There seems to be some controversy over the reason for a letter from former President Bill Clinton on release of correspondence between himself and now Sen. Clinton during Mr. Clinton’s tenure as president:
REDMOND, Wash. – Former President Clinton said Friday that a letter he wrote to the National Archives was to expedite release of his papers, not slow the process or hide anything as rivals are suggesting in criticism of his wife.
Hillary Rodham Clinton was quizzed during this week’s Democratic presidential debate as to why correspondence between her and her husband from their White House years remained bottled up at the National Archives. Barack Obama said that was a problem for her as a candidate after “we have just gone through one of the most secretive administrations in our history.”
One issue is whether Bill Clinton had sent a letter to the Archives asking that the communications not be released until 2012, and whether Hillary Clinton would lift any ban, a question raised by debate moderator Tim Russert.
Without wading into the hinder or expedite question, I have a question I’d like to ask of you tax law mavens out there. Would selective release of papers from a presidential library to refute a charge made while Sen. Clinton is in the midst of a campaign for her party’s nomination to the presidency constitute an in-kind contribution? How would that affect the status of donations made to the library?
I can understand a husband’s desire to defend his wife from attack. I can also understand a politician’s defense of a political ally from attack during a political campaign. This particular approach doesn’t sound to me like a prudent mode of response.
