programs on health, poverty and climate change.â Fifth, the Watchlist references an article about a contribution from
TO: Charity Navigator Donor Advisory Issuance Committee FROM: The Clinton Foundation DATE: May 16, 2015 RE: Watchlist Placement The Clinton Foundation respectfully submits this memorandum as a public response to Charity Navigator’s placement of the Foundation on the Watchlist. As our mission states, “The Clinton Foundation works with businesses, governments, NGOs, and individuals to improve global health and wellness, increase opportunity for women and girls, reduce childhood obesity, create economic opportunity and growth, and help communities address the effects of climate change.” For more than 10 years, the Clinton Foundation has worked to improve how it operates and increase its impact. We are proud of the work we have done in this short time. The Foundation’s work focuses on tackling global challenges where we know we can make a difference. Because of our work, more than 27,000 American schools are providing kids with healthy food choices in an effort to eradicate childhood obesity; more than 85,000 farmers in Malawi, Rwanda, and Tanzania are benefiting from climate-‐smart agronomic training, higher yields, and increased market access; more than 33,500 tons of greenhouse gas emissions are being reduced annually across the United States; over 350,000 people have been impacted through market opportunities created by social enterprises in Latin America, the Caribbean, and South Asia; through the independent Clinton Health Access Initiative, 9.9 million people in more than 70 countries have access to CHAI-‐negotiated prices for HIV/AIDS medications; and members of the Clinton Global Initiative community have made nearly 3,200 Commitments to Action, which have improved the lives of over 430 million people in more than 180 countries. Given the global scope of the Foundation’s work, in order to operate our programs, we receive support from a diverse array of organizations and individuals. In all, to date, more than 300,000 donors have given to the Foundation. Of those 300,000, we are
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especially proud that 90% of them are “small dollar donors” who have given $100 or less, demonstrating the broad appeal of our work. The Foundation knows that with such broad-‐based support and large footprint, transparency and accountability are critical to ensure the trust of both donors and partners on the ground. Our own disclosure policies go above and beyond any legal requirement. In fact, Charity Navigator’s former CEO Ken Berger applauded the Foundation for its “choice to voluntarily comply with every one of our [Charity Navigator’s] accountability and transparency standards as well as your efforts to be at the forefront of impact assessment of philanthropic work” in a June 20, 2014 letter. The Clinton Foundation has a longstanding commitment to transparency and accountability. For years, we have voluntarily disclosed our donors and we update the list each year. We report our metrics on an annual basis. Our financials and 990s are easily accessible on our website. Even an internal review has been posted on our site for the public to review. We are proud of our commitment to transparency and continue to build on it. At an April 2015 Board meeting, the Foundation’s Board decided to implement even stronger policies regarding donor disclosure and foreign government donations. In addition to reinforcing the Foundation’s ongoing commitment to accountability, these modifications address the majority of concerns Charity Navigator specifically cites as reasons for placing the Clinton Foundation on the Watchlist. We understand that stories in the media have raised questions about how the Foundation works, and have sought to raise questions about possible conflicts of interest. Many of these baseless accusations relate to foreign government contributions and corporate donations. Additional stories Charity Navigator cites refer to questions surrounding the operations of the Foundation. I will address these concerns in turn. First, there has been no indication, accusation, or evidence in any of these stories of any wrongdoing. Our supporters donate to the Clinton Foundation because they want to see lives improved; they want better opportunity across the globe; and they want to see communities, businesses, and governments working together to address problems that, when working together, we have the solutions and resources to fix. That is what the Clinton Foundation does every day, and that is why we are proud to work here. Second, to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest, upon declaring her candidacy for president, Secretary Clinton resigned from the Foundation’s Board. Third, as part of our updated donor policy, the Board instituted an even more transparent donor disclosure policy, committing to posting donors quarterly. This policy is even stronger than the previous policy, which as Charity Navigator cites, The New York Times praised on February 20, 2015 saying, “The foundation, in fact, went beyond normal philanthropic bounds for transparency six years ago in instituting voluntary disclosure of donors within broad dollar ranges on its website." 2
Fourth, like other organizations that work in international development and global health, the Clinton Foundation’s work is supported in part by contributions from foreign governments. As part of the April revisions to our donor policy, we announced that we will only accept funding from a handful of governments. By limiting contributions to six countries who have funded our work, many through multi-‐year grants, we have exceeded both legal requirements and best practices to ensure that no conflicts of interest would occur, while protecting the critical nature of our work. On this point, Charity Navigator cites a Wall Street Journal article noting that the new donor policy, “permit[s] donations from Australia, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and the U.K.—countries that support or have supported Clinton Foundation programs on health, poverty and climate change.” Fifth, the Watchlist references an article about a contribution from Algeria. As we have publicly stated, this was a one-‐time, unsolicited, donation of $500,000 from the Government of Algeria specifically for emergency relief efforts in the immediate aftermath of the 2010 Haiti earthquake. As with all contributions for earthquake relief, every penny of the contribution went to the Clinton Foundation Haiti Relief fund. Still, as we have said, not submitting this to the U.S. Department of State was a mistake. While the contribution was disclosed on the Foundation’s website in 2010, the State Department should have also been engaged. Separately, when asked, the State Department said that given the circumstances it had no issue with the contribution. Sixth, there have been questions raised about corporate donors. Like many other global philanthropic organizations, the Foundation receives contributions from corporations—both foreign and domestic. These organizations have given to the Foundation to help address today’s greatest challenges. The Foundation receives support from a range of corporations that have a long history of philanthropic work and commitment to corporate social responsibility. Each year we update a list of our contributors on the website to ensure the highest levels of transparency, and as noted will begin quarterly public disclosure this July. Charity Navigator references a quote from a February 19 2015 Wall Street Journal article on conflict of interest stating, "corporate donations to politically connected charities aren't illegal so long as they aren't in exchange for favors. There is no evidence of that with the Clinton Foundation.” Additionally, the suggestion that the Foundation is a quasi-‐political organization is blatantly false. Both in status and practice, the Clinton Foundation is apolitical and has long had bipartisan support and involvement. For example, Too Small To Fail’s Leadership Council includes former Senator Bill Frist and Cindy McCain. The Clinton Climate Initiative has had success stories in states with Republicans in the State House like Wisconsin and Arkansas. President Clinton has worked on several occasions with both Former Presidents George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. Even the Washington Post, which Charity Navigator cites, reported that, "the foundation has won accolades 3
from philanthropy experts and has drawn bipartisan support, with members of the George W. Bush administration often participating in its programs." Seventh, Charity Navigator points to a story with little first person sourcing and a large number of blind quotes that question the management of the Foundation. The Clinton Foundation is committed to always improving and learning from its past successes and challenges. It has also been incredibly transparent in how it does this. We believe our supporters, and those whose lives we impact should know that we constantly strive to ensure our work is of the highest quality and has the greatest impact. With regard to the departure of our former CEO, Eric Braverman, both the Foundation and Mr. Braverman have provided public comment and explanation on his departure from the Foundation. Mr. Braverman’s statement said: “I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have worked at the Clinton Foundation and have been inspired by the tireless work of our staff around the world to impact and improve the lives of millions of people. In the last few years, all the initiatives and programs have worked together to make the Clinton Foundation even stronger and now is the right time for a new leader to take the Foundation into the future.” In addition, President Clinton, Secretary Clinton and Chelsea Clinton praised his work in a statement released at the time: “When Eric came onboard, the Foundation had been growing quickly for more than a decade. Our individual initiatives were doing well, but Eric’s leadership helped us improve our governance structure, increase coordination across the Foundation and build better internal processes. Eric also helped us put the use of data front and center so we can better measure the impact of our work and make better decisions about our programs, enabling our staff in New York and around the world to increase our impact and deliver on our mission. We are very grateful to Eric for his leadership and these efforts.” In conclusion, more than 300,000 supporters have given to the Clinton Foundation because they want to see lives improved; they want better opportunities for people around the world; and they want to see communities, businesses, and governments working together to address problems that we already have the solutions and resources to address. Exactly what the Clinton Foundation has been successful at doing. We believe this letter addresses the concerns Charity Navigator cited for placing the Foundation on the Watchlist and respectfully request that the Donor Advisory Issuance Committee re-‐evaluate the Foundation’s placement and, in addition, post this memorandum on our entry for the public to read. Each day the Clinton Foundation strives to make the world a better place. For more than ten years we have succeeded and we are confident this will continue. This is something to celebrate. 4
