Hillary Clinton campaign Chairman John Podesta signed a contract with guaranteeing him $7,000 a month from a top Clinton donor, according to documents released through WikiLeaks.
The owners of the Sandler Foundation who paid Podesta, Herb and Marion Sandler, amassed a fortune selling adjusted-rate mortgages that some say contributed to the housing collapse of 2007.
Podesta signed on as a “consultant” with the Sandler Foundation in exchange for a $7,000 stipend Feb. 15, 2015, before the campaign began, according to Politico. But the contract is still active, even while Podesta is the acting campaign chairman for Hillary 2016, and he still assumes the duties of consulting with the Sandler Foundation on grant-making and other foundation operations.
Podesta maintains more than a business relationship with the Sandler family. E-mails show that the Sandler family and Podesta have been in consistent communication since 2008, while he was working with President Barack Obama. They discussed everything from holiday dining tips, to the White House transition under President Barack Obama, to future business plans of the Sandler family.
The Sandler family donated $4.4 million to Hillary Clinton in the 2016 campaign cycle, and Herb Sandler himself gave some $4 million to Democratic super-PAC Priorities USA Action.
Another e-mail shows Podesta discussing super-PAC fundraising with other Clinton campaign staffers — a conversation that sets off alarms, considering the strict rules banning coordination between super-PACs and campaigns. The day before the email exchange, Podesta visited with Sandler in his hometown. After the e-mail on Sandler being prepared “to double down on his Priorities support as well,” Sandler gave $1.5 of the $4 million he donated to Priorities USA Action.
The Sandlers are no stranger to public scrutiny. Golden West, their savings and lending firm, turned into a multi-billion dollar enterprise which sold for $25.5 billion to Wachovia Bank in 2006. Wachovia was later sold to the scandal-ridden Wells Fargo.
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