Kenneth Starr The independent counsel's far-reaching probe began with the Clintons' failed Whitewater real estate deal in rural Arkansas. Later assigned to look into the White House travel office filings, and the improper collection of FBI files, Starr's inquiry veered into Monica matters after Linda Tripp approached his office with audio tapes suggesting the President might have lied during his Paula Jones deposition. Given approval by Attorney General Janet Reno to expand his probe, Starr hauled witness after witness before his Washington grand jury, questioning the President under oath at the White House in August 1998, and submitting a graphic report to Congress in September. Detractors say Starr, a Republican, has conducted a partisan witch hunt, while defenders call him careful, fair and professional. Linda Tripp A holdover from the Bush Administration, Tripp began secretly taping her conversations with Monica Lewinsky, who in troubled tones detailed a sexual relationship with the President. Angered by Clinton lawyer Robert Bennett's comments that she was "not to be believed" on allegations of a sexual encounter between the President and former White House employee Kathleen Willey, Tripp approached the independent counsel Jan. 12, 1998 with recordings of her conversations. The next day, wearing a body microphone provided by the F.B.I., Tripp met with Lewinsky at the Ritz-Carlton in Pentagon City, Va. Lucianne Goldberg A conservative New York literary agent, Goldberg confirmed that she encouraged Linda Tripp to record her conversations with Monica Lewinsky. "We had no choice but to do this. I'm very very proud of Linda Tripp," Goldberg told reporters. Tripp and Goldberg previously scrapped plans for a book about former Deputy White House counsel Vincent Foster. Paula Jones Jones' sexual harrassment case against the President was dismissed in April, but the Supreme Court's decision the suit could proceed while Clinton was still in office spawned the Lewinsky controversy. It was after Lewinsky had been subpoenaed by Jones' attorneys that she confided in Linda Tripp about dalliances with Clinton, and what she (and Tripp) should tell Jones' attorneys. John Whitehead Paula Jones' attorneys learned about Monica Lewinsky after three anonymous phone calls describing the alleged affair were placed to the Rutherford Institute, a conservative group helping to cover Jones' legal expenses. Whitehead, the Institute's president, agreed to give Kenneth Starr notes and information about the calls. The caller was female, and presumably not Lewinsky. The evidence could provide crucial corroboration to Starr's investigation. Kathleen Willey Willey emerged as possibly the greatest threat to Bill Clinton on March 15 when she told CBS' "Sixty Minutes" that the President had groped her in a room near the Oval Office in late 1993. Yet another so-called bimbo eruption, at first blush, but what sets this former White House aide apart from the likes of Paula Jones and Gennifer Flowers is Willey has been a longtime Clinton supporter, coming forward only reluctantly. Following a quick denial from the President, White House aides quickly released friendly letters and notes Willey sent to Clinton after the alleged incident. She's his "No. 1 fan," Willey wrote in one. Henry Hyde Chairman of the House Judiciary committee, this Illinois Republican told reporters that the allegations, if true, could spell impeachment for the President. But, "it's important to note they're just charges," he said. David Schippers A Chicago Democrat, Schippers was tapped by Judiciary Committee Chairman Henry Hyde to be majority counsel. Though he has largely stayed away from politics, he was Justice Department attorney during the admnistration of John F. Kennedy.