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Burton demands documents on Clinton pardon of financier Marc Rich

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From CNN's Terry Frieden at the Justice Department

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Clinton's controversial last-minute pardon of wealthy financier Marc Rich has spawned an investigation by a Congressional panel.

House Government Reform Committee Chairman Dan Burton (R-Indiana) sent six letters to government officials and private attorneys Thursday demanding documents for his committee's investigation.

In a letter to Acting Attorney General Eric Holder, whose Justice Department houses the files of pardon applications, Burton demanded records relating to efforts to obtain clemency for Rich or associate Pincus Green.

Later, in an interview with CNN's Judy Woodruff Burton acknowledged the Justice Department may not have any relevant documents.

"The Justice Department didn't know anything about this," said Burton, who complained the president had taken the unusual step of circumventing the normal procedures. Applications for presidential pardons generally go to the Justice Department's U.S. Pardon Attorney Roger Adams who compiles information and forwards them to the White House for consideration.

Clinton pardoned Rich about two hours before he left office last Saturday.

Rich who lives in Switzerland fled the U.S. in 1983 after being indicted for wire fraud, racketeering, and income tax evasion. He was also charged with violating trade restrictions with Iran at the time the government in Tehran was holding U.S. diplomats as hostages.

Rich, now 66, is an active businessman in Switzerland. His ex-wife Denise is an active Democratic Party fundraiser, and contributed to Hillary Rodham Clinton's Senate campaign.

Burton says he wants his House Committee "to determine whether the President had an improper motive for the pardons, whether law enforcement authorities were consulted before the pardons were granted, and determine if any regulations governing the lobbying of the president may hve been violated."

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