheduled to move from Washington to New York City to begin a new job; there had already been a discussion about moving expenses. Bernie had joked with the receptionist, “Oh, she probably needs more money.”
When he dialed his ex-wife’s cell phone, however, the subject had nothing to do with cash. Marcia was on a train. She spoke in whispers, something about the federal authorities scooping up their daughter. “Bernard?” Marcia said breathlessly. “Bernard, Monica’s in trouble. The FBI has her in a hotel. Do you know anything about her having a relationship with the president?” Bernie nearly dropped the phone. This was definitely Marcia. She was the only person in the world who called him “Bernard.” “What are you talking about?” he demanded. Marcia continued: “Well, she’s in deep trouble, and she needs a lawyer.” The phone kept cutting on and off, as the train climbed hills and barreled through tunnels. Bernie thought quickly. He said, “I know that Bill Ginsburg has a secondary office in Washington, D.C., and Bill is going to be talking here. I’m going to call him and see if he can give me the name of his office over there. I’ll call you back.”
Bill Ginsburg was one of Bernie Lewinsky’s closest friends, until this case extinguished their friendship. At that moment, he was in court arguing a case when his pager went off. The text message read: “Call me immediately, it’s an emergency, Bernie.” Ginsburg was scheduled to speak at the oncologist’s convention later that day, where he was to discuss “emerging HMO ethics,” including important issues like, “Should we bombard prostates, as opposed to doing urethral ultrasounds and just hitting the tumor?” Ginsburg was one of the best attorneys in the business when it came to defending hospitals and physicians in nasty, high-stakes medical malpractice litigation. Bernie Lewinsky was a regular client and a faithful friend. When Ginsburg finally reached Bernie, his friend sounded worried and even desperate. Bernie told Ginsburg, “You’ve got to come down here. I can’t talk over the phone.” He added in a hushed voice, “It involves Monica.”
Ginsburg requested an emergency recess of his case, drove at a high speed to the Biltmore, and sought out his friend in need. The bearded lawyer entered the room and gave Bernie a bear hug, asking, “What’s the trouble?” Bernie Lewinsky gulped down some air, then recounted the incredible story, saying that Monica “was being held at the Pentagon City Ritz by the FBI. And they were questioning her and said that she was under arrest or words to that effect.” Ginsburg would recall that his friend Bernie “was beside himself as any father would be.” So Ginsburg took immediate action. “The first thing I did was prescribe a vodka and, opening the minibar, took one out,” he later said. “That was the extent of my license to prescribe.”
After several failed attempts, Bernie finally got through to Mike Emmick. He held the phone to his ear as Emmick told him that “Monica was involved in a cover-up, and she and her mother were going to go to jail unless they cooperated. And they wanted Monica to wire herself and make some phone calls to some key people before midnight.” Bernie Lewinsky recalled saying to Emmick, “Isn’t Monica entitled to an attorney?” The prosecutor answered, “Attorney? Well, yes, I guess she is entitled. Does she have an attorney?” Bernie replied, “Yes, she does.”
At that point, he handed the phone to Bill Ginsburg.
Emmick would later say, “We just were happy to be speaking to anybody, although, in retrospect, perhaps not.”
From the moment of this initial phone call, Emmick would confess, his interaction