Reagan’s counsellor cleared

Press, 22 September 1984, Page 10

Reagan’s counsellor cleared

NZPA-Reuter Washington A special prosecutor cleared yesterday the White House counsellor, Edwin Meese, President Ronald Reagan’s nominee for Attor-ney-General, of allegations of criminal conduct in his financial dealings.

Publication of the prosecutor’s report ended a five-month investigation into accusations that Mr Meese had arranged Government jobs for friends in return for loans to himself or his wife. “We find no basis with respect to the 11 allegations for the bringing of a prosecution against Mr Meese for the violations of the Federal criminal statute,” it said.

The Senate, worried that Mr Meese’s nomination for Attorney-General would become a political issue during the campaign for the election in November, has said it will take no action on it for the rest of the year.

Mr Reagan has supported Mr Meese, a friend of longstanding, in spite of criticism by Democrats that the counsellor had used poor judgment in his financial dealings and that he should not become the country’s most senior law enforcement official. Mr Meese denied that there were links between the loans and later Federal appointments.

Among the allegations against him were: ® Failure to disclose a ?U515,000 interest-free loan to his wife in 1981 from Edwin Thomas, later appointed to a Federal post, and failure to disclose in his 1982 financial statement the stock bought with the money. © Receiving two loans totalling ?U560,000 from a tax accountant, John Mckean, later appointed to a United States Postal Service board. © Borrowing SUS4OO,OOO from the Great American Federal Savings Bank in San Diego, which took no action when he fell 15 months behind with repay-

ments and lent him more money so he could catch up. After the loan was repaid the bank’s chairman, Gordon Luce, was given a United States post at the United Nations and its executive vice-president, Edwin Gray, was made chairman of the Federal Home Loan Bank Board.

• Arrangements of the sale of his California house by Thomas Barrack, who lent the buyer SUS7O,OOO for a down payment and later forgave the loan. Mr Barrack was later given an Interior Department post.

© Keeping cufflinks given to him by the South Korean Government.