New State Department emails indicate a top Clinton Foundation donor was awarded a spot on an elite intelligence committee, but was quickly stripped of his position after reporters asked about his qualifications for such a lofty appointment.
Rajiv Fernando, a Democratic donor who has given up to $5 million to the Clinton Foundation, was named to the International Security Advisory Board in 2011, when Hillary Clinton was serving as secretary of state.
Reporters from ABC News asked in August of that year for a copy of his resume, a question that touched off a scramble for answers behind the scenes, according to emails obtained by Citizens United through the Freedom of Information Act.
“[I]t appears there is much more to this story that we’re unaware of,” a State Department press aide wrote in one such email as officials discussed how to handle the simple request from ABC.
“We must protect the Secretary’s and Under Secretary’s name, as well as the integrity of the Board. I think it’s important to get down to the bottom of this before there’s any response,” the aide added.
“The true answer is simply that S staff (Cheryl Mills) added him,” another official later wrote. “Raj was not on the list sent to S; he was added at their insistence.”
“S” is an abbreviation often used to denote the secretary of state in documents. In this case, it was a reference to Clinton.
Cheryl Mills, at the time, was serving as Clinton’s chief of staff. She has been a longtime confidante of the Clintons and even worked at the Clinton Foundation before transitioning into the State Department.
After subsequent internal emails indicated the agency made an attempt to “stall” the reporters, Mills released a statement announcing Fernando’s sudden resignation. The foundation donor stepped down four days after his background was called into question.
The board on which Fernando briefly sat handled nuclear security issues that often required members to examine top secret intelligence.
Fernando, an investor, was virtually the only member without any national security experience.
