Fund-Raising Official Will Testify, DNC Says

WASHINGTON â€”  The Democratic National Committee, bowing to pressure from a federal judge, on Friday ordered a controversial fund-raiser who dropped from public view in recent days to appear for questioning in a civil lawsuit investigating foreign contributions to the party.

Democratic fund-raiser John Huang of Los Angeles is to arrive at committee headquarters Monday morning and accept a subpoena for his testimony from Judicial Watch, a nonprofit public service organization with conservative ties. Judicial Watch is trying to determine whether Commerce Department officials used overseas trade missions to solicit money for the Democratic Party from foreign interests.

The arrangement for Huang to appear was endorsed by U.S. District Judge Royce C. Lamberth and came hours after the exasperated judge told the DNC to hasten Huang’s deposition. Although Huang continues to work for the DNC, he has been doing so from an undisclosed location for about a week. Federal marshals told the judge Friday that they could not locate him to serve the subpoena.

His attorney, John C. Keeney Jr., assured the court that Huang would appear on schedule. Keeney has refused to disclose Huang’s whereabouts and had said previously that his client would not be available to testify until Nov. 6, the day after the presidential election.

Huang has been the central figure in a campaign-financing furor that is embarrassing the Democratic Party as the election draws near.

A number of large contributions that Huang solicited from Asian businesses or individuals turned out to be either illegal or of questionable propriety. They included $450,000 from an Indonesian couple, $250,000 from a South Korean company and $140,000 from a gathering at a Hacienda Heights Buddhist temple. Much of the money has been returned.

Larry Klayman, an attorney for Judicial Watch and a strong supporter of Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole, said the organization wanted to question Huang as part of a freedom-of-information lawsuit that it has been pursuing against the Commerce Department for two years. Huang worked at the Commerce Department for 18 months before joining the DNC nearly a year ago.

The Judicial Watch lawsuit is largely aimed at determining whether overseas trade missions led by the late Commerce Secretary Ronald H. Brown were designed to obtain foreign financial support for the Democratic Party.

A Times review of records obtained so far by Judicial Watch does not show that Huang solicited overseas funds while at the Commerce Department.

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Nonetheless, Klayman told reporters Friday that he wants to question Huang extensively on the possible link between U.S. trade missions and campaign finance activities. Huang’s lawyer, however, said he will seek on Monday to have the judge limit the scope of the questioning.

Huang’s testimony in the civil suit is unlikely to be made public immediately, lawyers said.

Also Friday, three Republicans who chair congressional committees wrote to President Clinton to reiterate their demands that he personally respond to allegations “regarding the trail of questionable and clearly illegal contributions� to the Democratic Party.

The letter was signed by Reps. Henry J. Hyde of Illinois, William F. Clinger Jr. of Pennsylvania and and Bill Thomas of Bakersfield.