Bernard Schwartz, chief executive officer of Loral Space &

Communications, tells The New York Times he considers President Clinton

a friend, "but not the kind of friend that you can call upon for

favors."

We're supposed to believe that Schwartz invested $1.3 million in

Clinton's political campaigns without the expectation of special

treatment. If that's true, you would expect Loral stockholders to demand

an explanation for such reckless disregard of their interests. I doubt

you'll see such a move. Because Loral got plenty of bang for its buck.

"I can say absolutely, categorically, I have never spoken with the

president about any Loral business, except on one occasion," he says.

Notice the careful wording of that statement. Never ... except on one

occasion. Furthermore, it's clear Schwartz and his company did ask the

president and his administration for favors -- for special treatment --

on more than one occasion.

Last February, Schwartz needed a quick decision from the government

about the launching of a Loral satellite aboard a Chinese rocket later

that month. Within two weeks the president gave Loral permission --

overruling the advice of his Justice Department, which was investigating

Loral's satellite deals with China. Clinton also broke with past policy

and the advice of his State Department and Pentagon.

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When was the last time you got an answer -- any answer -- from the

federal government in less than two weeks? This was a big favor -- a

huge one. By working with the Chinese, instead of U.S. satellite

launchers, the deal saved Loral potentially hundreds of millions of

dollars.

Nevertheless, Schwartz maintains he never personally asked the

president for anything that would benefit his company. These are

lawyerly word games -- the kind America has become accustomed to since

this administration came to power.

This was just the most recent favor. In 1994, Schwartz pushed hard

for a seat on a trip to China led by Commerce Secretary Ron Brown. The

trip paid off in spades for Loral. A meeting in Beijing with a top

official led to Loral winning a deal to provide cellular telephone

service to China, an agreement that will soon be worth $250 million

annually.

Later, in May 1996, Schwartz wrote to Clinton urging him make the

Commerce Department the clearing house for approval of export licensing

of commercial satellites rather than the State Department. Once again,

Schwartz got his way.

But still, we're supposed to believe that Clinton would have made the

same decisions with the same timing had Schwartz not been the single

biggest donor to the his political career. For Pete's sake, last year

Clinton even threw Schwartz a birthday party at the White House.

None of this stuff is really new or particularly earth-shaking,

however. Money has always been linked to political influence. No matter

what kinds of campaign finance reforms America adopts, it simply seems

to get worse. But the real horror, the real crime, the real treachery of

the Clinton-Loral-China axis comes in the substance of the deals with

China -- the dirty little details about technology transferred to China

because of this political patronage.

This is a scandal unlike any other in American history. Clinton and

Schwartz have nothing on Benedict Arnold. The sensitive technical data

shared with the Chinese for simple greed and power has apparently

enhanced the reliability of Beijing's long-range nuclear missiles --

missiles, by the way, targeted at the United States.

Schwartz doesn't like such talk. He objects when people like me

suggest he placed his own avaricious business interests ahead of

national security. But, you know what? I don't really blame Schwartz.

There are always greedy businessmen willing to sell out their country's

long-term interests for a little short-term financial gain. What is

shocking, however, is to consider the fact that we have a president of

the United States who is willing to make such treasonous decisions.

"To attach words like 'treason' and 'traitor' to these activities is

a deeply disturbing development," moans Schwartz.

I'll bet it is. It's always disturbing when a criminal gets caught.

It's even more disturbing when our highest elected officials, entrusted,

first and foremost, with protecting the nation's vital interests, sell

their political souls to nuclear-age tyrants. The only trouble I have

with words like "treason" and "traitor" is that they don't seem harsh

enough to describe the shameful activities of Clinton and Schwartz.