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Friday, June 17, 2016

Connections

What export do Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar all share in common that makes them rich as Midas? Oil, of course.

What is one reason oil prices have been at near record lows for the last year or so? Fracking.

What do these two questions have to do with Hillary Clinton? With the caveat that correlation does not prove causation, let's compare two news stories.

The first comes from The Daily Caller:
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has given the Clinton Foundation an unspecified amount between $10 million and $25 million, according to the nonprofit’s records. The State of Kuwait has donated between $5 million and $10 to the Clinton Foundation. The State Of Qatar has given the Clinton Foundation between $1 million and $5 million.

“The Clinton Foundation’s impact would not be possible without the generous support of our donors and grantors,” the Clinton Foundation explains. “Their generosity makes our work possible and we thank them.”
Indeed, it certainly appears that she's very grateful, and the second news story from last spring suggests a form her gratitude may take if she's elected president:
Clinton has said she would regulate it [fracking] so thoroughly that “I do not think there will be many places in America where fracking will continue to take place.”
This announcement by Ms Clinton couldn't make the oil sheiks happier. They know a good investment when they see it. It's too bad that so many American voters don't seem to care overmuch that the politician they'll be voting for is bought and paid for, not only by domestic interests but ostensibly by foreign interests as well. Or, if that sounds too harsh or too much like a leap to an unwarranted conclusion about Ms Clinton's integrity, let's put it more delicately: It's a shame some of our politicians, particularly candidates in the upcoming presidential election, are not more punctilious about avoiding the appearance of being corrupt.