Hillary Clinton and her unofficial political adviser Sidney Blumenthal planted a positive op-ed in the mainstream news publication Bloomberg View in 2011.
But this was no mere op-ed from a former staffer or random think-tank expert. They sent it in as an editorial, bylined to “The Editors” of Bloomberg, and it ironically praised Clinton’s role in Libya a year before the disastrous Benghazi terrorist attack. Clinton credited her “good friend” for writing the piece.
Though the Clinton-Blumenthal tag team did not write the piece themselves, their fingerprints were clearly all over it.
Blumenthal emailed Clinton at her private email address on September 8, 2011 with a draft Bloomberg View op-ed called “Hillary Clinton Deserves Credit For U.S. Role In Libya.” The op-ed was alternatively bylined “To The Editors” and to “The Editorial Board.”
The opening line of the piece declared: “The unsung hero of the Libya drama in the U.S. is Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.”
Blumenthal and Clinton chuckled about their good fortune.
“H: Per our conversation. Jamie writes editorial…Sid” Blumenthal wrote in the subject line of his email to Clinton.
“It was very welcome and gave me reason to sit down and talk w Jamie who is such a good friend. Hope to talk soon-H” Clinton replied.
It is unclear at this time who “Jamie” is, but it’s likely to have been James “Jamie” Rubin, who worked for Bill Clinton’s State Department in the 1990s and edited Bloomberg View during President Obama’s first term.
Bloomberg View did not immediately return a request for comment.
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