When Hill Makes Bill "Roving Ambassador," Will His Benefactors Expect Favors?

[Stephanie]

Not just Giustra, but Walmart and Saudi Arabia, Dubai, Brunei, Entergy. And then there are all those donors we don't know about because the Clintons won't release the names. What would they expect from a Clinton administration?

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/20/us/politics/20clinton.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&sq=clinton%20library&st=nyt&scp=5

In raising record sums for her campaign, Mrs. Clinton has tapped many of the foundation’s donors. At least two dozen have become “Hillraisers,” each bundling $100,000 or more for her presidential bid. The early library donors, combined with their families and political action committees, have contributed at least $784,000 to Mrs. Clinton’s Senate and presidential coffers.

The foundation and Mrs. Clinton’s political campaigns have been intertwined in other ways. Terry McAuliffe, who led the foundation’s fund-raising and sits on its board, is now Mrs. Clinton’s campaign chairman and chief fund-raiser. Cheryl Mills plays a similar dual role, sitting on the foundation board and serving as the general counsel to Mrs. Clinton’s campaign. And Jay Carson recently traded a communications position at the foundation for a job as her campaign’s press secretary.

***

But Mrs. Clinton’s effort to distance herself understates the extent to which the foundation was a joint enterprise from the start.

Shortly after the Clintons left the White House, close advisers convened meetings at the couple’s Washington home to map out Mr. Clinton’s future as a philanthropist.

Mrs. Clinton played an important role in shaping both the foundation’s organization and the scope of its work, said Karen A. Tramontano, a senior adviser in the Clinton White House and the foundation’s first chief of staff.

Advisers also were acutely aware that the foundation’s operations — and any perception of a conflict — could harm Mrs. Clinton politically. “She and I would speak frequently,” Ms. Tramontano said. “She had a lot of ideas. All the papers that went to him went to her.”

http://www.nysun.com/article/5152

Top Donors to the William J. Clinton Presidential Foundation
November 22, 2004

TRUSTEE LEVEL (ORGANIZATIONS)

ALLTEL
Alphawood Foundation
Annenberg Foundation
Avalon Capital Group
Dubai Foundation
Embassy of the State of Qatar
Entergy Corporation
Government of Brunei
Magna International Inc.
Satoshi Iue (Chmn. Sanyo Electric)
Soros Foundation
State of Kuwait
Taiwan Economic & Cultural Office
Anheuser-Busch Foundation
David Geffen Foundation
Eli & Edythe Broad Foundation
Roy & Christine Sturgis Foundation
Royal Saudi Family
Wal-Mart/Sam's Club Foundation
Walton Family Foundation
Wasserman Foundation

[elixir]

1. I guess part of the Obamentum is to slime your opponent instead of discussing the issues..

you folks belittle yourselves by digging up all the crap you can that doesn't matter on election day. Why don't you make a comment about her wardrobe while you're at it.

Tonight will be a great opportunity to see where we really stand.

[Stephanie]

2. You don't think $131 MILLION Gifts to the candidate's husband matter?

I do like her oufit in the photo. The blue suit she word to Florida was nice, too.

[MyNameGoesHere]

11. About as much that it

mattered about Theresa Kerry and her finances. You know back when DU was "normal" and the whole site went ape shit that the repugs were making an issue about Senator Kerry's wifes money. But hey it's all fun to smear and use rw gorilla tactics against the Clintons. No one gets hurt right?

[enid602]

3. "Will His Benefactors Expect Favors?"

By 'benefactors,' do you mean the citizens of Earth?

[Stephanie]

4. Um...

What?

[enid602]

13. citizens of the world

The entire world loved Bill (I've traveled frequently to every continent, and know); they almost to a person despise GWB.

[Stephanie]

14. Ok. Did the entire world give him $131 million?

You do understand what a benefactor is, don't you?

[enid602]

15. Clinton

The 'benefactor' of this $$ was the Clinton Foundation. The only thing Clinton did for Kazakhstan was sign a treaty with regard to medicines for AIDS. It's not like some crook was funnelling real estate to the likes of Randy Duke Cunningham or . . .

[Stephanie]

16. What he did for Kazakhstan's dictator was legitimize him in the eyes of the world.

So that Clinton's benefactor could get a sweet uranium contract worth billions.

[styersc]

5. I think we've all heard all we need to hear about this Rezko

guy. But we haven't heard then last of him. If Rezko goes to prison will Obama take over the maintenance on the 11 slums he operates in his old district in Chicago? It would give him a chance to get a little administrative experience.

[shenmue]

6. When has she said she'd actually appoint him to anything? I bet he stays far away from her admin...

because he doesn't want to get killed again. You seem to forget the way Bill Clinton was put through utter shit-fire for eight years. I bet he just works for his law firm, does fund raising and pro-peace work, and that's it.

Yet again, all Obama supporters can do is make straw man arguments and false claims. Get something besides snide implications and maybe I'll take you more seriously.

Make the case *for your* candidate, not just *against someone else.*

When was Obama fighting for health care? This year? Hillary was advocating for it years and years ago, as any citizen has the right to do. And she was called everything from Communist on down, you name it.

When was Obama fighting to increase acceptance of gay people in the military? Hello? No, now he hangs out with "ex-gay" Donnie McClurkin. The Clintons were very accepting of gay people, and Obama's cobbling for votes with someone who believes you can "bring people out of homosexuality."

Do something or stop the mud-slinging. This is beyond ridiculous.

[Stephanie]

7. .

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton said Saturday that if she is elected president, she would make her husband a roaming ambassador to the world, using his skills to repair the nation's tattered image abroad, the Associated Press reports.

"I can't think of a better cheerleader for America than Bill Clinton, can you?" the Democratic senator from New York asked a crowd jammed into a junior high school gymnasium in Marshalltown, Iowa. "He has said he would do anything I asked him to do. I would put him to work."

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=3063997

[styersc]

9. Both Clintons have spent a lifetime in public service. It would

not surprise me if President Clinton calls on the former President Clinton to serve the country. In such service we would all benefit.

You're welcome.

[Stephanie]

10. Unless he's compromised by quid pro quo deals.

We learned about one such deal today. Until he releases the donors list we won't know who he might owe favors to.

[Whisp]

8. "Roving' Ambassador...

Bill does have nice things to say about Karl, doesn't he? Prolly got a few pointers from him on how to play fair.

[KoKo]

12. I also wonder who will handle the "First Lady" duties.... Will Hillary have a Secretary do that for

her?