Bill Clinton says nothing ‘ sinister’ about foreign donations to foundation

Bill Clinton's decision to emerge from the sidelines and speak out about the Clinton Foundation reflects concerns about getting Hillary Clinton’s campaign for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination back on a sound footing

Washington, May 4: Former US President Bill Clinton defended his charitable foundation’s acceptance of large foreign donations on Monday, thrusting himself into a controversy that is weighing on the presidential candidacy of his wife, Hillary Clinton.

“I don’t think there’s anything sinister in trying to get wealthy people in countries that are seriously involved in development to spend their money wisely in a way that helps poor people and lifts them up,” Mr Clinton told NBC News from Kenya, in an interview taped over the weekend.

His decision to emerge from the sidelines and speak out about the Clinton Foundation reflects concerns about getting Hillary Clinton’s campaign for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination back on a sound footing after it took a pounding in recent weeks.

The former First Lady, also a previous secretary of state and former senator from New York, has attempted to present herself as a candidate who would fight for everyday Americans.

But her campaign has been on the defensive over questions about foreign donations to the family’s charitable organisation and whether her work as President Barack Obama’s first- term secretary of state was influenced by the donations.

“There is no doubt in my mind that we have never done anything knowingly inappropriate in terms of taking money to influence any kind of American government policy,” Mr Clinton said. “That just hasn’t happened.”

Hillary Clinton faces only limited opposition in her drive for the nomination, but the drumbeat of criticism has taken a toll on her image.

An AP- GfK poll released Friday showed that among Democrats, only 34 per cent said they were excited by her candidacy, while 36 percent were merely satisfied. Another 19 per cent said they were neutral, and 9 per cent were disappointed or angry. America Rising, a Republican group that is seeking to derail Mrs Clinton’s candidacy, unveiled a 60- second web video on Monday that seeks to raise more ethical questions about the Democrat. ( youtu. be/ E0TxHkek- CM)

The video uses Mrs Clinton’s 2009 declaration that “there is not an inherent conflict of interest in any of my husband’s work”.