STONEWALLING TAKES ON NEW DIMENSIONS

What if, during the 1973-74 period, Watergate figures E. Howard Hunt, Gordon Liddy, James McCord, Charles Colson, John Dean and Co. had fled the country, taken the Fifth Amendment or otherwise simply refused to cooperate with investigators of the scandal that ultimately toppled a presidency? Would history have taken a different turn? Is it possible to so completely thwart a lawful investigation into alleged wrongdoing that officials at this level can evade the proper reach of the law?

These and other questions are raised by news that no fewer than 70 witnesses are refusing to cooperate with the House probe into the countless money scandals swirling around the Clinton White house. Here is the latest count: 46 witnesses have asserted the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, a dozen have left the country and another dozen foreigners have refused interviews.

"Hiding out in China or behind the Fifth Amendment has become an attractive option for many individuals who previously were close friends or appointees of the president's," said committee chairman Dan Burton, R-Ind. Indeed, it is a scandal that in the case of the dozen who have fled to China to evade investigators, the Clinton State Department hasn't pressed for their extradition to this country. President Clinton had time to meet with the Chinese premier upon his visit to America last fall, but apparently didn't press the issue, or at least not so anyone would know.

Chairman Burton will push for immunity from prosecution for key witnesses who, he and his investigators believe, can really help him learn more from higher-ups. This effort will be complicated by the fact that majority committee Republicans number 24 and minority Democrats 19, while a two-thirds vote is required for grants of immunity. If Democrats maintain their unflinching opposition, immunity will never be granted.

Given facts such as these, it is clear that we are staring at the possibility that history will record the Clinton money scandals as an elaborate series of successful cover-ups. That's some presidential legacy.