White House Counsel
After Clinton's 1992 election, Foster joined his White House staff in early 1993, after initially being reluctant to do so. The Foster residence was on Cambridge Place in Georgetown in Washington, D.C.
Foster had difficulty making the transition to life and politics in Washington. He found his involvement in vetting new presidential appointments during the transition period to be causing him depression and anxiety, and he blamed himself for the failed Zoe Baird nomination. The failed Kimba Wood and Lani Guinier appointments were also within his purview. His wife and youngest son were not with him, having stayed behind in Arkansas so the son could complete his junior year of high school at Catholic High in Little Rock. Foster handled the Clintons' Madison Guaranty and Industrial Development Corporation paperwork, and several Whitewater-related tax returns as Deputy White House counsel.
In early May 1993, Foster gave the commencement address at his University of Arkansas Law School alma mater, and said:
The reputation you develop for intellectual and ethical integrity will be your greatest asset or your worst enemy. You will be judged by your judgment. ... There is no victory, no advantage, no fee, no favor, which is worth even a blemish on your reputation for intellect and integrity. ... Dents to reputation are irreparable."Days after the speech, the White House travel office controversy erupted. Foster was the target of several hostile Wall Street Journal editorials in June and July 1993, with titles such as "Who is Vincent Foster?" He became quite upset over the travel office matter and the possibility of a congressional hearing at which he may have been called to testify. Disliking the public spotlight and suffering from weight loss and insomnia, he considered resigning his position but feared a personal humiliation upon returning to Arkansas.
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