Political camps battle over Clinton ethics questions
Hillary Clinton is facing flak for some of her meetings while secretary of state.
WASHINGTON — Republicans and Democrats sparred Sunday over whether Hillary Clinton crossed ethical lines during her tenure as secretary of state by talking with people outside the government who had contributed to her family’s foundation.
Donna Brazile, interim head of the Democratic National Committee, said it’s not unusual for supporters and activists to seek out private meetings and that there’s no evidence Clinton did any favors on behalf of foundation donors.
“WhenRepublicans meet with their donors, with their supporters, they call it a meeting,” she said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “When Democrats do that, they call it a conflict. It’s not pay-toplay, unless somebody actually gave someone 50 cents to say, ‘I need a meeting.’ ”
Mike Pence, running mate of GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump, countered that because foreign donors can’t contribute to a presidential campaign it’s possible they were seeking political leverage within the U.S. government by donating to the Clinton Foundation. He reiterated callsby Trump’s campaign for the federal government to appoint a special prosecutor to examine possible corruption. “This (foundation) becomes a conduit for people to gain access, and gaining access is a favor,” Pence said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
TheState Department released Clinton’s calendars and about half her detailed daily schedules as secretary of state after The Associated Press sued for access in federal court.
The AP found that more than half the people outside the government whomet or spoke by telephone with Clinton during part of her tenure as a Cabinet secretary had given money — either personally or through companies or groups — to the Clinton Foundation. The AP’s analysis focused on people with private interests. Clinton has said the analysis was flawed because it did not account fully for all meetings and phone calls during her entire term as secretary.
AP Executive Editor Kathleen Carroll said on CNN’s “Reliable Sources”: “I think the issue about conflict with interest is not whether there’s an actual quid pro quo. It’s the proximity. It’s the impression that people have of maybe they got the meeting because they donated, maybe they didn’t.”