WASHINGTON - Chinese funny money has landed his Democratic Party in tons of trouble, but yesterday even President Clinton got the joke.
When a bearded, ponytailed man approached and pressed a large-denomination bill covered with Chinese characters into his palm, the President burst out laughing.
"Don't worry" Clinton said, waving it. "I'll report this on my gift form."
Not likely. The Office of Government Ethics doesn't require officials to report gifts that are worth zilch, which is the approximate street value of the ersatz $50 million that Jean-Louis Bourgeois gave Clinton.
If Bourgeois - at the White House to accept a National Medal of Arts on behalf of his mother New York sculptor Louise Bourgeois, 85 - meant his enigmatic gesture as a commentary on the investigations' into illegal Asian campaign contributions. he didn't press his point.
In a White House ceremony, Clinton gave awards to 20 Americans, including actress Angela Lansbury, actor Jason: Robards, Latin percussionist Tito Puente and jazz singer Betty Carter of Brooklyn.
New York Daily News
Tuesday, September 30, 1997