On Thursday, NBC’s Today was the only “Big Three” (ABC, CBS, NBC) network morning show to skip the ongoing questions surrounding the Clinton Foundation’s practice of taking money from foreign governments and companies that dates back to Hillary Clinton’s tenure at the State Department.
ABC’s Good Morning America devoted a full 2 minutes and 3 seconds to the foundation with Brian Ross delving into how “[a]n event in Morocco is putting new focus on foreign donations to the Clinton Global Initiative.” CBS This Morning gave the story a mere 39 seconds on its Thursday broadcast and focused mainly on former President Bill Clinton’s response to the allegations leveled against his foundation.
In his report, Ross detailed that despite the Clinton Foundation’s decision to no longer take money from countries like Morocco “this five-star luxury golf resort in Marrakech, Morocco is the setting this week for the Clinton Foundation and its privileged guests, gathering over welcome cocktails and canopies, to help the world's underprivileged.”
The ABC reporter then explained that one of the hosts at the Clinton Foundation event was a controversial government-owned Moroccan mining company which “gave the foundation $1 million. Human rights groups say OCP’s phosphate mines in nearby Western Sahara, promoted in corporate videos, violate U.N. provisions to protect the people who live there.”
Ross did play a clip of Clinton attemping to offer a defense of his foundation’s charitable work before he ironically remarked that “[w]ith the Clinton Foundation now turning down big money from previous foreign sources, the next scheduled overseas conference has already been canceled. So if this is the last hurrah in Morocco, they're certainly going out in style.”
CBS This Morning completely ignored the Clinton Foundation’s latest conference which was hosted by a potential major human rights violator. Instead, the network’s on-screen graphic blared “Bill Clinton Fires Back: Fmr. President Slams Book & Questions Over Donors.”
Host Norah O’Donnell then briefly mentioned that “[p]residential candidate Hillary Clinton is in California this morning on a two-day fundraising trip. But former President Bill Clinton is in Africa facing questions over the Clinton Foundation’s fundraising. A new book argues the Clintons did special favors for some contributors.”
The CBS host then played a lengthy clip of Bill Clinton blasting the charges against his foundation before she noted that “[t]he book's author tells CBS This Morning what’s not going to fly is avoiding answering these questions.”
Rather than cover the latest in the Clinton Foundation controversy, NBC’s Today spent more than 6 minutes discussing the NFL’s finding in the New England Patriots’ “deflategate” controversy.
See relevant transcripts below.
ABC’s Good Morning America
May 7, 2015
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: We’re going to move on now to new questions this morning about the Clinton Foundation, as Hillary ramps up her run for president. An event in Morocco is putting new focus on foreign donations to the Clinton Global Initiative. Our Chief Investigative Correspondent Brian Ross partnered with Yahoo! News for this money trail report
BRIAN ROSS: Morocco is one of the countries from which the Clinton Foundation says it will no longer take money. But this five-star luxury golf resort in Marrakech, Morocco is the setting this week for the Clinton Foundation and its privileged guests, gathering over welcome cocktails and canopies, to help the world's underprivileged. Last night's event was held in great secrecy, with reporters not allowed inside. In his opening remarks, former President Bill Clinton brushed off criticism about the millions of dollars in foreign money the foundation received while his wife was Secretary of State.
BILL CLINTON: I just work here. I don't know.
ROSS: Now that Hillary Clinton is running for president, the foundation says it has put limits on most future foreign donation, including from Morocco. But one of the hosts of this week's conference is a controversial government-owned Morocco mining company, the OCP group, which gave the foundation $1 million. Human rights groups say OCP’s phosphate mines in nearby Western Sahara, promoted in corporate videos, violate U.N. provisions to protect the people who live there.
DAVID MCKEAN: Any time human rights of a population are systematically suppressed in this type of way, it's a serious concern.
ROSS: But the CEO of the Moroccan mining company, who denies the allegations, is front and center at the conference this week. And Clinton told his supporters all the talk about foreign money ignores the good work his foundation does.
CLINTON: There's one set of rules that’s for politics in America and another set for real life and you just have to learn to deal with it.
ROSS: With the Clinton Foundation now turning down big money from previous foreign sources, the next scheduled overseas conference has already been canceled. So if this is the last hurrah in Morocco, they're certainly going out in style George.
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CBS This Morning
May 7, 2015
NORAH O’DONNELL: Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is in California this morning on a two-day fundraising trip. But former President Bill Clinton is in Africa facing questions over the Clinton Foundation’s fundraising. A new book argues the Clintons did special favors for some contributors.
BILL CLINTON: There is one set of rules that’s for politics in America and another set for real life and you just have to learn to deal with it. There’s just no evidence. Even the guy that wrote the book apparently had to admit under questioning that he didn't have a shred of evidence for this. He just sort of thought he would throw it out there and see if it would fly. And it won’t fly.
O’DONNELL: The book's author tells CBS This Morning what’s not going to fly is avoiding answering these questions.
