After four years, it has come to this

The following is the full text of the Rebuttal's conclusion.

The following is the full text of the Rebuttal's conclusion.

It has come down to this. After four years, scores of FBI agents, hundreds of subpoenas, thousands of documents and tens of millions of dollars.

After hiring lawyers, accountants, IRS (Internal Revenue Service) agents, outside consultants, law professors, personal counsel, ethics advisers and a professional public relations expert.

After impanelling grand juries and leasing office space in three jurisdictions, and investigating virtually every aspect of the president's business, financial, political, official and, ultimately, personal life, the office of independent counsel has presented to the House a Referral that no prosecutor would present to any jury.

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The president has admitted he had an improper relationship with Ms Lewinsky. He has apologised. The wrongfulness of that relationship is not in dispute. And yet that relationship is the relentless focus of virtually every page of the OIC's (Office of the Independent Counsel) Referral.

In 445 pages, the Referral mentions Whitewater twice. It never once mentions other issues it has been investigating for years - matters concerning the firing of employees of the White House travel office and the controversy surrounding the FBI files. By contrast, the issue of sex is mentioned more than 500 times, in the most graphic, salacious and gratuitous manner.

The OIC is asking the House of Representatives to undertake its most solemn and consequential process, short of declaring war; to remove a duly, freely and fairly elected president because he had - as he has admitted - an improper, illicit relationship outside of his marriage. Having such a relationship is wrong. Trying to keep such a relationship private, while understandable, is wrong. But such acts do not even approach the constitutional test of impeachment.

The founders (the founding fathers of the United States) were wise to set such a high standard, and were wise to vest this awesome authority in the hands of the most democratic and accountable branch of our government, and not in the hands of unaccountable prosecutors.

We have sought in this Initial Response to begin the process of rebutting the OIC's charges against the president - charges legal experts have said would not even be brought against a private citizen. The president did not commit perjury. He did not obstruct justice. He did not tamper with witnesses. And he did not abuse the power of the office of the presidency.