LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: It appears that Al Gore won't be invested by a special counsel for his campaign fund-raising activities four years ago. Our Justice Department correspondent Pierre Thomas has the story for us from Washington this morning -- Pierre.</s>PIERRE THOMAS, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Leon. U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno is expected to announce today that she will not name a special counsel to investigate Vice President Al Gore's 1996 fund-raising activities. A senior government official tells CNN, Reno has rejected a call for a special counsel by Robert Conrad, the head of the Campaign Task Force. The source said, in rejecting the call for a special counsel, Reno sided with other senior Justice Department officials who disagree with Conrad's recommendation. Conrad had call for a special counsel after an April interview with Gore raised questions about campaign finance issues, including Gore's controversial visit to a Buddhist temple near Los Angeles, where illegal funds were raise. Sources said, Conrad was apparently suspicious Gore may have lied about his role in fund-raising, namely that he did not know the event was a fund-raiser. But some senior Justice Department officials concluded the interview produced largely no new information. Gore's long maintained he did not know the event was a fund-raiser. Justice Department officials expected Reno would reject Conrad's recommendations, but a number of senior officials have been perplexed as to why Reno was taking so much time to complete her decision. News of Conrad's recommendation broke eight weeks ago today. So with Gore surging in the polls, apparently more good news -- Leon. I'm Pierre Thomas.</s>HARRIS: All right, thanks much. Pierre Thomas, in Washington, reporting live this morning.
Reno Expected to Clear Gore of 1996 Fund-Raising Activities