Clinton Foundation releases list of donors
By Kevin Bogardus from The Hill
Posted: 12/18/08 01:04 PM [ET]

Former President Bill Clinton has raised millions of dollars for his foundation from foreign governments across the Middle East and Europe that his wife may end up negotiating with as the next secretary of state.The Clinton Foundation released a list of its donors Thursday as part of its agreement surrounding the nomination of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) to President-elect Obama's Cabinet. The ex-president agreed to disclose the donors due to the potential of his expansive foundation work conflicting with his wife’s new role in the incoming Obama administration.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia gave at least $10 million to the Clinton Foundation. Kuwait and Qatar have given at least $1 million to the group, along with the sultanate of Oman and the government of Brunei.European countries have also pitched in. Norway donated at least $5 million to the foundation while Italy’s Ministry for Environment and Territory gave at least $500,000.Beyond foreign governments, the list is heavy with well-known Democratic donors and major corporations.

For example, the Wal-Mart Foundation and the foundation of the retail giant’s founder, Sam Walton, gave at least $1 million each to the foundation. Sen. Clinton sat on the company’s board from 1986 to 1992 when her husband was governor of Arkansas. The corporation is based in Bentonville, Ark.Other companies that have donated to the foundation include Duke Energy, Hewlett Packard and the Citi Foundation, affiliated with Citigroup, one of several financial services firms that have received rescue funds from the federal government this year.

Big contributors to the Democratic Party are also littered throughout the list. For example, movie producer Stephen Bing and media mogul Fred Eychaner both gave at least $10 million. Robert Johnson, founder of Black Entertainment Television, donated at least $1 million. In addition, George Soros’s Open Society Institute also gave $1 million.Disclosing the foundation’s donors is part of a tough ethics regime for the former president. Clinton will have to disclose future donors as well as submit his paid speeches and foundation activities to ethics officials at the State Department for review while his wife is at Foggy Bottom.

Obama’s presidential campaign often pushed Clinton to disclose donors to her husband’s foundation during their Democratic primary battle this year. Founded in 1997, this is the first time the Clinton Foundation has released its donors publicly, which is not required by law.Funds raised by the former president have financed several different foundation initiatives around the world, such as supplying medicine to those living with AIDS and developing programs for child nutrition in Latin America.“I want to personally express my deepest appreciation to our many contributors, who remain steadfast partners in our work to impact the lives of so many around the world in measurable and meaningful ways,” said former President Clinton in a statement Thursday.The full list of donors is available on the Clinton Foundation's website,

http://www.clintonfoundation.org/contributors/