BY HOWARD WILKINSON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Democratic congressional candidate Roxanne Qualls said Wednesday she has no qualms about meeting with Bill Clinton when the embattled president comes to Cincinnati on Sept. 17 -- if she can clear her schedule.
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"At this point, we aren't sure whether I will actually be able to attend the fund-raiser," said Ms. Qualls, who had a high-profile role when Mr. Clinton last visited Cincinnati for a Democratic fund-raiser, in March.
Ms. Qualls, the Cincinnati mayor who is challenging incumbent Republican Steve Chabot in the 1st Congressional District race, said she has two speaking engagements scheduled for that day that might conflict with the Clinton event, which will likely be a fund-raising luncheon at the Amberley Village home of lawyer Stanley M. Chesley. The events Ms. Qualls plans to attend are a panel discussion on health care at the Woman's City Club and a speech to female real estate agents.
Wednesday, the Chabot campaign released a statement suggesting that Ms. Qualls might want to avoid the fund-raiser for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee because of the sex scandal surrounding Mr. Clinton.
But Ms. Qualls said her staff will try to "rearrange the schedule" so she can attend the Chesley luncheon. "Even if we cannot attend the luncheon, I would like to be able to meet with the president while he is in the city if his schedule allows it," Ms. Qualls said.
Until Wednesday, Ms. Qualls had been silent about the national uproar over Mr. Clinton's grand jury testimony and the possibility that independent counsel Kenneth Starr could give Congress a report saying that Mr. Clinton may have committed impeachable offenses. Mr. Chabot said last week that the president "should have done more to put this behind us sooner."
But Mr. Chabot, a member of the House Judiciary Committee that would deal with the impeachment issue, would not comment on whether he thinks the president has committed an impeachable offense. Ms. Qualls said she, too, would wait until Mr. Starr submits his report to Congress before commenting on what should happen next.
Ms. Qualls said the situation "is incredibly unfortunate for (Mr. Clinton) and his family. But it's also very unfortunate for the country, because I am concerned about its impact on the nation, both in domestic affairs and internationally."
Mr. Clinton came to Cincinnati in March for a Democratic National Committee fund-raising dinner at Mr. Chesley's home. Ms. Qualls played a prominent role, meeting the president on Air Force One and riding in the motorcade with him to Amberley Village.
