Leading Clinton Donor Stays Below the Radar
Ianthe Jeanne Dugan and Brody Mullins report in today’s Journal.
Norman Hsu is one of the leading political fund-raisers in the country this year. In fact, many fund-raisers say he is one of a small handful of people capable of raising more than $1 million — a major feat considering the maximum donation allowed by an individual for 2008 races is $4,600 per candidate.
But longtime political donors are curious: “Who is Norman Hsu?” asks Robin Chandler Duke, a former ambassador and longtime supporter of Bill and Hillary Clinton. Until three years ago, Hsu never made a campaign contribution to a presidential candidate, according to federal election records. Now, though, several people involved in raising money for White House candidates say Hsu is a major player.
Many “HillRaisers” — people who rustle up at least $100,000 for Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign — are dwarfed beside Hsu (pronounced “Shu”). Several people involved in Democratic presidential fund-raising say Hsu, an apparel executive, has raised well over $1 million for the New York senator’s presidential campaign, making him one of the top 20 Democratic fund-raisers in the country. The Clinton campaign doesn’t disclose such details and declined to comment for this story.
“Forget the politics — Norman is widely regarded as decent, and enormously generous,” says Orin Kramer, a hedge-fund manager who is a chief fund-raiser for Barack Obama, the Illinois senator who is Clinton’s strongest rival for the party’s presidential nomination.
I have been blessed by what this country has given me and have tried to give back in many ways,” Hsu said in an email to a Wall Street Journal reporter earlier this week. “One way has been through political contributions to candidates and causes I believe in. I have never asked for anything in return. I’ve asked friends and colleagues of mine to give money out of their own pockets and sometimes they have agreed,” he added. People who have met him at events describe Hsu as warm, giving, charming and well-dressed. But unlike most big fund-raisers this cycle — such as hedge-fund magnate Paul Tudor Jones for Obama and buyout pioneer Henry Kravis for Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain – Hsu remains remarkably low-profile. Even some other Clinton fund-raisers say they don’t know him at all and have been surprised to see him emerge as a top fund-raiser.
Yesterday, The Wall Street Journal reported that a modest home in a middle-class San Francisco suburb, where the family of mail carrier William Paw resides, is listed as the address for many contributions to the Clinton campaign. Hsu once listed the home as his address, according to public records, and the Paws’ donations closely tracked his. Read more, here and here.
UPDATE: This statement from Hsu was issued Thursday: “I believe I properly resolved all of the legal issues related to my bankruptcy in the early 1990s. Therefore, I was surprised to learn that there appears to be an outstanding warrant – as demonstrated by the fact that I have and do live a public life. I have not sought to evade any of my obligations and certainly not the law.
I would not consciously subject any of the candidates and causes in which I believe to any harm through my actions.
Therefore, until, this matter is resolved, I intend to refrain from all fundraising activities on behalf of all candidates and causes.”
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That’s funny, for some reason I thought it was Satan that was the leading Clinton donor.
Comment by Anonymous - August 29, 2007 at 10:48 am
Will Hillary Clinton return the campaign contributions that were funneled through the San Francisco house? If not, will the press demand that she resign from the Senate?
Comment by Congress Creating a Constitutional Crisis? - August 29, 2007 at 11:09 am
After reading this, Hillary better send a big thank you bouquet to Larry Craig fo keeping her off the front pages.
Comment by KDM - August 29, 2007 at 11:11 am
KDM:
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Larry Craig pleaded guilty on August 1. Why do you think the press has waited until now to report it?
Comment by Congress Creating a Constitutional Crisis? - August 29, 2007 at 11:24 am
Is it true that Norman Hsu (one of Clinton’s leading campaign contributors) is wanted by U.S. law enforcement officials as a fugitive in a grand theft (swindling) case in which he was convicted and sentenced to a 3 year term before disappearing from the radar? I wonder if this will be ignored by our left-leaning national news networks. Also, I wonder if the FBI has any mugshots of Rep. William Jefferson of Louisiana.
Comment by sanctuary1@yahoo.com - August 29, 2007 at 11:38 am
This just goes to show the true character of Hill-Billary and her Communist supporters who will stoop to anything to gain control of this government. If this woman ever becomes President my condolences go out to the citizens of the late great United States of America. It will be the death-knell of this great country. Wake up people! The handwriting is on the wall!
Comment by A Proud and Patriotic Marine Corps veteran - August 29, 2007 at 11:46 am
sanctuary:
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According to the link “Fund-Raiser Hsu Pleaded No Contest” (the link is found in the right column of this page, under “Politics & Policy News”), Hsu agreed in 1991 to plead guilty and serve three years in prison, but failed to appear at sentencing and never served his time.
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Because Hsu pleaded guilty to state swindling charges, any attempt by Hsu to buy a pardon or commutation from Hillary Clinton will be fruitless (the president’s power to pardon or commute is limited to federal charges).
Comment by Congress Creating a Constitutional Crisis? - August 29, 2007 at 12:16 pm
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Hillary loves dirty money. What’s surprising is that she wants to run a country when she can’t even run a clean campaign.
Hsu is a convicted criminal–according to the article running on the right column of this web page, Hsu pled no contest to a “white collar crime” and was sentanced to three years in prison.
Similarly, the Clintons also received 30,000 in illegal campaign funds from Abdul Rehman Jinnah, who is now on the run, see nypost.com
Comment by NickDaytona - August 29, 2007 at 12:35 pm
What do you expect from a Clinton ? Be it Hillary or Billy-nilly
Comment by Manuc - August 29, 2007 at 1:53 pm
This is a non-story. If the contributions are tainted, she’ll return them. If not, she won’t. End of manufactured controversy. Her campaign has more money than it knows what to do with, why would she need to accept “dirty” money? The above comments are mostly just pathological Clinton hatred.
Comment by Arbusto - August 29, 2007 at 2:14 pm
Arbusto:
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The Democratic Party spent plenty of time in 2006 trying to link Jack Abramoff to George Bush and GOPers on Capitol Hill. How is this story any different?
Comment by Congress Creating a Constitutional Crisis? - August 29, 2007 at 2:20 pm
Wow! Hill is not even President and she is already repeating the behaviors of Bill and Al. How much longer will it be before another Buddhist monastery enters the picture?
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Arbusto, when was the last time Clintons ever returned money? As we saw in 2001, they will steal your china and silverware when you are not looking.
Comment by BKS - August 29, 2007 at 4:34 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:39 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:39 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:40 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:40 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:40 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:40 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:40 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:40 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:40 pm
no one can sell out to chinks like this pres. has. we are already gone chino
Comment by demo- - August 29, 2007 at 4:40 pm
It begins again…but this will be the last time we hear about this! We must hear about a poor lost man looking for love in a stall
Comment by martinsh - August 29, 2007 at 5:05 pm
It begins again…but this will be the last time we hear about this! We must hear about a poor lost man looking for love in a stall
Comment by martinsh - August 29, 2007 at 5:05 pm
It begins again…but this will be the last time we hear about this! We must hear about a poor lost man looking for love in a stall
Comment by martinsh - August 29, 2007 at 5:05 pm
It begins again…but this will be the last time we hear about this! We must hear about a poor lost man looking for love in a stall
Comment by martinsh - August 29, 2007 at 5:05 pm
Hsu’s statement today (see Update) is pathetic. Bankruptcy does not discharge criminal judgments.
Comment by Congress Creating a Constitutional Crisis? - August 29, 2007 at 8:22 pm
I didn’t know racists have the intelligence to read the WSJ, but this is America, the land of diversity.
Comment by outsider - August 29, 2007 at 10:06 pm
Hsu, who may have raised more than $1 million for presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, said he had done nothing wrong and had asked no favors in return. Just a minute, Give stolen money to Charity, why sure when a bank robber gives someone else’s cash back he is forgiven! NOT Clinton used Hsu money, she is an accessory to a theft, sent her to the slammer.
Comment by Busted - August 30, 2007 at 12:36 am
Hsu is not a fugitive…dear heavens, everyone is ready to convict the guy off of some shoddy journalism. “if it looks like a duck..” well, sorry all from what I know Hsu plead to a civil charge, repaid the affected parties and thereby suspended the criminal proceedings…it’s common practice and he is not a “fugitive” - just a piece of meat for the political fodder of the day. Oh yea…seems the Paw’s (the people of “modest” means in the original article) have a net worth far north of $5million…hmmm…so no smoking gun there either. But who wants to hear a vindication when we can all just jump on the ill-informed band-wagon and persecute the guy. Oh right…of course Hillary gave the $$ to charity, common sense says to keep your distance from the appearence of impropriety. But any of you republicans out there singing the “ills of the system” ought to remember the rash of REPUB scandals this past year!!
Comment by Where's the smoking gun - August 30, 2007 at 12:46 am
Like Carl Rove said Hillary has higher negatives than any of her opponents…the baggage she carries will be well exploited during the campaign.
Comment by Patton - August 30, 2007 at 12:49 am |
