White House defends Hillary Clinton on donations
By Brian Hughes | February 26, 2015 | 1:58 pm
Former U.S. Secretary of State and first lady Hillary Clinton speaks at a press conference...
The White House on Thursday insisted that former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton performed her job “without even the appearance of a conflict of interest," despite a report showing the Clinton Foundation accepted millions of dollars in contributions from foreign governments while she served in the post.
“We wanted to make sure that work [at the Clinton Foundation] could continue without interfering” with the secretary of state’s duties, White House press secretary Josh Earnest said of the agreement struck between the Obama administration and the Clinton organization.
However, Earnest then referred questions about the Clinton Foundation’s compliance with that agreement to the State Department.
The Washington Post reported on Wednesday that the Clinton Foundation received numerous donations from foreign governments, including at least one violating their ethics agreement, during the former first lady's stint at Foggy Bottom.
Most of those donations had not been previously disclosed.
Republicans are calling on Clinton to speak about the donations and say the disclosure disqualifies her from seeking the presidency.
“The latest revelations about the Clinton Foundation’s shady deals are disqualifying,” said Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus. “No one in their right mind, Democrat or Republican, can think the foundation receiving foreign government donations while Hillary Clinton served as secretary of state, and in violation of its ethics agreement with the Obama administration, is acceptable.”
The Clinton Foundation is acknowledging a mistake in at least one circumstance: a half-million dollar donation from the Algerian government in 2010 to its Haiti earthquake relief fund.
"As the Clinton Foundation did with all donations it received for earthquake relief, the entire amount of Algeria's contribution was distributed as aid in Haiti," the foundation said in a statement. "This donation was disclosed publicly on our website, however, the State Department should have also been formally informed. This was a one-time, specific donation to help Haiti and Algeria had not donated to the Clinton Foundation before and has not since."
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/white-house-defends-hillary-clinton-on-donations/article/2560766
