Politics

New Emails Show Clinton Foundation Donors Lobbied Huma For Diplomatic Passports

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Kevin Daley Supreme Court correspondent
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New emails released by Judicial Watch in connection with its probe of the Bill, Hillary, and Chelsea Clinton Foundation indicate Clinton Foundation donors lobbied senior Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin for diplomatic passports.

Abedin responded positively to the donor inquiries, according to the email.

The donors in question include Doug Band and Justin Cooper. The email indicates that Band reached out to Abedin in 2009, when she served as deputy chief of staff at the U.S. Department of State, and asked for her help in obtaining diplomatic passports for him, Cooper, and a third individual identified only by their initials.

“We had them years ago but they lapsed and we didn’t bother getting them,” Band wrote.

“Ok will figure it out,” Abedin replied.

Band was an aide to former President Bill Clinton before founding Teneo Holdings, a global advisory firm with extensive ties to the Clinton orbit.

Former President Clinton was both a client of the firm and a paid consultant. Abedin served simultaneously at posts in the State Department and Teneo. Cooper was also an aide to former President Clinton. (RELATED: Exclusive: State Department Won’t Release Clinton Foundation Emails For 27 Months)

Band previously lobbied Department of State officials on behalf of Gilbert Chagoury, another Clinton Foundation donor who was eventually denied entry to the U.S. due to possible connections to Hamas, the Palestinian terror group.

Diplomatic passports are a prized asset, as significant benefits accrue to their holders. They are almost exclusively issued to government employees representing the United States in an official capacity. The Department of State requires applicants to present their official orders when procuring such documents.

Individuals with diplomatic passports enjoy easy passage at international borders, access to special lines at airports, no tax liability on certain sources of income, and relaxed visa restrictions.

The Clinton campaign has not yet responded to inquiries regarding this story.

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