www.commondreams.org/news/2016/06/22/hacker-leaks-secret-dnc-master-files-hillary-clinton-foundation
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Hacker Leaks Secret DNC Master
Files on Hillary Clinton & Foundation
Long before Clinton declared candidacy, the DNC researched her
"vulnerabilities"—including speaking fees, private jets, and
high-rolling Clinton Foundation donors
The documents, most of which appear to be dated from the spring
of 2015, reveal a party entirely focused on propping up its establishment
candidate, critics contend. (Photo: Christiaan Colen/flickr/cc)
The anonymous hacker calling themselves Guccifer 2.0 released a second trove of internal documents from
Democratic National Committee (DNC) servers on Tuesday, including a hefty
113-page file titled "Hillary Clinton Master Doc" that includes
research the party performed on behalf of Clinton's candidacy—months before she
declared an intention to run.
The documents reveal that the DNC was particularly worried about
Clinton's speaking fees, her book advance, and her somewhat exacting luxury
travel requirements for appearances.
As the Daily Beast summarized:
Several
documents leaked [...] show that DNC researchers, whose annotated notes can
still be seen in the electronic files, looked for the tiniest potential
infraction or questionable item in Clinton’s travel expenses, for instance,
asking why one trip from New York to Washington, D.C., aboard a Bank of America
jet cost just $45.75, an amount that a researcher called "weirdly
low."
A whole
section in the "Master Doc" is devoted to questions and criticism
about the money Clinton made from her book advance, book tour, and her public
speeches, which generally ran around $250,000 per appearance and required the
host to provide first-class travel and accommodations. In Clinton's defense,
the DNC cites articles stressing that fees went to the Clinton Foundation, and characterizing the
work that the former secretary did in her private life not as an attempt to
enrich herself, but to benefit her and her husband’s charitable work.
Also in the dossier were documents gathered by the DNC related
to Clinton's sky-high speaking fees, including an email from
her booking agency that contradicts Clinton's defense that she merely accepted
"what they offered" when she was paid over $200,000 per speech—a
claim that reporters have previously critiqued.
As journalist Shaun King observed on Twitter:
Remember
when Hillary was asked why she charged $225,000 per speech and she said
"that's what they offered"
— Shaun
King (@ShaunKing) June 22, 2016
The Smoking Gun notes the other amenities
Clinton required in her speaking contracts:
In
addition to a "standard" $225,000 fee, Clinton required a "chartered
roundtrip private jet" that needed to be a Gulfstream 450 or a larger aircraft.
Depending on its outfitting, the Gulfstream jet, which costs upwards of $40
million, can seat 19 passengers and "sleeps up to six." Clinton's
contract also stipulated that speech hosts had to pay for separate first class
or business airfare for three of her aides.
As for
lodging, Clinton required "a presidential suite" and up to
"three (3) adjoining or contiguous rooms for her travel aides" and up
to two extra rooms for advance staff. The host was also responsible for the
Clinton travel party’s ground transportation, meals, and "phone
charges/cell phones."
Additionally,
the host also had to pay "a flat fee of $1000" for a stenographer to
create "an immediate transcript of Secretary Clinton's remarks." The
contract adds, however, "We will be unable to share a copy of the transcript
following the event."
Moreover, the DNC appeared particularly worried about the
"vulnerabilities" of the Clinton Foundation, such as its acceptance of
million-dollar plus donations from private corporations and foreign
governments, its veiled finances, and its record in Haiti.
One file (pdf) titled "Clinton
Foundation Donors $25K+" documents the high-rolling donors to the Clinton
Foundation, including the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (in the $10-$25 million
column), the Saudi Arabian construction magnate Sheikh Mohammed H. Al-Amoudi
($5-$10 million), Barclays Capital ($1-$5 million), ExxonMobil ($1-$5 million),
and Chevron ($500,000-$1 million), among many other private
corporations—including healthcare, oil and gas, and media giants—and foreign
governments.
In a master file called "Clinton Foundation Master
Doc," DNC researchers appear to have gathered reporting spanning years on
the "vulnerabilities" of the Clinton Foundation's record and
finances, revealing a particular point of anxiety for the party:
The documents, most of which appear to be dated from the spring
of 2015, reveal a party entirely focused on propping up its establishment
candidate, critics contend, while failing to support or even predict the
success of outsider candidate Bernie Sanders.
Indeed, much of the "opposition research" on other
Democratic candidates focused on Lincoln Chafee, Martin O'Malley, Jim Webb, and
even Vice President Joe Biden, who never declared an intention to run.
Some argue that these leaks lend more weight to accusations that
the primary was "rigged" in favor of the former secretary of state.
And whoever Guccifer 2.0 may be, they appear to be taking a more
active role in the leaks—saying they're nowwilling to speak to the press via Twitter—supporting
whistleblower Edward Snowden's statement that such hacktivists are "now
demonstrating intent—and capability—to influence elections."
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"The master class
has always declared the wars; the subject class has always fought the battles.
The master class has had all to gain and nothing to lose, while the subject
class has had nothing to gain and everything to lose--especially their
lives." Eugene Victor Debs
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