IN THE HOUSE, A ZEALOT TALKS SOFTLY

By JAMES CARNEY/WASHINGTON

On the other side of Capitol Hill, the President's chief inquisitor on such issues as the Democratic fund-raising scandal will be a man who has never pretended to be impartial. Dan Burton has described himself as a partisan "pit bull," and once performed a re-enactment of Vince Foster's death by shooting bullets into a "headlike object" in his own yard. But the G.O.P. Congressman from Indianapolis insists he wants to make a fresh start in January, when he will take command of the House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight, the panel that does most of the investigating when the White House is accused of wrongdoing. Burton, 58, promises he will be able to assume the mantle of sober, judicious leadership as committee chairman. "Just give me a chance to do the job," he pleads, "and if I don't live up to what I've said, then you can judge me harshly."

Keeping his zeal in check would be a big change. Burton, a former insurance salesman who is by turns gregarious and confrontational, has not spared even Socks the cat--"Why are the taxpayers being made to pay for your feline's fan club?"--in raising ethical questions about the Administration. He was one of the first in Congress to suggest that the President might have broken the law and might have lied in his handling of the Whitewater affair. Burton became obsessed with the idea of a cover-up involving Foster, the White House aide and Clinton friend whose death in July 1993 was ruled a suicide by police. In a speech from the House floor a year later, Burton insisted that Foster's body had been moved to the park where police found it and suggested ominously that Foster might have had "a sexual experience" on the day he died. "If that is the case," Burton declared, "it is hard to understand the state of mind of somebody who is thinking about committing suicide and having a sexual encounter at the same time."

Asked about the case today, Burton says it "wouldn't be appropriate" for him to comment while special prosecutor Kenneth Starr is still investigating. Burton's promise to tone down his rhetoric was enough to overcome rumblings among some Republicans, who wanted Speaker Newt Gingrich to disregard Burton's seniority and choose someone else to replace William Clinger, the retiring moderate from Pennsylvania who in the past two years has presided over hearings into Travelgate and Filegate. Burton passed an important test last week. When word got out that his new chief investigator, David Bossie, had procured the Commerce Department phone logs of John Huang, the former Democratic fund raiser accused of impropriety, and then leaked them to the press, Burton publicly rebuked the aide and issued a warning to his staff that anyone releasing information without his permission would be summarily fired.

For the President, Burton's role is not all bad news. When a chairman lacks credibility, it's easier for White House spin doctors to dismiss the committee's work as partisan bilge. To prevent that, Burton says, he won't rush to hold hearings on the campaign-finance scandal but will instead spend the next few months investigating. By then he plans to have enough information to make Huang and others squirm at the witness table. If Burton remains true to his new form, the White House could be in for an unpleasant year.

--By James Carney/Washington