CLINTON OK'D DONOR VISITS : MEMO OUTLINES LINCOLN BEDROOM SLEEPOVER REWARDS.

Byline: Robert A. Rankin and Jodi Enda Knight-Ridder Tribune News Wire

Reeling from the Republican takeover of Congress, President Clinton decided in 1995 to give special access to the White House - including overnights in the Lincoln Bedroom - to big donors to the Democratic Party.

In a handwritten note, Clinton OK'd three recommendations for him to meet personally with major contributors at the White House for hourlong breakfasts, lunches or coffees, and to let them join him golfing or jogging.

Clinton himself suggested inviting supporters to stay overnight in the Lincoln Bedroom, even though the plan did not request that.

``Yes, pursue all 3 and promptly,'' Clinton scribbled in response to three points listed by Terry McAuliffe, then national finance chairman at the Democratic National Committee. The president added: ``Ready to start overnight right away.''

Clinton's memo was among 1,374 pages of documents released Tuesday that were turned over to the House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight by attorneys for former White House Deputy chief of staff Harold Ickes.

The House panel is investigating improprieties in Democratic Party fund-raising before the 1996 elections. Ickes coordinated Clinton's campaign with other Democratic efforts from the White House.

``It's now abundantly clear that President Clinton decided to exploit the White House for campaign fund raising,'' said Rep. Dan Burton, chairman of the House panel. ``His own handwritten notes confirm that the highly questionable overnight stays in the Lincoln Bedroom occurred at his direction. At a minimum, this is a highly unethical use of government property for political purposes.''

Clinton's use of the Lincoln Bedroom for visitors has been well-publicized, but until Tuesday it was not generally known that Clinton himself came up with the idea.

The White House identified 938 people Tuesday as overnight guests at the White House from 1993 through 1996. Among them were such big DNC donors as:

Dirk Ziff, heir to a publishing fortune, who gave $411,000 in 1995-96.

Hollywood moguls Lew Wasserman, David Geffen and Stephen Spielberg, who each gave $200,000.

Barbra Streisand, who has raised millions for Clinton and the Democrats, and who also gave $60,000 of her own money.

Paul Cejas of PLC Investments in Miami, who contributed $186,400; his wife, Gertrude, gave an additional $11,000.

Most of the 938 overnight White House guests were said to be old friends of the Clintons, public officials, or prominent artists - some of whom gave large contributions. But 111 are identified as ``friends and supporters'' whom the Clintons met during or after their 1992 campaign, according to a 23-page list.

Clinton angrily denied committing any impropriety during a brief exchange with reporters Tuesday.

``The Lincoln Bedroom was never sold,'' Clinton said. ``I did not have any strangers here.''

The president contended that everyone he has invited to stay overnight at the White House were his ``friends.'' Most were not big donors, but of those who were Clinton said: ``I was proud to have them here.

``And I do not believe people who lawfully raise money for people running for office are bad people. I think they're good people. They make the system work that we have now.''

But independent analysts were unpersuaded.

``This obvious quid-pro-quo is a little more blatant than it has been in the past,'' said Ron Shaiko, associate professor of government at American University.

``To shop the White House as an incentive in a systematic way is different than past administrations, particularly given the large numbers of people they had flowing through. Some things ought to be above that. The White House is our house - public property,'' Shaiko said.

At one point, the documents show, the president's schedule was filled with so many political coffees that White House aides were told they might not have time to brief him on other matters.

In a memo dated Jan. 19, 1996, Evelyn Lieberman, then White House deputy chief of staff, recommended adding a number of coffees during a two-week period starting the following week.

``In order to do this, staff who routinely brief the president will be asked to be flexible during this period and accept that their briefings may be considerably truncated or eliminated,'' Lieberman wrote.

While White House officials have insisted repeatedly that the coffees were not a fund-raising tool, Lieberman titled her memo ``Political Coffees'' and said that ``political fund raising is critical,'' particularly at the start of a campaign year.

Although Clinton has tried to distance himself and his re-election campaign from DNC operations on occasion, the documents show that Clinton and his White House aides worked closely with the DNC on fund raising.

According to one Ickes' memo, Clinton typically reviewed DNC solicitation brochures that included a message from him before they were approved for distribution. Ickes also wrote that he typically submitted DNC solicitation letters to Clinton for review even if his signature wasn't on them.

One exchange of memos in the Ickes' files reveals much about how close

connections were between big donors and the White House. On May 19, 1994, a New York businessman named Carl Spielvogel wrote White House aide Mack McLarty about Democratic fund raising.

``There are quite a few disaffected `heavy givers' who feel let down by the lack of `tender loving care' since the victory,'' Spielvogel wrote.

Ickes wrote back to Spielvogel on May 31, 1994:

``As to your point about the lack of `tender loving care' regarding a number of `heavy givers,' the DNC is concerned and is making greater efforts to remedy whatever problems there may be in that regard.''

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BOX: THE WHITE HOUSE: WHERE THE PRESIDENT LIVES