On this weekend’s broadcast of “Fox News Sunday,” while discussing the pay-to-play accusations between then-Secretary Clinton’s State Department and her family’s organization the Clinton Foundation, Fox News political analyst Juan Williams said that “it sets off alarms in my mind as a journalist,” adding the structure of the foundation seems to “invite suspicion.”
Partial transcript as follows:
WALLACE: Juan, when you see all of the emails from people in the Clinton Foundation to Cheryl Mills to Huma Abedin, these are the people right at the right hand of Hillary Clinton in the State Department — when you see the phone messages, all of that, does it trouble you? The coziness of the relationship?
JUAN WILLIAMS, FOX NEWS POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, it sets off alarms in my mind as a journalist. I mean, even before I knew about the “A.P.” report, the phone calls and the like, I mean, the whole structure, Chris, seems to me to invite suspicion, the idea that there’s some quid pro quo for access going on. So, it’s concerning to me. Let me just state, in all fairness, I think the foundation does good work — malaria, HIV, and the like. But there’s no getting away from the appearance of impropriety here. I’m astounded that this foundation has existed since, in fact, 1997, during President Clinton’s tenure. I don’t understand how she — Mrs. Clinton — doesn’t see that this would invite people including the “Boston Globe”, Ed Rendell, fellow Democrats to say, this is a problem, you can’t do this. She had to sign an agreement with the Obama administration which she apparently violated by going about these phone calls, meeting people, even if it’s — you know, I don’t think there’s any evidence of impropriety. Just by the standards you set, lots of people say, access is for money in this town. But still, if there is no evidence of illegality, the appearance of trouble abounds.
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