European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 1, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse Sunday october 1, 1978 William Safire the stars and stripes Page 15 Carter s alleged role in Vesco bribe offer Twe raising of la Zarus a few weeks ago columnist Jack an Derson broke a startling Story that Fugi Tive financier Robert Vesco had offered a million dollars to a Georgia Friend of the Carter men to put in a fix for his return to the . Since the intended target of the bribe was supposed to be former chief of staff Hamilton Jordan that worthy gentleman blew his stack and returning from Camp David in the company of equally infuriated press Secretary Joseph Powell excoriated columnist Anderson from their White House Bunker. Jordan had never even been approached the White House aides charged. Ignoring the bulk of the evidence Anderson had put Forward about a possible conspiracy to fix the Case they entered on the sup posed links to Jordan and sought to Dis credit the entire Anderson Story. Another White House aide threatened the columnist with an expensive libel suit. Some lapdogs among the White House news hounds happily swallowed this Jor Dan Powell diversion and harassment chortling along with the Carter men when Anderson clarified one portion of his Story. They Tut tufted at the investigative columnist for being now it turns out that if Anderson has erred it has been on the Side of caution and responsibility. Carter aide Ham Jordan William Buckley the president merits a Low Bow concerning Camp David a few observations 1. Granted it is not yet Chicken counting time we All owe a great debt to president Carter. For All the talk about How it is not possible to break through accumulated historical and ideological grievances unless objective events compel it every now and then someone comes up to prove it can be done. De Gaulle did it with the germans after the War. And now although the initial credit remains that of Sadat for venturing first to Jerusalem Jimmy Carter has done do not know at this writing exactly How it went inside the enclosures but we know enough to conclude that if it had not been for the relentless determination of or. Carter the meeting would have Bro Ken up. We do not know what was the blend of suasion and muscle he used but he should Patent it and use it in certain other quarters of the Globe that come to mind. Or. Carter has not been so persuasive since he addressed the voters of new Hampshire. For today he is King and de serves a Low Bow. 2. The Prospect for the future Success of the so called frameworks rests primarily with saudi Arabia if one reasons correctly. The financing of the Independence of Jordan has been accomplished primarily by saudi Arabia though to be sure with some help from the United states. It is Crit ical that King Hussein should agree to a division of civic responsibility in the West Bank. If King Khalid tells him that is what is needed for the composure of Arabia the probability is that Hussein will have no Choice. Hussein is not going to Moscow to get help with which to resist the West Bank settlement and the Plo does not have the resources. Question will the saudis go along Here it is Likely that there is going to be some hard bargaining on the matter of East Jerusalem to the return of which to Muslim Power the saudi arabian sheiks have been undivided Day Loyal. Is there a Compromise one suggests itself namely the ceding to the muslims of the actual holy Sites. To be operated by muslims with total authority Over them much As embassies Are by treaty Little foreign enclaves. If you Are born in the British embassy in Washington you Are born a Little englishman. In order to maintain the Sanctity of the holy places it is not Neces sary to run the local fire departments and the police. The cession by Israel of actual territorial sovereignty would be a gesture of Good Faith which would in no significant Way result in the atomization of civil authority in Jerusalem. 3. The immediate denunciation of Camp David by the soviet Union suggests the fear the soviets have of stability. During the next few weeks and months the soviet Union will do everything it can to stand in the Way of the ratification of the Camp David understandings. This Means giving the syrians material Aid encouraging the palestinian terrorists hyping up Qaddafi if such a thing is possible. But the cogency of the prospective arrangements is overwhelming and within Iraq and even Syria it must be made Plain by Western diplomats what it is the soviet Union wants. Of overarching importance is the stability of Iran and of Turkey. Iran in particular is the other pincer to saudi Arabia there to provide both pres sure and cover for the consolidation of peaceful arrangements. The threat of direct intervention by the soviet Union is a threat the United states should be pre pared to confront.4. As to the Means by which the agree ments were reached May we now finally Bury the saw about open covenants openly arrived at one leak to Jack Anderson could have ruined the whole thing. And now a quotation under the Nixon and Ford administrations there. Evolved a kind of secretive Lone Ranger foreign policy a one Man policy of International adventure. A foreign policy based on secrecy inherently has to be closely guarded and amoral and we have had to forego openness consultation and a constant adherence to fundamental principles and High moral lest All this go to his head that state ment was made by candidate Carter campaigning in 1976. C Washington Star of is Hnsen variation of the Natl ohm 00&5in6 a May have been the intended target but it was Jimmy Carter himself who received the Vesco plea. What s More the Vesco plea had not Only reached the president in the Oval office but was the subject of a Carter Handwritten note to his attorney thanks to the stonewalling White House Here is what we now know Vesco whose $200,000 offer for exoneration failed to move the Nixon administration in 1972, upped the Ante to a Cool million to the car Ter administration. Through an intermediary Georgia businessman . Herring the Vesco offer was passed to Carter crony r. Spencer Lee in who was supposed to get to , Lee said he went to his Good Friend and fellow georgian Richard hard in who works in the White House instead of taking the matter to Jordan. Harden Evi Dently went right to the top. On feb. 15, 1977, Harden told president Carter of Spencer Lee s receipt of the offer from what did the president of the United states do when confronted with Vesco s of Fer to buy exoneration did he immediately order an investigation of this possible at tempt to obstruct Justice no. Just the opposite. Spencer Lee was a Nice fellow and a Long time Georgia sup Porter. President Carter picked up a pen and wrote a note to his attorney general georgian Griffin Bell please see spen cer Lee from Albany when he requests an to believe undoubtedly. But the securities and Exchange commission which is investigating where the Carter department of political Justice fears to tread has forced the White House to admit the existence of that damning note. Press Secretary Powell must have known about the Harden Carter involve ment with the Vesco offer when he was heaping obloquy on Jack Anderson s Story but it took an affidavit obtained by the Sec from Spencer Lee to make the White House come at least partially clean. What s the official explanation for the president s directive to the attorney Gener Al to Grant an appointment to the Man carrying the message from Vesco Well us you see this was his Way of getting the matter out of the White House and it won t do any Good for the press or the Fri to ask witness Carter about this we Are warned because the president Dis remembers the whole you believe that Here is the presi Dent in the Oval office receiving news of what May be a bribe offer from the most famous International swindler writing an instruction to his attorney general to receive the middleman and not remembering the offer or his written response White House apologists seek to head off further investigations by insisting that nothing was done for Vesco by the Carter administration. That is irrelevant nothing was done for Vesco by John Mitchell or Maurice stans either and they suffered through a Long trial what is relevant is that a potential conspiracy to defraud the . Government and obstruct Justice reached the president and that he did not carry out his duty to order an i Vestiga you Are a Law enforcement official with knowledge of a felony failure to act is called miss vision although stonewalling doth not miss vision make As Leonard garment once pointed out the Handwritten note by Carter which the . Claims he never received makes mandatory the investigation of this potential conspiracy. Why is this cover up being pursued Only by Jack Anderson and the Sec when will the Washington Branch office of King and Spaulding which Calls itself the department of Justice i panel a grand jury in Washington c new York times
