Death of American Virtue - Ken Gormley [90]
Bennett said, “Hold on.” There was another pause. Bennett came back on the phone and said, “Yes, he’ll do it.”
Cammarata repeated in a whisper, “Wow, this is pretty good.”
The Jones lawyers next insisted on including a “tolling agreement” that would suspend the statute of limitations for six months, holding the case open to ensure that the White House did not “trash” Jones once the settlement was signed. They feared that the Clinton team might allow the president to read his statement of quasi contrition and then unleash “political hacks” to malign Jones.
Bennett’s tone became subdued. This was a “deal killer,” he said. If the case could be breathed back to life any time someone asserted that the White House was “smearing” Jones, the president would be a sitting duck for a half year—an eternity in the life of a politician. There was no way to control what others might do to pin the blame on Clinton and to wreak political havoc.
It was already after 4:00. The clerk’s office was set to close at 5:00. Davis said he had no alternative but to file the complaint. Bennett interjected: “Look, don’t do that, Gil. I know you have a duty to your client. But you owe the president every courtesy you can give him consistent with your duty.”
Davis scratched his head. He was a lifelong student of the American Constitution and revered its principles. Bennett was right, he whispered. The president was entitled to every consideration. They would wait one day–just in case a deal could be worked out.
Two factors hastened the collapse of negotiations. One was the arrival of Steve Jones, who had just touched down from California and was acting like a “tough guy,” exhibiting an unusually “fiery attitude about Bill Clinton.” This became instantly problematic for the Virginia lawyers.
The second person who blew apart any chance of settlement was Paula’s sister, Charlotte Corbin Brown. That night, as the Jones group weighed its options, Brown appeared with her husband, Mark, on local television and mocked Paula’s story. Looking directly into the camera, Charlotte stated that she had discussed the whole Clinton hoopla with Paula over Christmas, and that it all revolved around a fat settlement. “Whichever way it went,” said Charlotte, “she smelled money.” Watching her sister on television, Paula broke down crying.
Just as the Jones group was recovering from this blow, a CNN program cited “unnamed White House sources” as saying that Paula Jones had not filed a claim because “she didn’t have a case.” The Virginia lawyers jumped up in unison, shouting, “White House sources?”
Cammarata turned to Davis and said, “We’ve got to file.”
The feeling of distrust was mutual. In the White House, Bob Bennett and the rest of the president’s team were certain that the Jones camp had “leaked a draft complaint,” including the grotesque allegation about a “distinguishing characteristic.” If this was meant to be a “good faith” step toward settlement, Bennett told himself, it seemed like a perverse way to do it.
Years later, Bennett would conclude that a “good faith” settlement had never really been in the cards. Seated in his Washington office, he said, “Dollar signs were always there. She [Paula Jones] would sell her story, write a book, et cetera.” Working out a plan to clear Paula’s “good name,” he believed, was just empty talk—especially after Steve Jones got into the picture. “My own gut tells me,” he said, “that her husband very much pushed it.”
Whatever the explanation, even as the two camps talked settlement, both sides were moving into battle mode.
After the CNN broadcast, Paula remained silent. She was holding her knees, as if in a fetal position. She still “didn’t want to file.” At the same time, Steve Jones was angrier. According to Davis, Paula’s husband “was very defensive of her and he was very strong about wanting to pursue the matter in court.”
Paula began crying.
Finally, she wiped a tear off her cheek, pushed the frizzy hair out of her eyes, and said, “Okay, I’ll file.”
THE twenty-page complaint against William Jefferson Clinton and