Besmirching Hillary; She Answers: ‘I Am Ready’

“Clinton Cash”: An investigation book on the donations received from abroad by the Clinton Foundation when Hillary was secretary of state might cause a few problems to the Democratic candidate on her way to the White House. Especially because she and her staff will have to waste time and energy responding to each and every single blow.

The book is due May 5 and it promises to reveal how and why several foreign governments and businessmen have helped Bill and Hillary Clinton to “become rich.” The author of the book is Peter Schweizer, a journalist who used to be the speech ghostwriter of George W. Bush. It is Harper Collins who will release the book, the publishing house of Rupert Murdoch, and there is an agreement between the authors and some important American newspapers such as The New York Times, The Washington Post and Fox News to give more information about some issues broached in the book. In short, the campaign (truthful or denigrating — depending on the point of view) has only begun.

According to The New York Times, there would be two concrete examples of funds generously transferred to the foundation in exchange for favors. A free trade agreement with Colombia would have favored a rich Colombian businessman who might appear as one of the major donors of the foundation. The second case is about a Canadian bank that had given $1 million at a time when the Department of State was examining the Keystone oil pipeline project (the bank being a shareholder). As Giuseppe Sarcina pointed out in the Corriere della Serra, the project obtained the support of Congress, with both branches led by Republicans, though for the moment it is barred by President Obama.

A relevant analysis to a very serious accusation transpires between the lines. Hillary is trying to position herself as the champion of the middle class, but Schweizer wrote that between 2001 and 2012 the revenue of her household amounted to $136.5 million.

“During Hillary’s years of public service, the Clintons have conducted or facilitated hundreds of large transactions with foreign governments and individuals,” he writes. “Some of these transactions have put millions in their own pockets.”

Over the last days, in order to clear out any doubt about the fund transparency, the foundation announced that they would continue accepting donations from only a few countries (Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Norway and the United Kingdom), passing up on those coming from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries to avoid any interference with the open cases regarding American politics in the Middle East and other hot zones. The decision is not retroactive; the funds already received were put in the balance sheet and spent. Among the largest benefactors were Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, some Saudi and Ukrainian businessmen, the Coca-Cola Company and many more, all of them duly registered.

Hillary Clinton reacted the following way to the upcoming release of the book: “I will be the target of a series of attacks. I am ready for that. I know that, unfortunately, it is part of the game.”*

She is not, for the moment, counterattacking; she is trying to ignore the episode. However, talking with some journalists in New Hampshire, she let slip an acid remark: “I think that it is worth noticing that the Republicans seem to only talk about me. I don’t know what they would talk about if I were not in the race.”*

Will it be enough to assuage the Republicans?

*This quote, accurately translated, could not be verified.