WASHINGTON, Feb. 13, 1999 (UPI) -- Here is a chronology of the 13 months of the Monica Lewinsky affair that led to the impeachment trial and acquittal of President Clinton: --
On Jan. 21, 1998, The Washington Post reports that President Clinton had an affair that involved sexual contact with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky. In a series of previously scheduled interviews, Clinton denies the report, but also repeatedly refuses to provide details, including saying whether he ever discussed with Lewinsky how she should answer questions about their relationship.
The Post says independent counsel Kenneth Starr is looking into whether Clinton urged the former intern to deny the affair to help his defense in a sexual harassment lawsuit by former Arkansas state employee Paula Jones.
On Jan. 22, Clinton's legal advisers disagree with political advisers who want him to explain the Lewinsky situation fully before his upcoming State of the Union address. A federal judge in Little Rock, Ark., indefinitely postpones Lewinsky's deposition before Jones's lawyers. Vice President Gore says he believes Clinton's side of the story.
Gennifer Flowers claims parallels between her affair with then-Governor Clinton and the allegations of his relationship with Lewinsky. Democrats in Congress and across the nation warn their party will suffer if Clinton cannot quickly put the charges behind him. People interviewed nationwide say they are disturbed by allegations that Clinton tried to obstruct justice.
On Jan. 23, it is learned that federal investigators offered Lewinsky immunity from prosecution the previous week, and that Lucianne Goldberg, a literary agent, advised Lewinsky friend and co-worker Linda Tripp to tape conversations with Lewinsky. Republicans seem content to watch the unfolding saga without commenting, while first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton is described as being in ''full battle mode.''
On Jan. 24, friends say Clinton has acknowledged to friends that he became emotionally close to Lewinsky while she was working at the White House. Negotiations between prosecutors and Lewinsky attorneys hit an impasse as she holds out for full immunity from prosecution before agreeing to cooperate. Key figures in both parties increase pressure on Clinton to resolve the matter. Tapes show that in more than 20 hours of conversations with Tripp, Lewinsky described an 18-month involvement that included late-night trysts at the White House featuring oral sex.
On Jan. 25, Clinton's approval rating is found high, but 63 percent of Americans polled say he should resign if he lied, while Clinton's staunchest supporters on Capitol Hill seem reluctant to defend him.
On Jan. 26, Hillary Clinton blames the scandal on a mean-spirited right-wing political agenda, and finds support during a visit to Harlem. Clinton denies forcefully that he had a sexual relationship with Lewinsky and coached her to lie about it. Lewinsky's lawyer says he has given Starr a detailed account of what Lewinsky's testimony would be if she is granted immunity. European commentators express concern that U.S. leadership could falter as a result of the White House sex scandal.
On Jan. 27, on the day Clinton delivers his State of the Union address, Hillary Clinton makes a vigorous defense of her husband, declaring him the victim of a ''politically motivated'' prosecutor allied with a ''vast right-wing conspiracy.'' Prosecutors report progress in getting Lewinsky to provide information on her alleged affair with Clinton. Clinton agrees to turn over his deposition in the Paula Jones case. Lewinsky's former high school drama instructor admits he had a long-running affair with her that began in 1992 during her college years in Portland, Ore., and continued until last year. It is learned that most of the evidence presented to the Justice Department on Jan. 15 by Starr in seeking to expand his inquiry focused on Clinton friend Vernon Jordan rather Clinton, and that before Tripp secretly taped her conversations with Lewinsky, she tried to sell a book about the Clinton White House for as much as $500,000.
The Dallas Morning News makes national news by reporting that investigators had spoken with a Secret Service agent who would testify that he saw Clinton and Lewinsky in a compromising situation, then issuing a retraction hours later. Clinton lawyer Robert Bennett takes blame for letting the Jones case become a crippling distraction, leading to the Lewinsky allegations.
On Jan. 28, it is learned that after Lewinsky had been ordered to describe under oath the nature of her relationship with Clinton, she met privately with him at the White House. Traveling to promote his State of the Union agenda of reforming Social Security and improving schools, Clinton is greeted by 20,000 in the college town of Champaign, Ill., as he discusses his policy initiatives rather than the scandal. Former adviser Dick Morris speculates that a chilly marriage might explain some questionable behavior by the president. Lawyer Mickey Kantor and Hollywood producer Harry Thomason, who played key 1992 campaign roles, come back to help out.
On Jan. 29, a federal judge excludes all evidence relating to Lewinsky from the Jones sexual harassment lawsuit. Starr complains that Jones's lawyers are hindering his criminal probe. Lewinsky's attorneys meet with Starr for the first time in more than a week, but it is unclear whether they made any progress toward an agreement to grant her immunity. With the initial shock of the Lewinsky allegations wearing off, White House advisers think they can keep mum indefinitely on Clinton's relationship with her. But some members of Congress complain that the questions facing Clinton, unless resolved swiftly, are likely to become a drag on his agenda. Clinton's actions catch feminist groups in a bind.
On Jan. 30, Lewinsky's lawyer contradicts several key details attributed to her taped story of her affair with Clinton, suggesting she sometimes exaggerates or oversells. Yet he describes his client as ''totally reliable.'' Congressional Republicans, after more than a week of silence on the allegations, unleash a string of attacks on White House ethics. Questions begin arising about the possibility of collusion between Jones's advocates and those with knowledge of the Lewinsky case, as well as connections between Lewinsky's New York job search and her struggle to avoid testifying in the Jones case. The Democratic Party establishes an office to handle the Lewinsky case, while reporting no major slowdown in party donations.
On Jan. 31, following Clinton's forceful denials, a poll finds two- thirds of Americans approve of Clinton's job performance and 59 percent believe his enemies are conspiring against him, but 56 percent agree he ''has only himself to blame for the scandal.'' State and county prosecutors in Maryland decide not to immediately investigate whether Tripp violated a wiretapping law.
On Feb. 1, as Lewinsky lawyer William Ginsburg appears on five Sunday morning talk shows, many criminal defense lawyers sharply criticize his press strategy. Gore repeats his firm defense of Clinton.
On Feb. 2, Starr gets copies of Clinton and Lewinsky statements in the Jones case, in which they deny a sexual relationship. The White House becomes more reluctant to release information, making for a contrast with its behavior during the previous year's controversy over fund-raising. White House press secretary Mike McCurry gets credit for handling swarms of reporters with composure and humor.
On Feb. 3, Secret Service logs are found to show that Lewinsky visited the White House some three dozen times after leaving her White House job for the Pentagon in 1996. Clinton makes plans to establish a new legal defense fund with a goal of raising at least $3 million to $4 million to cover attorney fees. The French lead foreign countries in voicing criticism of U.S. handling of the affair.
On Feb. 4, Starr turns down an immunity deal for Lewinsky, citing inconsistencies in her statement, as she reportedly acknowledges the sexual relationship while being unclear on whether she was urged to lie about it. Bruce Lindsey emerges as a key damage control strategist. Lewinsky finds hoards of reporters camped outside her father's home in Los Angeles, and a Wall Street Journal article posted to the Web ahead of publication dramatizes the growing speed of the news cycle.
On Feb. 5, Clinton secretary Betty Currie is reported to have told investigators that Clinton probed her memories of his contacts with Lewinsky to see whether they matched his own, and that Tripp provided Jones's lawyers one month earlier with a sworn statement testifying that Lewinsky told her on ''innumerable occasions'' of a long-running affair with Clinton and played for Tripp ''at least three tapes'' containing Clinton's voice.
On Feb. 6, British Prime Minister Tony Blair stands firmly behind Clinton as he declares at a joint news conference that he would never step down over the Lewinsky affair. After weeks of internal arguing, Clinton's advisers opt for a series of attacks designed to discredit the Starr inquiry, and lawyers for Clinton begin complaining about ''out of control'' leaks from Starr's office.
On Feb. 7, Ginsburg accuses Starr of using strong-arm tactics to pressure Lewinsky to stretch her story. Jones lawyers begin expanding reach of her sexual harassment suit trying to portray Clinton as a sexual predator who uses his official powers to coerce women.
On Feb. 8, Republicans come to Starr's defense, accusing Clinton's lawyers and aides of unfairly maligning Starr as a way of avoiding questions about Lewinsky.
On Feb. 9, Lewinsky gets summoned to testify in Starr's probe, and her lawyer moves to quash the subpoena. House leaders quietly begin looking into possible impeachment proceedings but say the evidence must be much stronger. Skepticism grows about ''talking points'' document that Lewinsky gave to Tripp.
On Feb. 10, a retired Secret Service agent says Clinton and Lewinsky met privately in 1995, despite Clinton denying any such recollection. Lewinsky's mother Marcia Lewis spends about two hours before a grand jury after a federal judge orders her to testify. Clinton gets a warm reception from House Democrats at a party retreat, as White House advisers say they're as surprised as anyone by Clinton's high poll numbers but worry about future changes.
On Feb. 11, Lewinsky's mother testifies for nearly five hours but by midafternoon becomes so upset that she is unable to continue.
On Feb. 12, amid criticism from fellow prosecutors, Starr's team negotiates with federal officials over the propriety of compelling the Secret Service to testify against Clinton.
On Feb. 13, former presidential adviser George Stephanopoulos faces criticism about motives in openly doubting Clinton. Starr seeks detailed minute-by-minute logs of who the president sees, who he talks to on the phone, and when and where he travels.
On Feb. 15, former White House chief of staff Leon Panetta says Clinton owes the American public a full explanation of the unusual relationship he had with Lewinsky.
On Feb. 17, Clinton's lawyers ask a federal court to dismiss the Jones case, arguing that she had failed to demonstrate that he retaliated against her for rebuffing his alleged sexual advance. Former Clinton campaign volunteer Kathleen Willey, who said she was kissed and groped by Clinton, gets subpoenaed by Starr to testify. McCurry's comments questioning Clinton's side of the story raise more questions.
On Feb. 18, former Arkansas senator David Pryor begins a new legal defense fund for Clinton.
On Feb. 19, the White House finds obstacles in its attempts to use executive privilege as an argument to block testimony from top presidential aides. The president of the American Bar Association decries ''the prosecutorial zeal'' reflected in Starr's probe.
On Feb. 20, the Justice Department is said to have concluded that Secret Service agents should be shielded from testifying about everything they saw or heard while protecting Clinton.
On Feb. 22, the White House denies Republican charges that it has authorized private investigators to ''dig up dirt'' on prosecutors, investigators or reporters looking into the Lewinsky case.
On Feb. 23, Starr, lashing back at criticisms, is said to subpoena Clinton adviser Sidney Blumenthal to turn over information on efforts to spread damaging information about Starr's staff, while more polls find voters generally back Clinton as long as he isn't found to have lied.
On Feb. 25, Jones's attorneys say Clinton's legal team offered three weeks earlier to settle the Jones sexual harassment lawsuit for $700, 000, while Clinton's side denies it.
On Feb. 26, Blumenthal admits in testimony that he talked with reporters about Starr's prosecution team but denies a White House plot to spread damaging information about them.
On Feb. 27, Starr is said to have subpoenaed two investigators hired by the National Enquirer in 1996 to check out rumors that Starr was having an extramarital affair.
On Feb. 28, after weeks of silence, leading Republicans decry the ''national embarrassment'' of sex and perjury allegations against Clinton.
On March 3, Jordan emerges from secret testimony before a grand jury and gives the White House a clear signal that he stuck by Clinton, his longtime friend.
On March 4, Clinton's deposition in the Jones case shows that he admitted Lewinsky gave him personal gifts and visited his office, but he denied leading efforts to find Lewinsky a job.
On March 5, Starr and Ginsburg hold a closed hearing on an immunity deal for Lewinsky that Ginsburg said Starr offered then withdrew. Clinton complains about a newspaper leak detailing his sealed deposition in the Jones case.
On March 6, Senate Republican leader Trent Lott defends Starr from criticism but urges Starr quickly end the matter by disclosing whatever evidence he has of any crimes in the Lewinsky case.
On March 8, chief Whitewater figure and former Clinton friend James McDougal dies in a prison hospital. In a sign of party division, Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., contradicts Lott by saying it would be fruitless to censure Clinton if there's not enough evidence to impeach him.
On March 9, Lott, under pressure from fellow Republicans, plays down his suggestion that Starr quickly wrap up his probe of Clinton and moves to blame Clinton for any delays. David Brock, the conservative reporter who conducted the first major expose of Clinton's personal life, admits ideological motivations and concedes his sources exaggerated details.
On March 10, Willey testifies before a grand jury amid signs that she is working with prosecutors probing whether a Democrat urged her to change her story.
On March 11, with Starr pushing more than a month for his testimony, Clinton's lawyers continue to refuse to say whether he will appear before a grand jury.
On March 12, Lindsey makes his third appearance before the Lewinsky grand jury, possibly setting the stage for a legal battle over confidentiality. Jones lawyers are reported to have been searching through Arkansas for five months trying to confirm rumors of more Clinton affairs. White House aides warn of the response if Republicans step up their criticisms of Clinton in the Lewinsky affair.
On March 13, much of the once-secret evidence in the Jones lawsuit breaks into public view as her lawyers file documents accusing Clinton of a pattern of sexual indiscretions and an elaborate cover-up.
On March 14, one of the nation's largest Christian broadcasting networks is said to be canceling a public service program sponsored by the Rutherford Institute because the Virginia-based law center is representing Jones.
On March 15, Willey breaks her public silence, declaring in an emotional nationally televised interview that Clinton lied under oath when he denied making a sexual advance to her four years ago.
On March 16, Clinton declares himself ''mystified and disappointed'' by Willey, whose nationally televised accusation that he forced himself on her when she approached him for a job is considered to hurt his support among women.
On March 17, reports say that a lawyer for Willey was seeking a book deal right around the time she testified under oath that she once had been kissed and groped by Clinton. A Lewinsky college friend, flown in from Japan, testifies all day before Starr's grand jury.
On March 18, House Republican leaders assign a small group of House members to examine Starr's evidence to see if there is any basis for considering impeachment charges. With polls showing little reaction to Willey's claims, her friend Julie Hiatt Steele says in an affidavit that Willey asked her to lie to a magazine reporter about an alleged sexual advance by Clinton that she had never heard about before.
On March 19, Clinton's legal defense team is said to be planning to introduce in court sealed evidence about Jones's past sex life. House Republicans reacted with wariness and skepticism to a leadership plan to name a ''special committee'' to examine Starr's evidence.
On March 20, Bennett counterattacks, accusing Jones attorneys of mounting a ''smear campaign'' and asking a federal judge to throw out testimony about Clinton's alleged sexual escapades. Bennett releases a Willey deposition in which she says Clinton neither threatened her nor offered her favors for sex. Clinton is said to invoke executive privilege in an effort to keep two of his top aides from having to testify fully in the Lewinsky investigation.
On March 22, Lott says Clinton's decision to invoke executive privilege will damage the president's credibility.
On March 24, Clinton, while touring Africa, is questioned during a photo session with Uganda's president about his decision to invoke executive privilege.
On March 25, Starr is said to subpoena records assembled by Jones's lawyers about four other women they tried to question in her sexual harassment lawsuit against Clinton. House Republicans and Democrats begin arguing over how the House should respond to any information Starr reports to Congress on the Lewinsky matter.
On March 27, House Republican Whip Tom DeLay declares that Clinton ''seems to have no shame, no integrity, no dignity.''
On March 28, Jones lawyers release Clinton's responses of Jan. 15 to their series of document requests, contending that two months before he released a stack of letters from Willey to undermine her allegation of an unwelcome sexual advance, he denied to Jones lawyers that he had any such correspondence.
On March 30, Clinton complains in a court filing that the Jones legal team violated a court order and unfairly tarnished him.
On March 31, Jones' attorneys ask an appeals court to delay the trial in her case until they can gather and use evidence related to Lewinsky.
On April 1, a federal judge throws out Jones' sexual harassment lawsuit against Clinton, ruling that her charges even if proved wouldn't constitute an illegal action, abruptly handing him victory in the case that spawned the Lewinsky investigation.
Starr says the dismissal will not affect his probe into whether the president may have committed perjury or tried to obstruct justice in the Jones case. Voters express relief, while Democrats and Republicans differ sharply about whether the judge's decision ends the scandal on the grounds that Clinton's statements on Lewinsky are no longer material.
On April 2, Starr again promises to continue his investigation as White House strategists, jubilant over Clinton's Africa trip and the dismissal of the Jones lawsuit, predict a new phase in his presidency. Attorney General Janet Reno says investigators should look into allegations that businessman David Hale, who helped launch the Whitewater probe, received money from conservative activists while he was a key witness. U.S. booksellers, publishers and librarians vow defiance against Starr's subpoenas.
On April 3, House Speaker Newt Gingrich is said to be reassuring his colleagues that Starr's upcoming report on the Clinton investigation would brighten their political fortunes. Facing at least $1.5 million in unpaid bills from the Jones case, Clinton's legal team is preparing to file suit against two insurance companies that stopped financing the president's defense last year.
On April 4, overwhelming majorities of voters are found to be telling pollsters that with the Jones case dismissed, Starr should move to conclude his investigation of Clinton.
On April 5, Clinton says the Jones dismissal was in the national interest and will let him focus his attention on important issues such as tobacco, education and Social Security.
On April 6, as Starr is reported to be making new plans to work on outside cases, the Supreme Court decides to speed its review of his demand to see notes of conversations between White House deputy counsel Vincent Foster and his lawyer.
On April 7, in a new bolder approach, House Republican leader Richard Armey makes caustic remark that Clinton is ''shameless.''
On April 8, aides say Clinton is delving back into policy priorities, such as saving Social Security, while his lawyers join Lewinsky lawyers in arguing that a variety of hearings on executive privilege and attorney-client privilege should remain closed to the news media.
On April 11, the White House expresses annoyance with Panetta's repeated calls for Clinton to fully explain the Lewinsky matter.
On April 13, Clinton's personal attorney launches a broadside at Starr, charging that he cannot ''credibly'' probe allegations that a key Whitewater witness was paid by conservatives.
On April 14, the Justice Department says it has decided to fight efforts to compel testimony from Secret Service officers who protect Clinton, setting up a long court battle over the matter.
On April 16, Jones, barely able to compose herself, announces she will appeal the decision throwing out her case. Starr says he's scrapped plans for taking a job at Pepperdine University, saying the end was not yet in sight for his investigation.
On April 18, an Arkansas woman says Hale received financial support from her former boyfriend and other conservatives who plotted to discredit Clinton. Hale denies it.
On April 19, an attorney for Tripp complains that she has been unfairly labeled a ''betrayer'' and now fears being fired from her job at the Pentagon.
On April 20, retired Secret Service officer Lewis Fox says Clinton told him and an agent on duty in the fall of 1995 to ''close the door'' after Lewinsky walked in because ''she'll be in here for a while.''
On April 21, House Government Reform and Oversight Committee Chairman Dan Burton, R-Ind., describes Clinton as a ''scumbag.'' The Justice Department is said to contend in a sealed brief that the Secret Service should be allowed to invoke legal privilege to block testimony by officers about Clinton's ties to Lewinsky.
On April 22, the National Organization for Women announces it will take no position on the Jones appeal, citing overwhelming opposition from its members nationwide. Former president George Bush comes out in opposition to forcing Secret Service agents to testify about whether they saw Clinton with Lewinsky.
On April 23, Susan McDougal again refuses to testify about her business dealings with Clinton before the Whitewater grand jury in Little Rock, setting the stage for a possible criminal contempt indictment. The House investigation of campaign fund-raising abuses grinds to a halt amid Democratic threats to seek disciplinary action against Burton for his scumbag comment. Congressional investigators say Webster Hubbell received more than $700,000, most of it from friends of Clinton and Democratic Party supporters, when he was under pressure from to provide information about Clinton in the Whitewater investigation.
On April 25, Starr and his deputies question Hillary Clinton about Whitewater for nearly five hours at the White House as the grand jury in Little Rock nears disbandment.
On April 28, Gingrich steps up his criticism of White House scandals ranging from campaign finance to elements of independent counsel Starr's investigation of Whitewater. Starr decides to argue a major appeals court case in May for a private client, rejecting criticism that he should devote himself entirely to the Clinton investigation.
On April 29, a judge in the Lewinsky investigation is said to have determined that Lewinsky has no enforceable immunity agreement with Starr.
On April 30, Clinton holds a news conference, dismissing allegations about his character as the work of organized political foes, but saying that years of attacks and investigations have diminished the personal respect he commands from the public. A new set of tax evasion and fraud charges is brought against Hubbell. A judge declares a mistrial in the Arkansas case against Hale, saying the Whitewater figure's prolonged hospital stay was imposing an unreasonable burden on jurors.
On May 1, Starr implies his legal battle with Clinton over executive privilege is similar to the case Nixon took to the Supreme Court in 1974 at the height of Watergate and lost.
On May 3, the White House joins House Democrats in a furious assault on Burton, accusing him of doctoring transcripts of Hubbell's prison phone calls to exclude declarations of innocence about matters still under investigation.
On May 4, Susan McDougal, refusing to testify before a grand jury about Clinton's financial dealings, gets indicted on charges of criminal contempt and obstruction. The White House is said to have refused at least five requests by Starr in the previous year for Clinton to encourage her to testify. A tabloid-style television program airs charges by a former flight attendant that Clinton groped her on a 1992 campaign flight.
On May 5, a federal judge is said to have ruled that Clinton cannot use the power of his office to block prosecutors from questioning senior aides. A federal appeals court rules that reporters do not have a First Amendment right to attend court hearings on issues arising from the Lewinsky case. House Republican leaders mull the future of Burton's campaign finance inquiry.
On May 6, Burton apologizes to Republican colleagues for the furor over his release of tapes of Hubbell's prison conversations, and his top investigator resigns. Clinton rejects comparisons between his executive privilege claim in the Lewinsky matter and Nixon during Watergate. The husband-and-wife legal team of Victoria Toensing and Joe diGenova say they have ended their television deal after criticism that it conflicted with their work as part-time House investigators.
On May 7, Gingrich continues his attacks on Clinton during an address to the New Hampshire state Legislature, prompting a walkout by about two dozen Democratic lawmakers. DeLay accuses Clinton of taking ''indecent liberties with the concept of executive privilege'' and says he will introduce a bill intended to impose new limits on the power.
On May 8, Hubbell, his wife and two longtime associates plead not guilty to federal tax evasion and fraud charges.
On May 9, Gingrich accuses Clinton and the Democrats of stonewalling and obstruction, energizing hard-core Republican activists but apparently alienating a majority of Americans.
On May 10, two congressional Democrats escalate their bid to force Burton out of the chairmanship of the House committee investigating 1996 campaign fund-raising.
On May 13, the head of the Secret Service privately warns prosecutors that forcing his agents to testify in the Lewinsky case will have a devastating effect on their ability to do their job and inevitably result in the death of a president. An immunity vote for key witnesses fails in Burton's committee, signaling an end to its fund-raising investigation.
On May 14, Starr warns that allowing the Secret Service to refuse to testify before a grand jury would turn the agency into an imperious ''Praetorian guard'' around the president, leaving him free to engage in criminal activity. Susan McDougal's lawyer says she'll tell a criminal jury what she wouldn't say to 23 grand jurors behind closed doors: whether Clinton testified honestly at her 1996 Whitewater trial.
On May 15, a federal appeals court rejects Lewinsky's claim that she has an immunity deal with prosecutors, meaning she must testify about her relationship with Clinton or face indictment.
On May 16, Clinton lawyer accuses Starr of launching an ''energetic and shameless'' public relations attack aimed at blaming the White House for improper leaks, while Starr's spokesman says he's just responding to ''misinformation.''
On May 18, a posthumous memoir by James McDougal accuses Clinton of lying under oath during McDougal's 1996 bank fraud trial and says Clinton agreed to pardon Susan McDougal.
On May 19, it is learned that Clinton the previous week refused a request by Starr to order Secret Service employees to testify in the Lewinsky case, saying it would damage the traditional confidentiality between presidents and their protectors.
On May 21, the House demands that Clinton make public all legal papers involved in his reported bid to invoke executive privilege in the Lewinsky case.
On May 22, a federal judge orders Secret Service officers to reveal what they know about Clinton's relationship with Lewinsky.
On May 23, Lewinsky's backers order an end to public statements by Ginsburg, feeling his comments were becoming unhelpful.
On May 24, the Secret Service says the federal judge's ruling on the Secret Service might prompt a foreign government leader to reconsider how he interacts with the agency's bodyguards.
On May 26, Jones's past and present lawyers are said to be battling over legal fees.
On May 27, a federal judge rejects Clinton's bid for executive privilege for his aides in the Lewinsky case, deciding his right to confidentiality is outweighed by secret grand jury evidence presented to her by Starr. Ginsburg sends Clinton an open letter urging him to fire Starr.
On May 28, Starr asks the Supreme Court for an expedited ruling in his battle with Clinton over executive privilege. A federal judge orders Kramerbooks to provide Starr with information about purchases by Lewinsky. Starr's investigators take fingerprints and handwriting samples from Lewinsky in Los Angeles, and bring witnesses before grand juries in Washington and, for the first time, in Alexandria, Va.
On June 1, Clinton abandons his claim of executive privilege, but vows to keep fighting Starr's attempts to question aides by instead pressing a parallel assertion of attorney-client privilege.
On June 2, Starr asks the Supreme Court to decide on a rare emergency basis whether to compel testimony from White House lawyers and Secret Service officers. Lewinsky unceremoniously replaces Ginsburg with a pair of Washington's top white-collar criminal defense attorneys, Jacob Stein and Plato Cacheris. A trial date of Oct. 5 is set for Hubbell, his wife and two longtime associates.
On June 4, the Supreme Court rejects Starr's plea to issue a fast- track decision on Secret Service testimony.
On June 6, an insurance company agrees to resume paying Clinton's legal bills in the Jones case since all aspects of the lawsuit are to be appealed.
On June 8, lawyer for late White House counsel Vincent Foster argues before the Supreme Court that notes from his conversations with his client should remain private.
On June 9, Lewinsky's new lawyers open negotiations with Starr, seeking a deal that would protect her from prosecution if she tells her story.
On June 11, new documents show the Jones legal team once considered selling her description of Clinton's ''distinguishing characteristics.'' Julie Hiatt Steele testifies before Starr's grand jury.
On June 13, Starr admits in a new magazine interview that he and his top deputy have often talked to reporters off the record about his investigation of Clinton's relationship with Lewinsky.
On June 15, as Clinton lawyers seek legal action, Starr says the magazine interview ''created a serious misimpression'' that he illegally leaked information. A former Secret Service agent asks an appeals court to block Starr from questioning current officers.
On June 16, Starr says he did not know Tripp provided information about Lewinsky to Jones lawyers until days after they questioned Clinton about Lewinsky.
On June 17, the Justice Department argues that a federal judge improperly disregarded testimony about the dangers to future presidents when she ordered Secret Service officers to testify.
On June 19, Starr argues in a legal brief that predictions of a presidential assassination are overblown and cannot justify a court preventing Secret Service officers from testifying.
On June 20, Lewinsky's new legal team offers to have her testify that she had sexual contact with Clinton, but Starr wants her to plead guilty to some offense as part of any agreement. Magazine article says secret tapes of Lewinsky telephone calls make her seem obsessed with Clinton.
On June 22, Lewinsky agrees to provide Starr with information about her book purchases, resolving a First Amendment dispute between Starr and the bookstore.
On June 23, prosecutors question White House deputy chief of staff John Podesta before a grand jury for the third and final time about his involvement in helping Lewinsky find a job at the United Nations.
On June 25, the Supreme Court rules that lawyers cannot be forced to reveal their clients' confidences even after the client dies, rejecting Starr's effort to obtain notes made by the lawyer for Foster shortly before Foster committed suicide. A federal judge in Little Rock orders Susan McDougal released from prison for medical reasons just four months into a two-year sentence for bank fraud.
On June 26, a federal judge challenges the way Starr built his pending tax-evasion case against Hubbell, saying that some of the key documents may have been obtained improperly. On June 30, Tripp makes her long-anticipated debut before the grand jury, having said she is eager to dispel claims that she manipulated an unwitting Lewinsky to entrap Clinton.
A federal judge in Little Rock lifts the gag order she had imposed in the Jones case, allowing public disclosure of documents and other still-secret information.
On July 1, a federal judge dismisses the tax evasion indictment of Hubbell, ruling that Starr exceeded his authority in going after Hubbell and that the case was improperly based on documents the former Justice Department official turned over under a grant of immunity.
On July 5, Starr decides against giving Congress an interim report on his investigation of Clinton, regardless of whether the probe is finished before lawmakers go home to campaign in the fall. A former White House correspondent says she was ''quite willing to let myself be ravished'' by Clinton after she felt he had admired her legs on Air Force One.
On July 7, a federal appeals court rejects efforts by the Secret Service to prevent its officers from testifying in the Lewinsky investigation, dismissing as ''vague fears'' the agency's claims that such testimony could endanger the life of the president. A Maryland prosecutor begins a grand jury probe into whether Tripp's secret tape-recordings of Lewinsky violated the state's wiretap law.
On July 12, Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch says that any refusal by Clinton to testify about his ties with Lewinsky could constitute an impeachable offense.
On July 13, despite doubts about the chance of success, the Justice Department decides to appeal a ruling that Secret Service officers must testify in the Lewinsky case.
On July 14, Starr subpoenas the head of Clinton's security detail and six more Secret Service officers to testify about what they know of Clinton's relationship with Lewinsky.
On July 15, a federal judge refuses to prevent the head of Clinton's security detail from being forced to testify about Lewinsky.
On July 16, a federal appeals court refuses to block Secret Service testimony, and the Justice Department makes a last-ditch appeal to the Supreme Court. NBC reports in the morning that Starr is investigating whether Secret Service agents ''facilitated'' Clinton's meetings with Lewinsky, then backs off by evening.
On July 17, two uniformed Secret Service officers and a retired plainclothes agent are questioned before the grand jury, marking the first time that active White House guards have testified in a criminal investigation of the president they protect.
On July 22, Currie makes her final grand jury appearance. Jones lawyers drop their opposition to lifting the gag order in her now-dismissed case and ask a federal judge to give her unfettered access to the videotape of Clinton's deposition.
On July 23, two grand juries take testimony from a parade of witnesses, including the head of Clinton's security detail, at least four other Secret Service officers and former White House deputy chief of staff Harold Ickes.
On July 24, under threat of subpoena for his testimony, Clinton's lawyers negotiate with Starr on how he can ''provide information'' to the grand jury.
On July 25, Starr serves a subpoena on Clinton that requires his testimony in the Lewinsky investigation, marking the first time a sitting president has been summoned to appear before a grand jury.
On Oct. 3, transcripts show Currie was intent before the grand jury on remaining a faithful personal secretary unwilling to undermine Clinton.
On Oct. 5, the House Judiciary Committee votes along party lines to open a formal inquiry into whether Clinton should be impeached.
On Oct. 8, the House, with the backing of 31 Democrats, votes to launch the first presidential impeachment inquiry since Watergate.
On Oct. 11, polls show public support for Congress and Republican congressional candidates is falling further.
On Oct. 13, Hyde says he may try to ''narrow'' the impeachment inquiry, possibly dropping some of the 15 potential charges announced by the committee's chief investigator.
On Oct. 14, as House Republicans move to narrow the inquiry, Clinton allies try to widen it to include study of ties between Starr and the Jones team.
On Oct. 15, Clinton wins major Republican concessions on the federal budget, demonstrating his continued power both domestically and internationally.
On Oct. 16, reports say that Starr did not admit potential conflicts of interest in January when he requested Justice Department permission to expand his mandate to cover the Lewinsky matter.
On Oct. 20, lawyers for Jones and Clinton argue before an appeals court in Minnesota over Jones's bid to reinstate her lawsuit.
On Oct. 27, the Republican Party, at the urging of Gingrich, opens a $10 million advertising assault on Democrats in the final week before Election Day that for the first time directly attacks Clinton for his conduct in the Lewinsky affair.
On Oct. 28, Clinton appeals to voters to reject the Republican ad message and judge Democrat candidates by their policies.
On Oct. 30, the judge presiding over the Lewinsky grand jury is said to have cited 24 news stories as possible violations of secrecy rules by Starr's office in ordering a special leak investigation.
On Nov. 3, in results that catch most commentators by surprise, Democrats become the first party in more than 150 years to gain seats in Congress in the sixth year of their party's presidency, picking up five seats in the House and holding their ground in the Senate.
On Nov. 4, House Republican leaders, chastened by the election results, begin moving to bring a quick end to the impeachment proceedings against Clinton. Gingrich blames news media for putting heavy emphasis on the Lewinsky case.
On Nov. 5, the House Judiciary Committee submits 81 questions to Clinton, including asking him if he would admit that he gave ''false and misleading testimony under oath'' about his relationship with Lewinsky.
On Nov. 6, Gingrich announces he will step down as speaker and resign from Congress. More than 400 legal scholars issue a report saying the case against Clinton falls short of the standard for impeachment.
On Nov. 11, Rep. Bob Livingston, set to be the next House speaker, talks tough about Clinton's behavior while privately suggesting he has little interest in pursuing impeachment.
On Nov. 13, Clinton reaches an out-of-court settlement with Jones, agreeing to pay her $850,000 to drop her sexual harassment lawsuit.
On Nov. 19, Starr testifies before the House Judiciary Committee, vigorously defending his investigation into Clinton before a panel torn by partisan divisions.
On Nov. 22, Livingston says he wants the full House to vote on impeaching Clinton even if it becomes clear that an impeachment vote would not command a majority.
On Nov. 23, Susan McDougal is acquitted of fraud charges unrelated to the Whitewater investigation.
On Nov. 25, an aide says Starr's office will work for at least two more years on continuing investigations and may consider indicting Clinton after he leaves office.
On Nov. 27, Clinton, responding to the 81 questions posed by the House Judiciary Committee, asserts again that he did not lie under oath but acknowledges doing wrong and misleading friends, advisers and the American people.
On Nov. 30, the House Judiciary Committee announces plans to launch an investigation into alleged fund-raising abuses by Clinton's 1996 re-election campaign.
On Dec. 3, under criticism from Democrats, Judiciary Committee Republicans back off and close their new investigation into Clinton's campaign fund-raising.
On Dec. 4, the White House signals that Clinton might be willing to pay a fine as part of a censure deal to avoid impeachment, while his lawyers demand the House Judiciary Committee postpone scheduled votes the following week to give them more time to prepare their defense.
On Dec. 5, Republicans say Clinton's arrogance and lack of repentance have made it far more likely that the House will approve at least one article of impeachment.
On Dec. 10, the House Judiciary Committee opens formal debate on whether to impeach Clinton after hearing a multimedia legal presentation featuring the words of the scandal's central players.
On Dec. 11, the House Judiciary Committee votes to recommend the impeachment of Clinton just nine minutes after he makes a hastily arranged appearance in the Rose Garden to declare himself ''profoundly sorry'' and ready to accept censure.
On Dec. 12, the House Judiciary Committee completes its work by approving a fourth and final article of impeachment against Clinton, and refusing to accept a censure motion.
On Dec. 13, House Republican leaders call on Clinton to step down to spare the country the turmoil of impeachment.
On Dec. 14, Clinton and Gore publicly appeal to House Republican leaders to consider any ''compromise'' to head off the impeachment vote.
On Dec. 16, with Republicans ready to impeach him in a floor vote, Clinton orders a massive military strike against Iraq, prompting a delay in the process.
On Dec. 17, House Republicans decide to open debate on impeachment even as U.S. forces continue to attack Iraq. With a magazine article planned, Livingston admits his own past extramarital affairs.
On Dec. 19, the House of Representatives impeaches the president for only the second time in U.S. history, charging Clinton with lying under oath and obstructing justice. Livingston resigns and urges Clinton to follow suit.
On Dec. 21, Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., suggests compromise on impeachment but warns the White House not to get involved in the idea.
On Dec. 29, the House-appointed prosecutors for the impeachment trial promise a full-scale effort during the Senate trial that could include public testimony from major witnesses.
On Dec. 30, leaders of conservative groups as well as House Republican prosecutors resist a plan for an expedited impeachment trial that is being circulated by Lott.
On Jan. 4, 1999, Clinton's defense team is said to have decided it effectively ceded too much of the factual battleground during the House proceedings and will provide senators a more concentrated attack on the evidence.
On Jan. 7, the Senate opens its first impeachment trial in 131 years, with House prosecutors planning to call as many as 10 witnesses, including Lewinsky, despite uncertainty about whether the Senate will allow them.
On Jan. 8, the Senate breaks a major partisan impasse, reaching a unanimous agreement to begin impeachment proceedings the following week while postponing the key decision of whether to call witnesses.
On Jan. 13, on the eve of opening arguments in his Senate impeachment trial, Clinton argues again that his conduct does not justify throwing him out of office.
On Jan. 14, House Republican prosecutors open their case against Clinton, urging senators to vindicate ''the rule of law'' by demonstrating that ''the president of the United States has no license to lie under oath.''
On Jan. 19, Clinton delivers his annual State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress, only hours after his lawyers open their defense presentation in the Senate by calling the House case the product of ''spider webs'' of conjecture and ''prosecutorial fudgemaking.''
On Jan. 21, as the White House wraps up its defense presentation, several Senate Republicans say they are now leaning against calling witnesses.
On Jan. 22, Starr steps into the Senate trial, going to federal court to try to force Lewinsky to talk with the House Republican prosecutors.
On Jan. 23, a federal judge acting at Starr's request orders Lewinsky to talk with House prosecutors, further polarizing the Senate.
On Jan. 24, House prosecutors interview Lewinsky even as several key Republican senators signal their opposition and urge a quick end to the proceedings.
On Jan. 25, the Senate retreats behind closed doors in an anxious search for a resolution to the impeachment trial.
On Jan. 26, House Republican prosecutors propose a sharply scaled- back witness list, asking to subpoena just Lewinsky and two Clinton advisers, while also asking the Senate to invite Clinton himself to answer questions under oath.
On Jan. 28, the Senate approves a plan intended to end Clinton's impeachment trial by Feb. 12, and votes along party lines against barring Lewinsky testimony.
On Jan. 29, the Senate delivers subpoenas to Lewinsky and two other witnesses.
On Feb. 1, Lewinsky testifies for more than four hours behind closed doors during a videotaped deposition as part of the impeachment trial, and in the process gets an apology from Clinton through his legal team.
On Feb. 2, a House prosecutor questions Jordan for nearly three hours for his videotaped testimony.
On Feb. 4, the Senate rejects live testimony at its trial and moves against the proposal by some Republicans for a ''findings of fact'' conclusion that would cite presidential misconduct while leaving Clinton in office.
On Feb. 5, with the impeachment trial drawing to a close, Senate Democrats escalate efforts for a censure alternative.
On Feb. 9, the Senate goes behind closed doors for final deliberations, with little doubt it will not vote to remove Clinton.
On Feb. 12, the Senate votes to acquit Clinton of charges of both perjury and obstruction of justice.
