22 Jul 2004 Timing of the Berger Scandal
Husband David is adding to his prior observations regarding the Sandy Berger case:
Let’s put the controversy to rest regarding the timing of the Sandy Berger scandal: One person had control over the timing of this story — and that was Sandy Berger. Sandy Berger decided when to examine the classified documents at the Archives. Sandy Berger decided when to depart the Archives with notes unlawfully.
And Sandy Berger decided when to comment publicly about the FBI investigation of him. He decided to wait nine months — after the matter was already public.
Berger is no political neophyte.
In Washington, nothing stays secret for long and Berger knows that. There had to be dozens — if not hundreds of people — who knew about the criminal investigation. It was only a matter of time before it went public.
National Archives employees knew, law enforcement officials knew, Berger’s attorneys knew and, presumably, Berger’s family and close friends knew.
And since FBI searches are seldom subtle, Berger’s neighbors no doubt knew something was afoot too.
Bruce Lindsey, President Bill Clinton’s legal counsel, knew too. One has to assume that Bill Clinton knew as Lindsey was Clinton’s, not Berger’s legal counsel.
Berger had a choice: Tell this story at a time of his choosing or all someone else to determine the timing. By appearances, he chose the later.