It was a real-estate deal between the Clintons and someone else. The Clintons loaned money to them and lost a lot of it. Failed business venture. Other people involved in Whitewater were charged with various felonies, but not the Clintons.

But you'll note that I said in my earlier comment that 'both [scandals were] overblown'. My point was not that Whitewater was ZOMG Terrible! Just that it was a scuzzy deal, and isn't fictional. Also, no-one would have cared if the Clintons hadn't risen to the Presidency.