The Special Prosecutor in American Politics.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Harriger, Katy J.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Separation of powers--United States.

Separation of powers.

Conflict of interests--United States.

Conflict of interests.

Misconduct in office--United States.

Misconduct in office.

Special prosecutors--United States.

Special prosecutors.

United States--Politics and government--20th century.

United States.

Genre:

Electronic books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (354 pages)

Edition:

2nd ed.

Place of Publication:

La Vergne : University Press of Kansas, 2025.

Summary:

The federal special prosecutor: unprincipled abuser of power or staunch defender of the law? As Katy Harriger shows, the special prosecutor was a hotly debated and controversial subject throughout much of its existence. This was especially true, she argues, during the lengthy, expensive, and highly-politicized investigations of Lawrence Walsh and Kenneth Starr into allegations concerning Presidents Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton. Harriger offers the most complete assessment available of the use of special prosecutors in the post-Watergate era. She analyzes the independent counsel's role within the framework of the separation of powers, explaining how each has interacted with other key players in the political and legal system and showing how those relationships have affected the prosecutor's ability to conduct investigations. Harriger's previous edition focused on the legacy of Watergate but was published before Walsh's Iran-Contra investigations were concluded. Her new study adds substantially more information on Iran-Contra, provides a clearheaded appraisal of Starr's sensationalized Whitewater-Lewinsky investigations, examines a number of senior-level cabinet probes, and critiques and clarifies the role of Attorney General Janet Reno in these latter matters. A completely new chapter compares Iran-Contra and Whitewater-Lewinsky to explore the limits of the law in the special prosecutor's efforts. In this new edition, Harriger includes 20 new interviews with Washington insiders--including one with Kenneth Starr--and covers the debates that led to both the reauthorization of the independent counsel statute in 1994 and its demise in 1999. She then examines the pros and cons of the office and offers constructive suggestions for improvement should it be revived. For students, scholars, and concerned citizens, her book takes us well beyond frenzied media hype and partisan politics to provide a timely reminder about the crucial role of separation of powers in our system of governance.

Contents:

Front Cover

Half Title

Title Page

Copyright Page

Table of Contents

Preface to the Second Edition

One: The Special Prosecutor and the Separation of Powers

Two: Ad Hoc Appointment of Special Prosecutors: The Teapot Dome, Tax, and Watergate Scandals

Three: A Watergate Legacy: The Independent Counsel Provisions of the Ethics in Government Act

Four: Implementation and Congressional Oversight

Five: Is the Independent Counsel Constitutional?

Six: The Attorney General and Conflict of Interest

Seven: Independence, Accountability, and the Special Prosecutor

Eight: Symbols and Politics: Mass Public and Elite Support for the Independent Counsel

Nine: Iran-Contra, Whitewater, and the Limits of the Law

Ten: On the “Necessity of Auxiliary Precautions”

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Back Cover Generated by AI.

Notes:

Electronic book.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Part of the metadata in this record was created by AI, based on the text of the resource.

ISBN:

0-7006-3941-1

OCLC:

1526841901