Enron's 'gift' to Clinton's party ~

The Hindu | 8-26-97 | Sridhar Krishnaswami

[tallhappy]

THE HINDU

August 26, 1997

SECTION: News; Pg. 14, Col. a

HEADLINE: Enron's 'gift' to Clinton's party

BYLINE: Sridhar Krishnaswami

BODY: WASHINGTON, Aug. 25.

In another interesting addition to the Democratic Party's fund- raising mess, Time magazine is reporting that four days before the Government in New Delhi gave final approval for the Enron Corporation's $ 3 billion venture in India, the company gave the Democratic National Committee $ 100,000. The latest issue of Time says that Enron denied that its "gift" was a repayment for Mr.Bill Clinton's attention.

In "The Scoop" section of the magazine, writer Michael Weisskopf reports from Washington that on November 22, 1995, the U.S. President wrote an "FYI"(for your information) note to the then Chief of Staff, Mr. Thomas "Mack" McLarty and enclosed a newspaper article on the Enron Corporation and the "vicissitudes" of the $ 3 billion power project plant in India. Mr.McLarty is then said to have contacted the Enron Chairman, Mr.Ken Lay; over the next nine months Mr.McLarty closely monitored that project with the then U.S.Ambassador in New Delhi, Mr.Frank Wisner; and in the process was keeping Mr.Lay informed of the administration's efforts, says the magazine after reviewing the White House documents. Mr.McLarty is not in the corridors of power in the White House today and according to the version of Time, the Counsellor is now "tucked away in the basement". But obviously he had played a crucial role in fund-raising for the Democrats, assisting businessmen who coughed up an estimated $ 1.5 million for the party's coffers. In the case of the Enron Corporation and the India project the White House Special Counsel, Mr.Lanny Davis, has said that Mr.McLarty had acted out of concern for a major U.S.investment overseas.

But Time insists that there had been a "McLarty pattern" and points to at least four instances that had involved the former White House Chief of Staff. At the request of Mr.Clinton, Mr.McLarty met with international oil consultant, Mr.Roger Tamraz, and had asked the Energy Department if it could not be more supportive of his Caspian Sea pipeline proposal. Mr.Tamraz is said to have contributed $ 200,000 to the Democrats.

Mr.McLarty is also credited with having directed a White House lawyer to query the Justice Department about a case referred by Mr.Vance Opperman, head of a major publishing house. His contribution to the Democrats: $ 350,000; and Mr.McLarty is said to have arranged a White House meeting for a computer executive, Mr.Mark Jimenez, to discuss political unrest in a Latin American market. His contribution: $ 325,000.

Last week, The Washington Post reported that Mr.McLarty had played a crucial role in arranging a meeting between the Chairman of the Federal Express, Mr.Fredrick Smith, and the President, to press for sanctions against Japan for its refusal to allow Federal Express to ship to Asian destinations, including the People's Republic of China, which was costing the company some $ 100 million a year in lost revenues.

The Head of the National Economic Council in the White House, Ms Laura D'Andrea Tyson, had opposed the one-on-one meeting but this was supposed to have been overruled by Mr.McLarty. Total contribution from the Federal Express and its Chairman to the Democrats is said to be $ 525,000. In every one of the above instances the White House Special Counsel has maintained that Mr.McLarty acted "appropriately".

With the major political parties locked in an intense battle over the ongoing investigative process in the Senate and in the House of Representatives, the Republicans are charging that the "real story" of the Senate fund-raising hearings is not campaign reform but "insider trading" with Mr.John Huang using his position in the Commerce Department to influence world trade negotiations. Mr.Huang - a central figure in the fund raising scam of the Democrats - has been accused of giving sensitive economic data to his former employers, the Riady family of Indonesia and perhaps to China.

In the weekend radio address the Utah Republican, Senator Robert Bennett - who said that the media has missed the major story - argued:" Insider information, going through the Riadys and perhaps to the People's Republic of China, could affect far more than stock prices. It would enable the Chinese Government to prepare themselves for trade negotiations in ways that could put the United States at a serious disadvantage".

Mr.Bennett remarked that the former Lippo Official ended up at the Commerce Department where he saw a number of State Department cables and was briefed by the Central Intelligence Agency. "... unknown to anyone at Commerce during this period,he would once or twice a week go across the street to a private office where he made in the course of 18 months over 400 calls to his former associations connected with the Riadys", said Mr.Bennett, who is a member of the Senate panel investigating the activities of Mr.Huang.

[tallhappy]

Another blast from the past article about the Clinton administration and Enron.

This coincidence of the donation with the Clinton administration coming though in helping Enron get the project (one that helped them go down the tubes) has been talked about recently. I heard mention of it on a couple radio shows.

So here are the specifics for any doubting Thomases. It's from Time Magazine, August of 97. I couldn't get the original Time article.

See also, How Washington Inc. Makes a Sale - Clinton Adminstration, Enron ~ for a 1995 article showing how intricately and intimately involved Enron and the Clinton administration were in getting this Indian deal.

[tallhappy]

BTW, here is the original Time article,

---

The Scoop

The White House: That Invisible Mack Sure Can Leave His Mark By Michael Weisskopf/Washington

(TIME, September 1) -- For a man who had supposedly vanished from the corridors of power, MACK MCLARTY was the man to see in 1996. BILL CLINTON's former chief of staff, now a White House counselor tucked away in the basement, provided assistance to businessmen who ponied up $1.5 million for the Democrats in the last election. On Nov. 22, 1995, for example, Clinton scrawled an FYI note to McLarty, enclosing a newspaper article on Enron Corp. and the vicissitudes of its $3 billion power-plant project in India. McLarty then reached out to Enron's chairman, KEN LAY, and over the next nine months closely monitored the project with the U.S. ambassador to New Delhi, keeping Lay informed of the Administration's efforts, according to White House documents reviewed by TIME. In June 1996, four days before India granted final approval to Enron's project, Lay's company gave $100,000 to the President's party. Enron denies that its gift was repayment for Clinton's attention, and White House special counsel LANNY DAVIS says McLarty acted out of concern for a major U.S. investment overseas.

Nevertheless, there does seem to be a McLarty pattern. At Clinton's request, he met with international oil consultant ROGER TAMRAZ and asked the Energy Department if the Administration could not be more supportive of his Caspian Sea pipeline proposal (Tamraz' contribution: $200,000). It was McLarty who directed a White House lawyer to query the Justice Department about a case protested by VANCE OPPERMAN, head of a legal publishing house (contribution: $350,000). The counselor arranged a White House meeting for Miami computer executive MARK JIMENEZ to discuss political unrest in an important Latin American market (contribution: $325,000). And last week the Washington Post reported that McLarty helped get a Clinton audience for Federal Express chairman FRED SMITH and his concerns about Japanese trade practices. Contribution: $525,000. Davis says McLarty acted "appropriately" in every case.

link (www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/1997/08/25/time/notebook.html)

[JulieRNR21]

BTTT....more details on the Clinton/Enron/DNC Connection!

This deserves a BUMP from the King of Ping!

[anniegetyourgun]

The entire Clinton administration can be summed up in the phrase "favors for donations."

[jla]

The entire Clinton administration can be summed up in the phrase "favors for donations." "vile scum of the earth."

Sorry for the intrusion Annie. *S*

[anniegetyourgun]

That too!

[MJY1288]

BTTT

[US_MilitaryRules]

.

[tallhappy]

bump

[UCANSEE2]

I will say it again here.

CLINTON LEGACY - - A President that could not keep his hands on the tiller of the nation,

because he always had one hand on his penis, and the other in somebody else's pockets !

[d14truth]

Nice find. Add to the 'pile' of DemRATS quid pro quos during the decade of 'sleaze'.

[cookcounty]

"that McLarty helped get a Clinton audience for Federal Express chairman FRED SMITH and his concerns about Japanese trade practices. Contribution: $525,000. "

Anyone want to look for an Arthur Andersen connection? FedEx also uses AA for its books. Probably a coincidence, but it's a thought.

[cookcounty]

And, I forgot to mention, Smith sits on the Enron board.

[MJY1288]

Clinton spent eight years trying to leave his mark in the history books, but instead he left it on a blue dress

[RJayneJ]

Thanks for the nomination!

[GOPJ]

bump