Michelle Malkin » The Clintons’ Saudi-funded library

The Clintons’ Saudi-funded library

By Michelle Malkin • December 15, 2007 09:53 AM

The story is on page A3 of the Washington Post today and it should come as no surprise: Saudis have been as generous with the Clinton family as they have with the Bushes:

Bill Clinton’s presidential library raised more than 10 percent of the cost of its $165 million facility from foreign sources, with the most generous overseas donation coming from Saudi Arabia, according to interviews yesterday.

The royal family of Saudi Arabia gave the Clinton facility in Little Rock about $10 million, roughly the same amount it gave toward the presidential library of George H.W. Bush, according to people directly familiar with the contributions.

The presidential campaign of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) has for months faced questions about the source of the money for her husband’s presidential library. During a September debate, moderator Tim Russert asked the senator whether her husband would release a donor list. Clinton said she was sure her husband would “be happy to consider that,” though the former president later declined to provide a list of donors.

…A handful of major donors’ names to the Clinton library were disclosed in 2004 when a New York Sun reporter accessed a public computer terminal at the library that provided a list of donors. Soon after the article appeared, the list of donors was removed.

The amount of the contribution from Saudi Arabia and several other countries, as well as the percentage of the total given by foreigners, had not been revealed.

The Post confirmed numerous seven-figure donors to the library through interviews and tax records of foundations. Several foreign governments gave at least $1 million, including the Middle Eastern nations of Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, as well as the governments of Taiwan and Brunei.

In addition, a handful of Middle Eastern business executives and officials also gave at least $1 million each, according to the interviews. They include Saudi businessmen Abdullah al-Dabbagh, Nasser al-Rashid and Walid Juffali, as well as Issam Fares, a U.S. citizen who previously served as deputy prime minister of Lebanon.

The Drudge Report is teasing a second strike at the Clinton library donors by the NYT tomorrow. Looks like the Hill-a-copter can’t fly high enough to avoid Obama’s RPGs.

Meantime, Bill Clinton is saying his Hail Marys. He gave Charlie Rose his assessment of his wife’s chances:

“It’s a miracle she’s got a chance to win.”

Posted in: Hillary Clinton, Saudi Arabia

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#1

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:00 am, ajmontana said:

Well heck man, those paper shredders are expensive.
#2

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:01 am, DaveC said:

1st to comment.. woo hoo..

Okay. got that out of the system
#3

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:03 am, DaveC said:

ahhh, H E double hockey sticks..

Saudis have been as generous with the Clinton family as they have with the Bushes:

well, it is in the saudi’s best interest to keep money flowing to the US President no matter who is in charge.
#4

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:06 am, twiggman said:

Paying the armed guard watching over all those experience proving documents, also coast lots of dollars..
#5

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:08 am, twiggman said:

SORRY “cost”
#6

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:10 am, hongqi said:

Don’t you get it? This is their clever-smart-tricky-sneaky way of keeping the Saudis from funding the madrases(?), Madrasi(?). Influence peddling, beholding to head-chopper-offers, not a chance.
#7

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:36 am, The Raging Republican said:

Shady Clinton donors…….. WHAT?!?!?!?!?

Well, I am as ~~surprised~~ Duh as the next guy!
#8

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:39 am, DBNinKY said:

I feel somewhat ambivalent on this issue because while I have no problems with foreign sources donating funds to a presidential library, Republican or Democrat, it makes me uneasy and suspicious that, in this case, the foreign source is the Saudis, and the recipient library Mr. Clinton’s.
#9

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:40 am, ajmontana said:

Rumor has it that monies would only be in play if Norman Hsu was the curator.
#10

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:41 am, Marshall Russ said:

He’s got to have the biggest trailer in the trailer park don’t ya’ know!
#11

On December 15th, 2007 at 10:51 am, tarpon said:

I don’t think it is illegal for a foreign government to payback the President for favors rendered or taxpayer money expended once they leave office. As long as payment goes to the appropriate former President’s slush fund or library and massage parlor, I do believe it is legal.
#12

On December 15th, 2007 at 11:42 am, JammieWearingFool said:

I wonder if the WaPo will get around to reporting how she’s taking money from Tamil Tiger supporters.

They are a terrorist group, after all.
#13

On December 15th, 2007 at 11:51 am, txvet2 said:

Bill Clinton has solicited donations for the library personally, aides said, but he also delegated much of the fundraising to others, especially Terence R. McAuliffe, a former chairman of the Democratic National Committee and the chairman of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign.

Possibly legal, but since Hillary directly or indirectly benefits from it, still pretty much on the shady side. I don’t think the writers of the law ever envisioned the circumstances extant. And having McCauliffe in charge virtually guarantees something illegal is going on.

I don’t notice any reference to Indonesians or Chinese in this. One would think the Clinton’s favorite sources of slush would get some play.
#14

On December 15th, 2007 at 12:13 pm, ThackerAgency said:

This makes me so mad. Our political system is bought and paid for by foreigners. No wonder we can’t be tough on Saudi Arabia - it’s not the oil - it’s the donations that our ‘leaders’ get from them.

Who needs to be an American citizen when you have to pay taxes? You can be just as influential by just buying off our ‘leaders’. Saudi Arabia will continue to violate human rights and foment wahabi Islam around the world as long as they give the ‘leaders’ money.

For this one reason alone, I don’t want another Clinton in the White House. They are for sale to the highest bidder - even if it is Osama Bin Laden.
#15

On December 15th, 2007 at 1:13 pm, secondsight said:

Reminds me of Ronnie going to Japan to give a speech for a $1 Million or so.

It is hard to eat a library though.

But I do wonder what kind of internet access they get. Or high def tv — satelite dishes on the roof?
#16

On December 15th, 2007 at 1:51 pm, WarTip said:

It is not the foreign money going into the libraries of anyone that concerns me. What bugs me is all of the foreign money being invested in our elections, lobbyists and other foreign interest groups that have the politicians by the ……. oh wait, they don’t have any ……. by the …. by the wallets!

Methinks it will take more than a housecleaning to get us out of this mess!
#17

On December 15th, 2007 at 2:02 pm, right_on said:

The list of donors now longer exists…Sandy Burgler made several un-documented late night trips to the museum archives to do “research,” but unfortunately, the guards on duty have no memory of these visits.

The guards were rewarded with nice holiday bonuses this year, and said (as they drove away in their new Mercedes sedans,) that they didn’t recall who gave them the bonuses, nor the amount they received.

…or something like that!
#18

On December 15th, 2007 at 3:45 pm, BrianNY said:

So, Bubba Jefferson Clinton constantly wags his cigar hand in our direction and tells us that he and Hillary don’t deserve the immoral tax cuts which President Bush has given them; yet instead of giving these riches back to the federal government, they raise other peoples’ money to build themselves a $165 million library?

Its behavior like this that causes me to actually believe Bubba when he says: “It’s a miracle she’s got a chance to win.”
#19

On December 15th, 2007 at 4:50 pm, nbarry said:

Now we know what these clowns mean by “legacy” when they dabble as Middle East peace processors. Their estates need some fattening. There may be nothing illegal about foreign donations to a presidential library, but money is fungible, and who knows how much gets diverted or “loaned” to a presidential campaign, especially since we are now seeing dynasties looking to rule?
#20

On December 15th, 2007 at 5:17 pm, Christian Soldier said:

Two books:
Funding Evil
Alms for Jihad (may be difficult to find-Saudi billionaire sued Cambridge Press in England demanding that it be removed from all sales in U.S. and Eng.-Cambridge folded-book no longer available)- I found mine in the local library.

When I say that the Bush(es) and most politiicians hold hands with the Saudis I mean it.

Lest we forget-it was Saudis who murdered over 3000 Americans by flying planes into our buildings 9/11.
#21

On December 15th, 2007 at 5:41 pm, Romeo13 said:

Hmmm…. does this money fund offices, staff, or equipment?

If so, since in most states we have Joint Property laws… and the Clintons themselves would have to pay for these support services if not provided by the “Library”…

Then is this not a direct contribution to Hillarys household funds? Some of which she has used for her campaign?

Twisty… very twisty…
#22

On December 15th, 2007 at 6:01 pm, Texhoma said:

Saudi Arabia considers it a cheap expense to keep off the Axis of Evil list.
#23

On December 15th, 2007 at 8:02 pm, RetFireman said:

But…but…Michael Moore said…

And the Liberals said…

And the 9-11 Truthers said…

How can any of this be true?

I was told by all these people…and these Liberals and people on the Left, all these Liberals and people in Hollywood and Truthers that Bush and Cheney were the evil conspirators with the Saudis and that was why 9-11 happened and why we went to war and why the oil prices were so high and why Bush won the election and so many other things. How can all that be true if the Saudis are and have been donating money and giving money to the Clintons?

If they have been, then that makes everything that all these Liberals and Hollywood types, and MM, and Truthers and everyone else A BIG FAT FREAKING LIE AND MADE UP BS AND PARANOID FREAKINESS!!!!

Wow…I just don’t know WHAT to believe.

Bear…AJ…Help. Spin me in the right Direction. Michelle…say it isn’t so!!!! Tell me that Liberals don’t lie.
#24

On December 16th, 2007 at 10:35 am, Nobility said:

2ndrate sight
Could not let your j***a**ed comment go unchallenged. Ronnie flew to Japan and took 271 family members with him to Japan to be with loved ones. Please list all the help the Clintons have given our military.
#25

On December 16th, 2007 at 10:44 am, NHMagenta said:

The fix for this is simple - the National Archives (NARA) via Congress should be the only source of funding for Presidential libraries.
#26

On December 17th, 2007 at 12:14 pm, AlohaGuy said:

$165 million seems a tad high. Hmm, there’s the cigar room, the knee pad display, the ever popular “guess which dress” closet, the “grope the widow” game room, satellite photos of bin Laden giving Bubba the bird, ok, I guess it could be that high…
#27

On January 15th, 2008 at 7:47 pm, Straight_Talk_Luigi said:

Surprised?? Not really. Better than mosques though. At any rate, the Saudis are very good at playing both sides on most any issue, but above all, they service themselves before anyone else.
#28

On March 4th, 2008 at 2:26 pm, FirstSkirt said:

I am shocked, shocked I tell you, to learn of this money connection between the Saudis and the Clintons. I will add this to my list of “gates”: impeachmentgate, VinceFostermurdergate, travelgate, whitewatergate, Wileygat, Sexgate, pardongate, filegate, pornogate, RonBrowngate, Cubagate, Wacogate, IRSgate, Healthcareplangate, PLOgate, and on, and on, and on…