"Clinton Foundation includes whole family in fund-raising" by Philip Rucker and Tom Hamburger | Washington Post, August 31, 2013
WASHINGTON — The Clintons are in fund-raising mode again, inviting supporters to a musical bash in London, a ‘‘night out’’ in San Francisco with Hillary and Chelsea, and — in a select series of private, one-on-one meetings — the opportunity to write a check for $5 million to $10 million.
The invitations, delivered by phone and e-mail, resemble those of past political campaigns, complete with tiered levels and special access that depends on the size of the contribution.
Remember Bush's rangers.
But this current quest for cash, which shifts into high gear this fall, is not to fund a run for political office. It’s to boost the financial standing of the rechristened Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation.
Money-grubbing Clintons.
As he contemplates his legacy, former president Bill Clinton is trying to build an endowment with the declared goal of $200 million to $250 million to ensure his charitable foundation lives on after his death.
That's chump change compared to some of the colleges.
The foundation’s causes are expanding from those championed by the former president — fighting AIDS, climate change, and global poverty — to include newer domestic priorities embraced by Hillary and Chelsea. And that expansion means more fund-raising.
Makes one wonder why the world is such a mess.
‘‘We had to have another way to raise the funds that we need in order to keep the lights on,’’ said Bruce Lindsey, chairman of the foundation, speaking on behalf of the Clintons. ‘‘You cannot continue to rely upon a single individual to raise all the money you need to raise on a yearly basis. First of all, it is unbelievably grueling on President Clinton, and second of all, if anything were to happen to him, it would end.’’
Poor Clintons.
While this fund-raising push is philanthropic in nature, there are political implications, such as an unspoken deadline. Clinton insiders said they hope the endowment drive will be completed ahead of the 2016 presidential campaign so that if Hillary chooses to run, the foundation’s fund-raising would not distract from her campaign.
As the former secretary of state broadens her public profile with a series of major policy addresses, the Clinton Foundation has become the command post for all things Hillary. She is building a staff at its New York headquarters and launching programs on early childhood development and women’s and girls’ empowerment.
See: The Globe's First-in-the-Nation Democratic Primary
But some allies already see signs the newly reorganized charity is a ‘‘precampaign organization,’’ helping enhance Clinton’s reputation and expand her support network.
‘‘People are tripping over themselves to contribute to the foundation now,’’ said one Clinton ally, who spoke only on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the topic. ‘‘It’s a way for political supporters to help Hillary at a time when there is no campaign to contribute to.’’
Though the amount the Clinton Foundation is seeking to raise is small compared with giant philanthropies, the ability to spend millions annually in pursuit of targeted causes is something any politician would envy. And the precampaign aura around Hillary is driving more money and attention to the foundation.
But Lindsey said he believes the foundation’s charitable projects should be incentive enough to make donations. ‘‘I frankly don’t have a clue what the motives are of the people who support the Clinton Foundation,’’ he said. ‘‘I’m just grateful for their support.’’
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Nothing about Mena or the drug-dealing fund-raiser Jorge Cabrera, huh?
And whatever happened to that Haiti aid money Bill was supposed to be looking after?
Related:
"Lobbying by ex-Clinton associate draws scrutiny; Inquiry focuses on McAuliffe and business partners" by Fredrick Kunkle | Washington Post, August 26, 2013
WASHINGTON — As federal investigators look into whether top US officials gave special treatment to Terry McAuliffe’s company GreenTech Automotive, the controversy has shed light on lobbying efforts by the former Clinton associate and two of his Northern Virginia business partners.
One is Anthony Rodham, a brother of former secretary of state Hillary Rodham Clinton. The other is GreenTech cofounder and chief executive Xiaolin ‘‘Charles’’ Wang, a lawyer with expertise in trade law and foreign investment who said he has second thoughts about going into business with a politician.
Much of the public scrutiny of the GreenTech investigation has centered on McAuliffe, because he is running for Virginia governor this year. But the investigation has also drawn attention to the company itself — and to other people associated with it, including Rodham and Wang.
The Department of Homeland Security’s inspector general has launched a preliminary investigation into whether US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) director Alejandro Mayorkas improperly intervened on behalf of GreenTech and other firms as they sought to raise capital from foreign investors.
Separately, the Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating the conduct of GreenTech and Gulf Coast Funds Management — a sister company owned by Wang — in soliciting foreign investors, according to government documents.
Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II, the GOP’s gubernatorial candidate, has argued that GreenTech’s dealings fit a pattern of shady ventures by McAuliffe since his days as a top fund-raiser for president Bill Clinton.
McAuliffe, Cuccinelli’s Democratic opponent, has challenged the Republican’s ethics for his failure to initially report thousands of dollars of gifts from the same political donor whose largesse has tarnished Governor Robert McDonnell, a Republican.
McAuliffe has denied seeking special treatment and said he was not aware of the investigations into GreenTech until they became public....
These guys are all the $ame!
Meanwhile, Mayorkas is President Obama’s nominee to become the deputy secretary of homeland security; his nomination has stalled while his dealings with GreenTech and other firms remain under preliminary investigation.
The DHS and SEC investigations involve a 23-year-old program, known as EB-5, that grants conditional visas to foreign entrepreneurs who invest at least $500,000 in the United States. The program, which is managed by Mayorkas’s agency, permits investors to eventually receive permanent resident visas, known as green cards.
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FLASHBACK:
"Ex-Clinton fund-raiser pleads guilty to fraud" by Associated Press | March 19, 2010
NEW YORK — A wealthy Manhattan investment banker who was once a top fund-raiser for Hillary Rodham Clinton and other big-name Democrats pleaded guilty yesterday to bank fraud.
Hassan Nemazee, 60, was arrested last year on charges that he used fake collateral to obtain more than $290 million in loans from major banks.
AS TAXPAYERS were BAILING THEM OUT?
What a SCAM, America!!!
So the BAILOUT FUNDED CAMPAIGNS, too!!!
An indictment accused him of forging signatures, concocting bogus account statements, and establishing “virtual offices’’ to conceal a scam in which he was using proceeds from new loans to pay older ones — a maneuver prosecutors called a Ponzi scheme. He entered his guilty plea at a federal courthouse in Manhattan....
Nemazee was the national finance chairman of Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign. He also raised money for President Obama and a long list of
other prominent Democrats. He was John F. Kerry’s New York finance
chairman during the Massachusetts senator’s failed 2004 presidential
run.
Oh, I TOLD YOU THEY STANK as much as Repuglicans!
In
1999, President Clinton nominated Nemazee to be US ambassador to
Argentina, but the appointment was never confirmed by the Senate, in
part because of concerns about Nemazee’s business dealings.
So EVERYONE KNEW he was a corrupt PoS but he worked the system all through last year, 'eh?
Nemazee, who had been under house arrest in Manhattan while awaiting trial, told the court that the seeds of his crime were planted when he ran into severe financial difficulties in the 1990s and tried to borrow his way out. “As my investments went bad, the hole I dug for myself grew larger,’’ he said.
You would think that the U.S. government would learn, wouldn't you?
Prosecutors suggested a more corrupt motive.
I love a corrupt government casting corruption aspersions, don't you?
Investigators said he used some proceeds of the fraud to buy property in Italy and New York and to make sizable donations to charities, political action committees, and election campaigns.
And you thought you were giving to the candidate!
