Did the Clintons take furniture from the White House?

Answer 1

No. Stealing is legal term and there has been no such charge made by any authority. The Clinton's took items given to them while they were in the White House, and what they took was agreed to by the White House managers. There are questions as to what was donated to them, and what was donated to the White House. It is important to note that items the Clinton took that were donated while they were in the White House may not fit the decor of the White House and be headed for a storage facility anyway. There have been claims that they took stuff that didn't belong to them from the White House, but the status of each item has to be cleared up to determine if they did. Before you donate anything to the White House, try to find out out of the current and likely future occupants want it. Items lacking a historical connection to the White House will almost certainly go into the trash , storage, or be loaned to members of Congress. Because donors may want something of theirs to become part of the White House does not mean that historians agree that it should be, or that there is room for it or money to maintain it. According to an article from February 2001 in the NY Times (see link below), they vowed to return any White House property they found mixed in with their own. It seems likely that the cost of determining the ownership and disposition of all the items in in question, will significantly exceed the value of the items.

"In the latest criticism over their departure from the White House, the Clinton's faced questions today about taking $28,000 worth of furnishings, which two donors were quoted as saying had been intended to become part of the permanent White House collection, not gifts to the Clinton's.

The disclosure, reported in today's Washington Post, came three days after the Clinton's said they would pay $86,000 to cover the value of gifts they received last year in an effort to avoid the appearance of impropriety. The couple had originally sought to leave with $190,000 in gifts."

Answer 2

The Clintons were reported to have made off with a good deal of White House furnishings and gifts when they moved out. The total value was reported to have been in the neighborhood of $190,000. The US Park Service reported that some $28,000 worth of items were returned after the theft was reported in the press. There was also a substantial amount of damage done to White House equipment such as computers, fax machines, etc., as well as theft that Clinton later blamed on "irresponsible staffers."

Answer 3

No. The White House is federal property and considered a museum in the parks service. The president and his family bring with them furniture they want in the private quarters, but to move anything in the White House beyond the personal items requires permission from the park service. All White House furniture and items are catalogued and protected as any item in a museum would be.