Barrett Report
Encyclopedia
The Barrett Report is a 400 page report created by special prosecutor
David Barrett. Initially tasked with investigating allegations of lying to the FBI against Henry Cisneros
, Secretary of the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development under U.S. President Bill Clinton
, the investigation eventually delved into allegations that President Clinton had used the U.S. Department of Justice and the Internal Revenue Service
as political tools against American citizens.
Before the release of the report, three Democrat U.S. Senators, John Kerry
, Dick Durbin and Byron Dorgan
, forced the redaction
of certain pages by attaching a rider
to an unrelated appropriations bill.
Cisneros, a former San Antonio
mayor, eventually pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor
charge of lying to the FBI. He paid a US$10,000 fine and was pardon
ed by President Clinton on Clinton's final day in office.
Special prosecutor
A special prosecutor generally is a lawyer from outside the government appointed by an attorney general or, in the United States, by Congress to investigate a government official for misconduct while in office. A reasoning for such an appointment is that the governmental branch or agency may have...
David Barrett. Initially tasked with investigating allegations of lying to the FBI against Henry Cisneros
Henry Cisneros
Henry Gabriel Cisneros is a politician and businessman. A Democrat, Cisneros served as the 10th Secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the administration of President Bill Clinton from 1993 to 1997...
, Secretary of the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development under U.S. President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
, the investigation eventually delved into allegations that President Clinton had used the U.S. Department of Justice and the Internal Revenue Service
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service is the revenue service of the United States federal government. The agency is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury, and is under the immediate direction of the Commissioner of Internal Revenue...
as political tools against American citizens.
Before the release of the report, three Democrat U.S. Senators, John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
, Dick Durbin and Byron Dorgan
Byron Dorgan
Byron Leslie Dorgan is a former United States Senator from North Dakota and is now a senior policy advisor for a Washington, DC law firm. He is a member of the North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party, the North Dakota affiliate of the Democratic Party. In the Senate, he was Chairman of the Democratic...
, forced the redaction
Redaction
Redaction is a form of editing in which multiple source texts are combined and subjected to minor alteration to make them into a single work. Often this is a method of collecting a series of writings on a similar theme and creating a definitive and coherent work...
of certain pages by attaching a rider
Rider (legislation)
In legislative procedure, a rider is an additional provision added to a bill or other measure under the consideration by a legislature, having little connection with the subject matter of the bill. Riders are usually created as a tactic to pass a controversial provision that would not pass as its...
to an unrelated appropriations bill.
Cisneros, a former San Antonio
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
mayor, eventually pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor is a "lesser" criminal act in many common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished much less severely than felonies, but theoretically more so than administrative infractions and regulatory offences...
charge of lying to the FBI. He paid a US$10,000 fine and was pardon
Pardon
Clemency means the forgiveness of a crime or the cancellation of the penalty associated with it. It is a general concept that encompasses several related procedures: pardoning, commutation, remission and reprieves...
ed by President Clinton on Clinton's final day in office.