The corruption scandal embroiling FIFA encroaches upon the Clintons, leaving the former president scurrying to distance himself from a cash source that once close appeared quite close.
As the Hillary Clinton 2106 Presidential spin machine reels from revelations about the cash received from the Clinton Foundation from foreign and corrupt sources, including Qatar, the latest effort to extricate Hillary from the mess appeared in a story planted in the Washington Post, which asserted that Bill Clinton’s anger about his failed efforts to obtain the 2022 World Cup for the United States reached such levels that he smashed a mirror when he first heard the news.
When it came to donations to their foundation, the Clintons simply ignored scathing criticism of some of their donors, including charges that Qatar, which has given the Clinton Foundation between $1 million and $5 million over the years, had abused dozens of migrant Nepalese workers who died on World Cup construction sites in Qatar. Bill Clinton said in March, “What you find is that you’ve got to decide when you do this work, whether it’ll do more good than harm if someone helps you from another country. My theory about all of this is disclose everything and then let people make their judgments.”
The story about Clinton in 2010, quoting a “well-placed” source speaking to the Sydney Morning Herald, paints him as frustrated with the World Cup’s decision to choose Qatar, which was thought at the time to have used corrupt methods to obtain the Cup. Clinton had spent two years working with celebrities such Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Spike Lee to win the Cup. The Sunday Times revealed that Qatar made under-the-table payments totaling $5 million to obtain the Cup.
But as the years passed and the Clinton Foundation reaped millions from Qatar, and Qatar stood to gain millions from the 2022 World Cup, Clinton’s attitude underwent a major transformation. By the time of the Clinton Global Initiative’s 2013 annual meeting, Bill Clinton was hosting Hassan Abdullah Al-Thawadi, who had led the Qatari effort to secure the 2022 World Cup.
Stephen Russell, the coordinator of Playfair Qatar, has alleged that Qatar makes charitable donations to organizations such as the Clinton Foundation to gain international legitimacy, adding, “We compare it to medieval kings, building churches before they die to try to get into heaven.”
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