WASHINGTON — On the eve of the House debate to impeach President Clinton on charges stemming from a sexual affair, Speaker-elect Bob Livingston stunned his Republican colleagues Thursday night by admitting that he had committed adulterous "indiscretions" during his own marriage.
Livingston delivered the news at a closed-door session called to deal with strategy for today's impeachment debate. According to sources, the Louisiana Republican decided to make the revelation because a publication--apparently Hustler magazine--was preparing a story on his affairs.
Livingston read a statement confessing his indiscretions and then told his fellow Republicans: "My fate is in your hands."
The GOP House members rose to offer an ovation, and several left the room to tell reporters that Livingston had handled the matter with integrity and deserves to become speaker when the next Congress convenes in early January.
The Republicans willing to talk to reporters insisted that Livingston's conduct had nothing to do with the allegations against Clinton--perjury, obstruction of justice and abuse of power--and will not affect their support for impeaching the president.
"He never lied under oath," Rep. James E. Rogan (R-Glendale) said of Livingston.
Still, Livingston's revelation clearly added an unpredictable element to the impeachment debate.
Most Democrats had dispersed from Capitol Hill when the news broke Thursday night, muting initial reaction. But many Clinton allies repeatedly have dismissed the impeachment case against him as, at its core, a matter of private misconduct and they may point to the Republican reaction to Livingston's affairs as hypocritical.
Rep. William D. Delahunt (D-Mass.) predicted Livingston's disclosure will produce "turmoil and chaos on the floor of the House" during the impeachment debate.
The revelation also points to the changing political climate in U.S. politics, in which the wall between lawmakers' public and private lives continues to erode.
Three other House Republicans--including House Judiciary Committee Chairman Henry J. Hyde of Illinois--have been forced to admit past sexual misdeeds since Congress began considering impeaching Clinton because of his efforts to conceal his affair with former White House intern Monica S. Lewinsky.
Following Livingston's admission, many House Republicans emerged from their meeting with grim countenances and refused to utter a word to shouting reporters. Rep. Thomas J. Bliley (R-Va.) said: "Nothing in this Congress shocks me anymore."
