Emily's List's 25th b'day fundraiser morphed into a "member benefits function" to thwart ethics team
Monday, 18 September 2017
It's handy to have a private email system when you're talking about stuff like this.
In 2008 Emily's List spent $3.2M on Hillary Clinton's US presidential campaign.
By April 2010 when its 25th anniversary rolled around it had raised $78M for female political candidates. Serious money.
It wanted to mark the 25th anniversary with Hillary Clinton as star turn at its major fundraiser.
But the ethics team at the US State Department had other ideas, as Huma Abedin explains.
As it turns out Hillary wasn't all that keen anyway. What's $3.2M for your presidential campaign between friends?
But the Chair of the Board was quite insistent - even changing the event from a fundraiser to an "as you would be aware" wink wink "Benefit of Membership".
Ah for friends with benefits.
Nancy Pelosi got the gig.
"You have changed the face of power," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday at the organization's anniversary lunch. "And in doing so, you have changed the course of history."
Wonder who did their incorporation work?