Inside the Beltway

Taking the Fifth

What do Bill Clinton, Roger Ailes, Sean Hannity and Ruth Bader Ginsberg all have in common?

They’re among a prestigious group of Beltway insiders who have signed a leather-bound, pocket-size U.S. Constitution that ABC Radio executive Chris Berry keeps in his breast pocket as he makes his way through official Washington circles.

“I picked it up in KeithLipert’s Georgetown gallery in the fall of 2005 when [the late ABC News anchor] Peter Jennings was in the midst of his battle with lung cancer,” Mr. Berry explains. “I knew that Peter, who was born a Canadian, used to carry one, and in a solidarity gesture, I bought it.”

He would carry it with him for several months, until one day he was introduced to newly minted Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. “I asked Justice Roberts to sign it, and he graciously said that he would be honored to do so,” he recalls.

That first signature was followed by dozens of others, representing all three branches of government, particularly those with an interest in constitutional issues. For example, Supreme Court Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas are joined in the small book by Senate Judiciary Committee members Sens. Orrin G. Hatch of Utah, Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania.

“People seem to enjoy adding their name,” says Mr. Berry, and most will even take the time to find a pertinent article of the Constitution to autograph.

“Bill Clinton signed Article II, which outlines the duties of the president,” he notes. “And when I asked Henry Kissinger to sign it, he said, ‘Do you want me to sign where it says I can’t be president?’ And then he put his distinctive signature on the line that reads, ‘No person except a natural born citizen … shall be eligible to the office of president.’ ”

Mr. Berry is particularly pleased with signatures from his colleagues in the Fourth Estate.

“Rush Limbaugh signed the First Amendment, and G. Gordon Liddy made sure he added his name on the Fifth Amendment, saying ‘I’ve taken the Fifth enough!’ ”

Others signing include Ben Bradlee of The Washington Post, NBC News anchor Brian Williams, ABC newsman Bob Woodruff and syndicated radio broadcaster Paul Harvey.

Mr. Berry insists he’s no star-struck autograph collector, but rather his career has allowed him access to hundreds of household names over the years. The Constitution, he says, “resonates with Washington power-brokers, all of whom gladly add their names to the pages of this document of freedom.”

With the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner coming up in a few weeks, we asked Mr. Berry if he had his pen and Constitution ready for the target-rich environment?

“Just like my American Express card,” he said. “I don’t leave home without it.”

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