HEARING SUMMARY PREPARED BY MAJORITY STAFF
COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS
MORNING SESSION, SEPTEMBER 18, 1997

Witnesses: Roger Tamraz, Jack Carter, Kyle Simpson

• Businessman Roger Tamraz met with DNC Chairman Don Fowler in the summer of 1995 concerning his making a donation, and Tamraz offered to contribute $300,000 to the DNC



• Tamraz then attended two dinners with the President and Vice President



• Tamraz was thereafter disinvited from a breakfast with Vice President Gore by the White House and met with Fowler the next day



• Fowler said there was a need for more information on Tamraz and Fowler said he could call Bob * * * at the CIA



• On October 19, 1995, Tamraz contributed $75,000 to the DNC, the same day records show Fowler called Bob * * * at the CIA



• Tamraz was then invited to and attended a holiday dinner at the White House in December 1995



• Tamraz attended another White House function on March 27, 1996, at which he spoke to President Clinton about his pipeline project



• Tamraz told President Clinton that if someone from the Administration wanted to meet with him to discuss the pipeline project, Tamraz was available to meet



• Tamraz also discussed his pipeline with senior presidential advisor Mack McLarty



• On April 1, 1996, Tamraz attended a coffee with McLarty and talked with McLarty again about the pipeline project



• Energy Department official John Carter was called by senior Energy Department official Kyle Simpson, who told Carter that McLarty had asked what was known about Tamraz and whether he should meet with President Clinton



• Carter said President Clinton should not meet with Tamraz



• Carter knew Tamraz was contemplating contributions



• In his deposition, Carter said Simpson probably told him that Tamraz had made a $200,000 contribution to the DNC and planned to make an additional contribution

• Carter then called NSC staffer Sheila Heslin and told her that McLarty had called wanting information on Tamraz and advice on whether Tamraz should be allowed to meet with President Clinton



• Carter shared with Heslin information about Tamraz's contributions to the DNC



• Carter also mentioned to Heslin that Tamraz might make further contributions to the DNC and indicated that Tamraz wanted a meeting with President Clinton



• Even though it violates federal law to reveal the last name of Bob * * * at the CIA, Tamraz gave Fowler Bob's complete name for Fowler to call as a source of information on Tamraz



• The goal was use Fowler to help get information from Bob * * * of the CIA to Heslin



• Tamraz does not think he would have had access to the President without his contributions of hundreds of thousand of dollars to the DNC



• Carter thinks Simpson told him that Tamraz had made $200,000 in contributions, but Simpson denies ever telling that to Carter

---

---