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| October 20, 1998 | ||||
Clinton & Gore Host Fundraisers Galore Amidst Sea of Indictments
Increased scrutiny has not heightened hesitancy by this president to fundraise -- despite a host of Justice Department investigations against this administration for possible fundraising violations. President Clinton, himself one of the many under the dark cloud of scrutiny, has attended more than a hundred fundraisers thus far in 1998. Vice President Gore -- also the subject of an ongoing Justice Department investigation -- has attended more than 80 fundraisers in this year alone.
Obviously, President Bill Clinton is also "Dollar Bill" Clinton.
On the Road: Lots of Days, Lots of Dollars
As everyone now knows, President Clinton is a prodigious traveler. He's spent all or part of 166 days outside of D.C. in just this year alone -- well more than half the days in 1998 thus far. And a large part of that travel includes fundraising.
- "Dollar Bill" Clinton has attended 101 fundraisers this year [through 10/16/98], chasing dollars in 34 different cities. [See travelog]
- Al Gore has attended more than 80 fundraisers just this year.
- Meanwhile, the Department of Justice currently is conducting a host of investigations related to the President's 1996 reelection campaign. The investigations include three preliminary investigations prompted by the Independent Counsel Act, including one against the President himself, and one against the Vice President.
Reality Check vs. Fundraising Checks
And during this same year that President Clinton attended those 100-plus fundraisers, he's attended only two cabinet meetings -- the first of which was on January 23, to lie to his cabinet about his relationship with a White House intern, and the second of which was on September 11, to admit to his cabinet that he lied about his relationship with a White House intern.
Fundraising Continues Unabated Despite Past Illegalities and Allegations
Fundraising is nothing new to the Clinton Administration, nor are allegations of illegality. Yet, are there no concerns about continued prodigious efforts considering past improprieties? If so, they have not succeeded in slowing down Team Clinton & Gore. Consider the trouble that recent past Democrat fundraising efforts have yielded:
- According to the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee, four individuals have pleaded guilty to crimes related to their efforts to raise money for this Administration or Democrat candidates: Johnny Chung, Howard Glicken, Nora Lum, and Gene Lum. Seven more have been charged: Maria Hsia, Charlie Trie, Antonio Pan, Yogesh Gandhi, Pauline Kanchanalak, Duangnet Kronenberg, and Mark Jimenez.
- Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt is being investigated by an independent counsel appointed to look into possible perjury and false statements in connection with his testimony before the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee.
- The Administration's own Department of Justice has three separate ongoing 90-day reviews, prompted by the Independent Counsel Act (triggered only by allegations of wrongdoing committed by high-ranking Administration officials), which could lead to independent counsel appointments to determine if:
- President Clinton himself violated campaign finance laws.
- Vice President Gore misled the FBI about his own fundraising activities.
- Clinton White House official Harold Ickes lied to the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee in 1997.
The Senate Governmental Affairs Committee's final report sums up the seamy story:
"The President and his aides demeaned the offices of the President and Vice President, took advantage of minority groups, pulled down all the barriers that would normally be in place to keep out illegal contributions, pressured policy makers, and left themselves open to strong suspicion that they were selling not only access to high-ranking officials, but policy as well. Millions of dollars were raised in illegal contributions, much of it from foreign sources. When these abuses were discovered, the result was numerous Fifth Amendment claims, flights from the country, and stonewalling from the White House and the DNC. . . . It is now the responsibility of the Attorney General or, more appropriately, an independent counsel to take these facts and aggressively pursue any and all indications of criminal wrong-doing..."Nonetheless, like the tentacles of a hyperactive octopus, the fundraising flights of Air Force One have fanned out from the Clinton White House, reaching into wallets from coast to coast.
Attachment: Clinton Fundraiser Travelog
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