Trust and Confidence – The 1998 Battle Between the Secret Service and Ken Starr is a historical look into the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal. This in-depth analysis of the event started with author Jim Lichtman interviewing Lewis Merletti, the former Director of the United States Secret Service. This astute book gives readers an enthralling look into the political drama that unfolds when two factions of the Justice Department: Starr’s Office of Independent Counsel (OIC) and the upper echelon of the Department of Justice (DOJ) are pitted against each other. Lichtman opens this book with the thought-provoking epigraph:

“If you have integrity, nothing else matters.”

“If you don’t have integrity, nothing else matters.” – Senator Alan Simpson

This sets the tone for the rest of the book and introduces the reader to the theme. It is a book about trust and confidence, the basic tenets of the United States Secret Service. 

Merletti was an important figure in Starr’s investigation against the Clinton-Lewinsky Scandal, which was part of the much bigger Whitewater Scandal. This intriguing book is based entirely on personal interviews, documents from the personal files of the former Secret Service Director Lewis Merletti, and several other documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.

The story is not just limited to Merletti’s encounters regarding the Clinton-Lewinsky Scandal. It also covers how Merletti defended the report of his internal investigations on the raid by The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) on a religious sect led by the spiritual zealot, David Koresh. Additionally, Lichtman discusses how Merletti fulfilled his role in the presidential detail and ultimately got appointed as the Director of the US Secret Service. This gives the reader a deeper insight into Merletti as an individual, what he stands for, and thus better explains the concept of trust and confidence around which the entire book revolves. 

Trust and Confidence is an intellectually invigorating read. This phenomenal book is recommended for anyone interested in political drama and wishes to dive deeper into the Clinton-Lewinsky Scandal and look at its nuances as the book deliberately prevents the scandalous details of the extramarital affair from overshadowing the theme.  

Pages: 212