Clinton Explains Reasons for Rich Pardon
Feb. 19, 2001 -- -- Bill Clinton says he believes he acted "in the best interests of justice" when he pardoned the fugitive financier Marc Rich, and the move had nothing to do with political donations by Rich's ex-wife.
"The suggestion that I granted the pardons because Mr. Rich's former wife, Denise, made political contributions and contributed to the Clinton library foundation is utterly false," Clinton writes in a Sunday New York Times Op-Ed piece. "There was absolutely no quid pro quo."
Eight Reasons Include Pressure From Israelis
Addressing the controversy in detail for the first time, Clinton lists eight specific reasons for his pardon — ranging from the legal to the political.
"Ordinarily, I would have denied pardons in this case simply because [Rich and an associate] did not return to the United States to face the charges against them," Clinton writes. "However, I decided to grant the pardons in this unusual case."
Among the eight reasons, Clinton says he acted because of pressure from "present and former high-ranking Israeli officials of both major political parties and leaders of Jewish communities in America and Europe," who urged the pardon because of Rich's participation in charitable and civic causes.
Speaking on NBC's Meet The Press, former White House Chief of Staff John Podesta said the Israeli leaders included former Prime Minister Ehud Barak.
"I think it really wasn't until the very end that it got serious consideration — after Mr. Barak had asked the president to consider it," Podesta said.
Clinton says there also were legal reasons for his pardon: He believed subsequent investigations suggested Rich and another pardon subject, Pincus Green, may have been prosecuted improperly, and that their companies had paid millions of dollars in compensation to the government.
Opponents Not Convinced
Clinton adds that his opinion was strengthened when three Republican attorneys also favored the pardons, although his former press secretary, Joe Lockhart, said on ABCNEWS' This Week that Clinton softened that assertion in a later version of the Op-Ed piece.
Popular Reads
ABC News Live