There was never any doubt in my cynical mind that the Clinton Foundation was a personal enrichment scheme, a convenient vehicle to launder foreign money bribes, and a place to park Clinton operatives between government appointments and political campaigns.
One of the most widely publicized controversies related to the Clinton Foundation involved donations made by foreign governments and individuals while Hillary Clinton was serving as Secretary of State during the Obama administration, raising significant concerns about potential conflicts of interest, suggesting that these donations influenced U.S. foreign policy decisions or the actions of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), which approved the Uranium One deal.
For those with short memories, the 2010 Uranium One deal involved the sale of Uranium One, a Canadian mining company with uranium interests in the United States, to Rosatom, the Russian state nuclear energy corporation. The deal required approval from several U.S. government agencies, including the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), because it involved the transfer of control over uranium mining operations in the U.S. to a foreign entity, Rosatom. It was revealed that some individuals associated with Uranium One, including its chairman, had donated heavily to the Clinton Foundation. Donations were said to total $145 million.
Of course, no action was taken against the Clintons since Obama’s Department of Justice and FBI were heavily compromised. Ever wonder why those 30,000+ emails were destroyed if they only contained "personal" information and Chelsea's wedding plans?
So, I am unsurprised that the Clinton Foundation is dipping its beak in the billions of untraceable government dollars flowing to Ukraine with no oversight or accountability.
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Clinton Global Initiative plans to announce the launch of the CGI Ukraine Action Network, as well as numerous financial pledges, to support nonprofits working in the country.
The Clinton Global Initiative Ukraine Action Network is the result of a collaboration between Hillary Clinton and Olena Zelenska, first lady of Ukraine, that began last year. The new organization, which will be formally announced Tuesday, is designed to mobilize existing CGI partners, as well as new leaders from around the world, to create and finance new commitments for Ukrainians, according to CGI. <Source: Associated Press>
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It's funny how the same names keep appearing…
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The Wall Street Journal article specifically looked at “foreign individuals and their foundations and companies” who “were large donors to the Clinton Foundation” while Clinton was secretary of state from Jan. 21, 2009 to Feb. 1, 2013.
In the case of Ukraine, the amount given appeared so high because of one donor — Victor Pinchuk, a former Ukrainian parliamentarian and businessman whose father-in-law is a former president of Ukraine.
“Between 2009 and 2013, including when Mrs. Clinton was secretary of state, the Clinton Foundation received at least $8.6 million from the Victor Pinchuk Foundation, according to that foundation, which is based in Kiev, Ukraine,” the Journal reported. “It was created by Mr. Pinchuk, whose fortune stems from a pipe-making company. He served two terms as an elected member of the Ukrainian Parliament and is a proponent of closer ties between Ukraine and the European Union.”
The newspaper also said that, in 2008, “Mr. Pinchuk made a five-year, $29 million commitment to the Clinton Global Initiative, a wing of the foundation that coordinates charitable projects and funding for them but doesn’t handle the money. The pledge was to fund a program to train future Ukrainian leaders and professionals ‘to modernize Ukraine,’ according to the Clinton Foundation. Several alumni are current members of the Ukrainian Parliament. Actual donations so far amount to only $1.8 million, a Pinchuk foundation spokesman said, citing the impact of the 2008 financial crisis.” <Source>
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Victor Pinchuk?
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Ex-Obama lawyer Craig charged in Mueller spin-off probe for lying about Ukraine work
Greg Craig, who served as former President Barack Obama’s top White House lawyer, was charged on Thursday with lying about work he performed in 2012 for Ukraine in a case that grew out of Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation.
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, the New York law firm that produced the report, agreed in January to turn over the $4.6 million it was paid and retroactively register as a foreign agent, as part of a settlement with the Justice Department.
Skadden produced the 187-page report at the behest of Paul Manafort, the former chairman of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign who is currently serving a 7 1/2-year prison sentence for lobbying violations and financial crimes.
According to the indictment, Craig covered up aspects of his work in order to avoid registering as a foreign agent under FARA, a rarely enforced law that was enacted in 1938 to counter Nazi propaganda.
Had Craig complied with the law, he would have been forced to reveal that funding for the report largely came from Viktor Pinchuk, a Ukrainian billionaire. Pinchuk paid the firm $4 million for its work, according to Skadden filings made as part of its settlement.
The Ukrainian government only paid Skadden $12,000 - an amount so low that it aroused suspicion in Ukrainian media. <Source>
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Corruption is corruption and cuts both ways…
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Mueller Investigating Ukrainian’s $150,000 Payment for a Trump Appearance
Investigators subpoenaed the Trump Organization this year for an array of records about business with foreign nationals. In response, the company handed over documents about a $150,000 donation that the Ukrainian billionaire, Victor Pinchuk, made in September 2015 to the Donald J. Trump Foundation in exchange for a 20-minute appearance by Mr. Trump that month through a video link to a conference in Kiev.
Michael D. Cohen, the president’s personal lawyer whose office and hotel room were raided on Monday in an apparently unrelated case, solicited the donation. The contribution from Mr. Pinchuk, who has sought closer ties for Ukraine to the West, was the largest the foundation received in 2015 from anyone besides Mr. Trump himself. <Source>
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Bottom line…
Historically, corruption in Ukraine has been pervasive and deeply rooted in all sectors of society, including government, law enforcement, judiciary, and business. The idea they would change their national culture now that unaudited funds are flowing freely into the country is unbelievable.
I can’t help but wonder how much money is being siphoned out of Ukrainian foreign aid since nobody in the media is even curious about where the money is going.
We are so screwed.
-- Steve