The Clinton Foundation is preparing for changes if Hillary Clinton becomes president.
▪ Clinton Foundation President Donna Shalala said the organization would send some of its work to other organizations.
▪ Former President Bill Clinton and Chelsea Clinton announced they would leave the board of a health program affiliated with the Clinton Foundation. The Clinton Health Access Initiative also would no longer use Clinton in its branding.
▪ The foundation had already announced that Bill Clinton would step down from the board and no longer raise money while the organization itself would no longer accept foreign and corporate donations.
“When she’s president, there’s no process you could set up that would eliminate conflict of interest, so we actually have to reduce the size of the foundation and what it does,” Shalala told CNN on Thursday. “What we have to do when she’s president is we have to actually eliminate any aspect of conflict of interest, so all the international programs are spun off.”
The family would maintain some connections to the Clinton Foundation, which is sure to attract continued criticism. Chelsea Clinton would remain on the foundation’s board while the Clinton Health Access Initiative would accept corporate and foreign money.
Hillary Clinton has faced a barrage of questions about whether she provided special access to foundation donors during her four years as secretary of state. But Shalala denied those allegations Thursday.
“There’s no evidence that policy was impacted by anyone requesting an appointment. So let me dispute any indication that Mrs. Clinton’s behavior on policy was changed in any way,” Shalala said. “The most important thing is, this is a magnificent foundation that has reinvented philanthropy.”
Bill Clinton is planning a foundation fundraiser Friday at the Rainbow Room in New York but Shalala said she had vetted the guest list.
“For that party, I looked at the list and other than two people, all of them are people who have been annual donors to the foundation and are longtime friends of the president,” Shalala said. “The two people are my guests, who I paid for: farmers in North Dakota — my twin sister and her husband.”
Donald Trump has said he will sever ties to his personal businesses if he’s elected president.
Anita Kumar: 202-383-6017, @anitakumar01
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