Newly released emails reveal that top aide to Hillary Clinton Huma Abedin regularly facilitated meetings between wealthy Clinton Foundation donors and the Democratic party presidential candidate when Clinton was the head of the State Department.
More than 700 pages of previously unreleased emails, published on Monday by the government watchdog group Judicial Watch, show the top Clinton aide working as a conduit between senior Clinton Foundation staffers to furnish favors and special access for foundation donors.
In one June 2009 exchange involving Crown Prince Salman of Bahrain, senior Clinton Foundation official Doug Band sent a message notifying Abedin that the crown prince was visiting the U.S. and wanted a meeting arranged with then-Secretary of State Clinton.
“Cp of Bahrain in tomorrow to Friday. Asking to see her. Good friend of ours,” Band wrote Abedin on her State Department email address on June 23, 2009.
Abedin responded later that day, explaining that the crown prince had tried and failed to meet with Clinton through “normal channels” a week prior.
“I asked and she said she doesn’t want to commit to anything for thurs or fri until she knows how she will feel. Also, she says that she may want to go to ny and doesn’t want to be committed to stuff in ny [sic],” Abedin wrote through her official State Department email account, later clarify writing “stuff in dc.”
“Cool,” Band wrote in response to Abedin’s first message.
“Offering bahrain cp 10 tomorrow for mtg [with ] hrc. If u see him, let him know,” Abedin wrote to Band two days later. “We have reached out thru official channels.”
“Nice. Abdullah is his guy. He’s great.” Band responded.
Another email exchange between Abedin and Clinton shows how Slim-Fast founder S. Daniel Abraham was granted access to then-Secretary of State Clinton within hours after contacting Abedin.
“Danny abraham called this morning. He is in dc today and tomorrow and asked for 15 min with you. Do u want me to try and fit him in tomorrow?” Abedin wrote to Clinton on May 4, 2009.
“Will the plane wait if I can’t get there before 7-8?” Clinton replied.
“Yes of course,” Abedin responded.
According to the Clinton Foundation website, Abraham has given between $5 million and $10 million to the Clinton Foundation.
From rock singer Bono to members of a UK football club, there are dozens of examples of monied Clinton Foundation donors receiving favors, preferential treatment, and special access to Hillary Clinton mere months after she took the helm at the State Department.
Earlier this month, Clinton-Abedin emails showed Band putting Clinton Foundation mega-donor Gilbert Chagoury in contact with the State Department’s “substance person” on Lebanon affairs. The wealthy Nigerian-Lebanese businessman and longtime friend of former President Bill Clinton has donated between $1 to $5 million to the Clinton Foundation, and Chagoury’s company pledged $1 billion to the Clinton Global Initiative in 2009.
Monday’s release of the previously undisclosed emails, nearly 15,000, further contradicts Clinton’s claim last September that she “provided all of them” to the State Department.
Follow Jerome Hudson on Twitter: @JeromeEHudson
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