January 7, 2009 | Read Time: 1 minute
Bill Clinton’s foundation is pushing back against the suggestion that the former president should not raise money for his charitable efforts if his wife is secretary of state.
Last month, a Washington Post editorial argued that the William J. Clinton Foundation does “valuable work” but the fact that the former president raises money from foreign governments and others “presents an unavoidable conflict” if his wife, Hillary Rodham Clinton, is the nation’s top diplomat.
“Ms. Clinton and the future Barack Obama administration would be better served if Mr. Clinton were to direct his prodigious energies elsewhere for the duration of her service,” it said.
But Bruce Lindsey, the foundation’s chief executive, blasted the idea in a letter to the editor this week.
Calling the editorial “shortsighted and dangerous,” Mr. Lindsey writes that the newspaper’s proposal would undermine Mr. Clinton’s philanthropic accomplishments, which includes forging deals to provide inexpensive anti-AIDS medicines to more than 1.4 million people in Africa and elsewhere.
“The Post said Mr. Clinton should ‘direct his prodigious energies’ away from his foundation’s work, despite his unparalleled capacity to connect with average people on every continent and to encourage global leaders of the public and private sectors to join together to get things done,” he writes.
Read The Chronicle’s articles about the questions surrounding Mr. Clinton’s foundation and its work in Africa. (A paid subscription or free temporary pass is required to view these stories.)
What do you think? Should Mr. Clinton stop fund raising if his wife leads the State Department? Click on the comment button below to share your view.
