Here is there their press release, for those interested.
Citing concerns about potential conflicts of interest and the influence of hidden overseas donors, Common Cause called on presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton and the Clinton Foundation today to commission an independent and thorough review of all large donations to the foundation and to release the results.
The full text continues, below the fold.
“As Mrs. Clinton herself observed earlier this week, voluntary disclosure is not enough,” said Common Cause President Miles Rapoport. “A report in Thursday’s New York Times indicates that the Clinton Foundation violated an agreement to identify all of its donors. The foundation’s omissions create significant gaps in the information that voters need to make informed decisions at the polls.”
To ensure that the audit is complete, Rapoport said the foundation should enter into a contractual agreement with auditors to open its books fully and to make public the complete report of their review.
And to further guard against potential conflicts of interest, the foundation should stop accepting donations from foreign governments and foreign corporations, he said.
“There already is too much ‘dark money’ in our elections, in the form of spending by supposedly independent nonprofit groups that are not required to disclose their donors and operate as sort of shadow campaigns,” Rapoport said. “The Clinton Foundation and any other foundations tied to a candidate or his or her family provide one more way for potential donors to gain access and curry favor from candidates – without the public knowing about it. That lack of transparency creates a clear risk of undue influence and conflicts of interest.”
While the Clinton Foundation has garnered headlines this week, Rapoport noted that at least one other apparent presidential hopeful, Republican Jeb Bush, has close ties to a foundation. The former Florida governor created the Foundation for Excellence in Education and last year turned over its leadership to former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice; it should initiate and make public the same kind of independent review Common Cause is recommending for the Clinton Foundation, Rapoport said.
Though Mrs. Clinton has severed ties with the Clinton Foundation, her husband and daughter remain active in its operations.
“Six years ago, at Mrs. Clinton’s confirmation hearing for her appointment as secretary of state, then-Sen. Dick Lugar observed that ‘that foreign governments and entities may perceive the Clinton Foundation as a means to gain favor with the secretary of state.’ He was right, and his remarks remain relevant today as Mrs. Clinton seeks the presidency,” Rapoport said.
Common Cause is a nonpartisan, grassroots organization dedicated to restoring the core values of American democracy, reinventing an open, honest, and accountable government that works for the public interest, and empowering ordinary people to make their voices heard.
For those who don't know Common Cause, here is Wikipedia's
summary:
Common Cause is a non-profit, liberal advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1970 by Republican John W. Gardner, the former Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in the administration of President Lyndon Johnson, a Democrat. The group was created to serve as a citizens' lobby to establish greater transparency and accountability in U.S. political institutions. Common Cause's President and CEO from 2007-2013 was Robert W. Edgar, a former Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives. His successor, Miles Rapoport [Connecticut legislator (D, 1985–94)], former President of Demos, began work with the organization in March 2014. In September 2010, Robert Reich the former Secretary of Labor in the administration of President Bill Clinton, became the Chairman of the National Governing Board.