Saudis Pledge up to $20 Million for Clinton Library
Disgraced ex-president Bill Clinton, whose disdain for national security over the last eight years is widely believed to have rendered the U.S. vulnerable to last fall's terrorist attacks, is set to collect millions of dollars from Saudi Arabia, home to 15 of the 19 Sept. 11 hijackers.
Estimates of Clinton's expected Saudi jackpot range from "less than $1 million to $20 million," according to columnist Robert Novak, who cites high-ranking members of the Saudi royal family as the source for the information.
In addition to the hijackers, al-Qaeda terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden is a Saudi national, and most of his family now live in the country.
Ostensibly U.S. allies, Saudi leaders have refused to allow American pilots to use U.S.-built air bases in the country to fight the war on terrorism, and have been described as uncooperative in 9/11-related investigations.
On Thursday Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah planted a kiss on the cheek of a top Iraqi official during a Mideast Arab summit, in a move widely seen as a slap at the Bush administration, which has identified Iraq as a member of the "axis of evil."
Clinton's Saudi windfall comes in the form of a pledge to his presidential library foundation in Little Rock, Ark. A library spokesman would neither confirm nor deny the donation.
Former senior Clinton adviser Dick Morris has described the library donor account as a "slush fund" that the former first family will divert to their own personal use.
The ex-president was also paid a $750,000 speaking fee when he traveled to Saudi Arabia three months ago, Novak said.
The Saudi pledge follows what Novak describes as "a similar gift to the elder George Bush's presidential library." The Bush library lists the Saudi contribution among "gifts of $1 million and above." The donor is identified as the family of the Saudi ambassador to the U.S., Prince Bandar bin Sultan.
Novak did not say whether the Bush donation was accepted before or after Sept. 11.
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