MSNBC, IOP Host Town Hall Meeting

A cross-section of "real Americans" from the Boston area gathered at the Institute of Politics (IOP) Wednesday night to debate the current scandal surrounding President Clinton on live television.

The two-hour discussion, which covered issues ranging from whether the President should be impeached to the definition of "sexual relations" was aired live from the Arco Forum on MSNBC.

Some 40 members of the Boston community were selected to participate in the town hall-type meeting.

One Harvard student, Kamil E. Redmond '00, a Crimson editor, was included in this group. She was not available for comment last night.

An expert panel, which included Frankfurter Professor of Law Alan M. Dershowitz, IOP Director Alan K. Simpson and Weld Professor of Law Charles R. Nesson, was provided additional input.

From the start, it was clear the audience members were divided on whether the President should resign.

"We trusted him to lead us morally, to lead the country, and he let us down. He lied," said a retired police officer who called for Clinton to step down.

But others were less convinced.

"It might be right to impeach him, but on the second year of a second term, I don't know if it's wise," said another member of the audience.

Dershowitz expressed doubts that there were substantial legal grounds to impeach, arguing that the charge of perjury wasn't deemed an impeachable offense when President Nixon was found to have lied on his tax returns.

The discussion at one point even revolved around the interpretation of "sexual relations."

"In Christian tradition, the term 'sexual relations' is reserved for sexual intercourse," said one audience member, a theologist at Boston College.

"I'm inclined to believe that he had a genuine base in his conscious that he didn't have sexual relationship."

Others, however, questioned the distinction.

"Have you seen the way they're slicing the salami?" asked Simpson, a former Republican senator from Wyoming. "You'll need an electron microscope to discern the slices here."

Nesson agreed.

"Regardless of legal issues, credibility is the basic issue," he said. "When he failed to tell the truth under oath, and didn't come forward when asked to come forward, it poses an issue of credibility."

The event was moderated by Jack Ford and Jodi Applegate, co-anchors for MSNBC's "Weekend Today."