WHITE HOUSE RUFF: JUST TELL 'EM YOU DON'T REMEMBER!

Drudge Report

Former White House counsel Charles Ruff used variants of "I don't Know, I don't remember, I don't' recall or I have no specific recollection..." 12 times within the first 30 minutes of questioning before a congressional committee investigating missing White House e-mails.

"You don't know who you asked to conduct the search?" asked a seemingly incredulous committee chairman, Dan Burton, R-Ind.

"I know a search was being done" by "one or more members of my staff," Ruff swore under oath. "If I knew who that was I would tell you who that was. But I do not recall."

But would he tell? And can he recall?

Or could Ruff just be playing a game?

A June 19, 1977 WASHINGTON POST story by Bob Woodward may have revealed The Real Ruff.

Woodward's story ["The Last Prosecutor: Special Watergate Force Is Going Out of Business"] interviewed the last Watergate special prosecutor, Charles Ruff.

Ruff said he expected his work on Watergate to be questioned someday, saying "there are judgment calls that were made that people can legitimately question."

Ruff told Woodward how it may all look different to future congressional investigators, and if called to testify someday at such an inquiry, Ruff said he knows just what to do.

"I'd say, 'Gee, I just don't remember what happened back then', and they won't be able to indict me for perjury and that, maybe, that's the principal thing that I've learned in four years....I just intend to rely on that failure of memory."

Put Tough Ruff in Cuffs.

-- Uncle Bob (unclb0b@aol.com), May 05, 2000

Answers

I for one, am sick and tired of the present congress (which we put into office) with their ongoing Hearings, Investigations, and whatever else they can think up to do, other than mind the business of the nation.

All of these men and their staffs must have tremendous dry cleaning bills from the fact that they seem to spend most of their time lurking in bushes, crawling across lawns to sneek and spy on whomever they have it in for at the moment.

Anyone have dollar figures on the amount of money spent on all these antics?

-- Richard (Astral-Acres@webtv.net), May 05, 2000.

> Anyone have dollar figures on the amount of money spent on all these antics? <

No more than the Democrats spent doing the same thing. :))

-- Lynn Ratcliffe (mcgrew@ntr.net), May 05, 2000.

I agree with you Lynn, Democrat/Republican, put 'em both in a bag, shake it up and you'll not know who falls out first.

But, by all the gods, can't they (all of them) find something better to do with their time than investigate each other?

The money waisted on this trivia must be staggering.

In the end it's nothing but fodder for the next election for name calling and finger pointing.

-- Richard (Astral-Acres@webtv.net), May 05, 2000.