Hillary Clinton's 2016 White House campaign took several major hits in the press Thursday morning, as reports surfaced about damaging new links between the Clinton Foundation and Clinton's tenure as secretary of state.
Many of these revelations are from Peter Schweizer's new book "Clinton Cash," but other details were fleshed out further by other reporters.
Hillary Clinton's campaign took a major hit in the press Thursday morning as allegations swirled about links between the money the Clinton Foundation took from foreign donors and her actions when she was secretary of state. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
Here's a round up of the top six things to take away from Thursday morning's rush of news:
1) The Clintons Failed to Report Millions of Dollars in Contributions From a Uranium Company Linked to Russia
The New York Times reported early Thursday morning that while Clinton was secretary of state, a Russian energy company called Rosatom was working to take over a Canadian company, Uranium One, that had stakes to uranium around the world, including some in America.
"As the Russians gradually assumed control of Uranium One in three separate transactions from 2009 to 2013, Canadian records show, a flow of cash made its way to the Clinton Foundation," the Times wrote. "Uranium One's chairman used his family foundation to make four donations totaling $2.35 million."
"Those contributions were not publicly disclosed by the Clintons, despite an agreement Mrs. Clinton had struck with the Obama White House to publicly identify all donors," the Times added.
The Times noted the Obama administration was making promises that it would be no problem selling the uranium stakes to Russia. Additionally, Bill Clinton was then paid $500,000 for a speech in Moscow, which was paid by "a Russian investment bank with links to the Kremlin that was promoting Uranium One stock."
2) The State Department Helped Approve the Sale of Uranium One When It was Led by Clinton
According to the Wall Street Journal, the State Department plays a role on the government committee that examines whether the sale of a company to a foreign company has an impact on U.S. national security. That committee approved the sale of Uranium One to Rosatom in 2010, when Clinton was secretary of State.
3) Clinton's Camp Is Denying Any Wrongdoing
While the uranium deal looks like a possible deal in which Rosatom gave money to the Clintons in exchange for allowing the sale of Uranium One, Brian Fallon, a spokesman for Clinton, said no one has produced "a shred of evidence" that this is the case.
"To suggest the State Department, under then-Secretary Clinton, exerted undue influence in the U.S. government’s review of the sale of Uranium One is utterly baseless," he said, according to the Wall Street Journal.
4) The Clinton Foundation Is Redoing Its Tax Returns
Reuters reported Thursday that based on its own review of the Clinton Foundation, several tax errors are apparent, that that news is forcing the foundation to refile "at least five annual tax returns."
For example, the foundation had said that from 2010 to 2012, it received no funds at all from any government. But those claims were "errors."
"[S]everal foreign governments continued to give tens of millions of dollars toward the foundation's work on climate change and economic development through this three-year period," Reuters wrote.
A spokesman for the foundation told Reuters that they were "prioritizing an external review" of its tax forms, and said it's possible returns from the last 15 years might have to be corrected.
The Clinton Health Access Initiative is also refiling tax returns from 2012 and 2012 after finding "typographical errors."
5) Companies Lobbying State Department While They Donate to the Clinton Foundation
These facts are in addition to ongoing reports that dozens of companies were lobbying the State Department for various reasons while Clinton was in office, and were giving money to the Clinton Foundation at the same time.
The Wall Street Journal reported that "at least 60 companies" were doing this, and gave the foundation "more than $26 million."
6) Companies Paying Speaking Fees to the Clintons While They Donate to the Clinton Foundation
According to the Washington Post, Bill Clinton was paid $26 million in speaking fees by companies that were also donating to the Clinton Foundation.
"The amount, about one-quarter of Clinton's overall speaking income between 2001 and 2013, demonstrates how closely intertwined Bill and Hillary Clinton's charitable work has become with their growing personal wealth," it said.
