Fellow Interns Say Lewinsky Behaved Normally During White House Stay

While the national media is flooded with reports of the most recent sex scandal to plague President Clinton, Harvard students who interned at the White House say they observed nothing out of the ordinary in 21-year-old Monica Lewinsky's relationship with the President.

Allegations that Clinton had an affair with the former intern are the result of 17 cassette tapes of conversations between Lewinsky and another former White House aide, Linda Tripp, during which Lewinsky discusses the alleged sexual relationship.

Harvard students interning at the White House at the same time as Lewinsky said they observed no indications of a sexual relationship with the President.

Jessica D. Luterman '98, an intern in the personnel security department at the White House, said she knew Lewinsky through a friend.

"I sort of knew her," Luterman said "She was a friend of a friend."

According to Luterman, "[Lewinsky] seemed nice and was definitely psyched to be in D.C."

Another former intern, who wished to remain anonymous, characterized Lewinsky in the same light. "She was friendly overall and always nice enough to say hello when we passed in hallways," the source said.

Neither Luterman nor the anonymous source observed Lewinsky around the President any more than other interns.

"She wasn't around the President more than anyone else--interns take every opportunity to meet the President," Luterman said.

After working in the White House since the summer of 1995, Lewinsky obtained a job in April 1996 working for Kenneth Bacon, the lead spokesperson at the Pentagon.

According to Time Magazine, longtime Clinton friend, Vernon Jordan, admitted he "guided" Lewinsky to private sector jobs at American Express and Revlon.

However, many former interns said getting White House help in obtaining government jobs is not out of the ordinary.

"My supervisors have been very helpful in finding employment opportunities for me," said Daniel M. Loss '00, a former intern.

"One of my bosses was a former intern," Luterman said. "Pretty much anyone can get some type of a job if you put some time into the campaign."

The scandal has also resulted in some speculation that Clinton gave gifts to Lewinsky.

While none of the interns who spoke to The Crimson said ever received any gifts from the President or knew of any interns who had, some acknowledged that such actions are not highly unlikely.

"He [President Clinton] values the work that people do for him and I wouldn't be surprised if he would give gifts to people who work for him in order to show he appreciates their service," Loss said. Most interns say, however, that few internsreally get a chance to speak with Clinton.

"I actually saw the President at departures andstate visits, there were definitely a lot ofevents where we could see him," Luterman said. "Inever just saw him walking around the complex."

Loss, an intern in the office of the Chief ofStaff, only saw the President on three occasionslast summer: twice during intern photo shoots andonce while walking through a hall in the WestWing.

On the other hand, according to the anonymoussource, "there are a lot of interns who come [tothe White House] because of their parents had someties to the President." As a result of suchconnections, some interns had better access to thePresident than others.

"I think if you are the daughter of a donor,you're in a whole separate group," Luterman said.

None of the former interns who spoke to TheCrimson had heard any rumors of a sexualrelationship between Clinton and Lewinsky while atthe White House.

Despite the recent scandal, Loss still stronglyrecommends interning at the White House Intern.

"I'd highly recommend the experience," he said."It's a great educational opportunity and a greatchance to watch the government up close."

--Gregory S. Krauss contributed to thereporting of this story.

"I actually saw the President at departures andstate visits, there were definitely a lot ofevents where we could see him," Luterman said. "Inever just saw him walking around the complex."

Loss, an intern in the office of the Chief ofStaff, only saw the President on three occasionslast summer: twice during intern photo shoots andonce while walking through a hall in the WestWing.

On the other hand, according to the anonymoussource, "there are a lot of interns who come [tothe White House] because of their parents had someties to the President." As a result of suchconnections, some interns had better access to thePresident than others.

"I think if you are the daughter of a donor,you're in a whole separate group," Luterman said.

None of the former interns who spoke to TheCrimson had heard any rumors of a sexualrelationship between Clinton and Lewinsky while atthe White House.

Despite the recent scandal, Loss still stronglyrecommends interning at the White House Intern.

"I'd highly recommend the experience," he said."It's a great educational opportunity and a greatchance to watch the government up close."

--Gregory S. Krauss contributed to thereporting of this story.