“Take the money!!” said Clinton campaign staffers who were debating whether to take foreign government donations from lobbyists.
Emails released by Wikileaks show a clear and indisputable intent by the campaign to engage in unethical and potentially criminal behavior when deciding whether to take money from foreign registered agents, who are typically American lobbyists working on behalf of foreign governments.
“We would look at who the donor is and what foreign entity they are registered for,” wrote Clinton’s general counsel Marc Elias. “In judging whether to take the money, we would consider the relationship between that country and the United States, its relationship to the State Department during Hillary’s time as Secretary, and its relationship, if any, to the Foundation.”
“In judging the individual, we would look at their history of support for political candidates generally and Hillary’s past campaigns specifically.”
Elias also advised Clinton strategist Robby Mook that it was better to just “take the money” and deal “with any attacks” later.
Federal law bars foreign money in U.S. elections, but one way foreign governments get around that is by making donations through their foreign registered agents who have little to fear from the Justice Dept. due to its lax enforcement of the Foreign Agents Registration Act, or FARA for short.
In other words, by taking these donations, the Clinton campaign is operating similarly to the Clinton Foundation: taking donations in exchange for favors to foreign governments.
The email exchange also reveals the campaign staffers are more concerned with what they can get away more than ethical concerns.
“At no point in the email chain do we see any calls for concern over the ethics of accepting donations from nations with abysmal human rights violations like UAE,” journalist Jack O’Sullivan said about the emails. “Hillary has run a campaign on women empowerment, but time and again her actions have revealed a person who believes little to nothing of what she espouses.”
Clinton already has a history of taking money from foreign donors, such as the India-based outsourcing firm Tata Consultancy Services which took jobs from thousands of Americans.
“As naïve as I was then, I now know that politicians like Hillary are not out to do what’s right for the people of America; they’re out to do what’s right for the people who donate money to them,” displaced American worker Mike Emmons told Breitbart.
In general, the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) prohibits foreign governments from contributing, donating or spending funds in connection with any federal, state, or local election in the United States, either directly or indirectly, according to the Federal Election Commission.
The ban was intended to protect U.S. “internal security” and was first enacted in 1966 as part of FARA.
“It is also unlawful to help foreign nationals violate that ban or to solicit, receive or accept contributions or donations from them,” the FEC states. “Persons who knowingly and willfully engage in these activities may be subject to fines and/or imprisonment.”
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