Looking over the family business
The news pages of the New York Times are saying that Hillary Clinton is likely to become Secretary of State: “Democrats close to both camps said Sunday that it seemed likely that Obama would ask her to take the job, assuming they could work something out regarding Bill Clinton’s role.” Meanwhile, Maureeen Dowd appears to have her own ideas on the subject. NYT
last January Bill got so worked up in a phone call with Donna Brazile that he ranted, “If Barack Obama is nominated, it will be the worst denigration of public service.” The magazine also revealed that “the former president had amassed an 81-page list of all the unfair and nasty things the Obama campaign had said, or was alleged to have said, about Hillary Clinton.”
If Hillary wants to be Madame Secretary, Bill will have to put away the 81-page list and pick up the 63 questions in the Obama vetting questionnaire, an unprecedented deep probe of potential cabinet members and their spouses.
Even if Bill scurries past the questions on sexual harassment claims, conflicts of interest, civil suits, real estate holdings, federal investigations, diaries, gifts worth more than $50 and Internet aliases, the Clintons will still have to grapple with No. 8: “Briefly describe the most controversial matters you have been involved with during the course of your career.” (It would take books, and it has.)
Not to mention No. 62: “Do you know anyone or any organization…that might take steps, overtly or covertly, fairly or unfairly, to criticize your nomination, including any news organization?”
One such news organization might be the New York Times itself, which last February described an extraordinary business deal in which the Clinton’s or their foundation, might have made $131 million in profits by playing matchmaker with Kazakhstan’s repressive government.
November 18th, 2008 at 10:17 am
Does HRC becoming Sec State open up rich new business opportunities for Bill, or is he legally restrained in any way while his wife is Secretary?