So where was this thesis during Robert Fiske and Ken Starr? Not saying it’s wrong. But we fight for special counsels and their powers when we’re out of power and fight against them when we are.
Fiske and Starr were authorized by Congress, but the independent counsel law expired in 1999, so today is much different.
But Levin is really stretching here, as there is long practice of the DOJ appointing ‘task forces’ that include outside attorneys to broadly investigate certain legal areas.
Ken Starr’s investigation was started because there was evidence of a crime.
The massive fraud in the White Water financing scam.
When the Lewinski mess arose Janet Reno dumped in on the SC at the time for White Water, Ken Starr.
They started with crimes.