posted March 09, 2005 12:02 PM            

Tuesday, March 8, 2005 6:35 a.m. EST
Hillary: Women Leaders Less Corrupt

New York Senator Hillary Clinton touted the ethical standards of female leaders like herself on Monday, telling a forum at New York University that women in government are less corrupt than their male counterparts.

"Research shows the presence of women raises the standards of ethical behavior and lowers corruption," Clinton told the Vital Voices' Women's Global Leadership Summit, in quotes picked up by NYU's student newspaper, the Washington Square News.

She did not comment on the myriad scandals that marked her tenure as first lady.
Reclaiming her role as the world's foremost feminist, Clinton sometimes stuck a strident note, telling the crowd of U.N. activists, abortion advocates and college students, "Women's rights are human rights and human rights are women's rights and we cannot settle for anything less."

She also blasted the Bush administration for attempting to restrict abortions, saying, "I regret that the government in my country is making it more difficult for women in this country to receive safe [abortions]."

Worldwide, 68,000 women die every year, she said, due to unsafe abortions.

posted March 09, 2005 12:09 PM            

Wednesday, March 9, 2005 11:31 a.m. EST
Clinton Accuser Peter Paul Cleared to Testify

Clinton accuser Peter Paul will be allowed to testify against the finance chairman of Hillary Clinton's 2000 Senate campaign after pleading guilty in an unrelated stock fraud case in a Long Island courtroom yesterday.

The government required that Mr. Paul plead guilty in the stock fraud case before it would consider using him as a witness against David Rosen, Clinton's former finance chairman, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

A four count indictment against Rosen was unsealed in January, charging the Clinton money-man with attempting to hide hundreds of thousands of dollars of in-kind contributions that bankrolled an Aug. 2000 gala fundraiser in Los Angeles.

Rosen allegedly worked out of Paul's Stan Lee Media office as he oversaw preparations for the star-studded event. Witnesses say he refused to keep records on vast amounts of cash spent on Mrs. Clinton's behalf.

But Peter Paul's testimony could spell just as much trouble for Mrs. Clinton, the Democratic Party's likely 2008 presidential nominee.

Before meeting with U.S. District Court Judge Leonard D. Wexler, Paul told the New York Sun that he was eager to testify against Mr. Rosen at trial, and potentially against Mr. and Mrs. Clinton.

"I have come to take responsibility for my actions and put myself at the mercy of the court. Senator Clinton has not," he declared.

Mr. Paul told the Fox News Channel last year that he personally apprised Mrs. Clinton of the money being spent on her behalf.

Fundraiser Aaron Tonken, who helped Paul produce the Aug. 2000 event, has given prosecutors a similar account - and both have reams of financial records to back their stories.