Books

Prepare For Anti-Hillary Book 'Clinton Cash'

by Caitlin White

The mudslinging has begun. Just one week after Hillary Clinton announced her 2016 presidential run, writer Peter Schweizer showcased his new book Clinton Cash , attacking the Clinton Foundation's donations during Hillary's term as Secretary of State under President Barack Obama. The book will be released May 5, at the jumpstart of Hillary's run.

Clinton Cash: The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich is a 186-page investigation by Schweizer into foreign donations to the Clinton Foundation and donations to Bill Clinton via speaking fees. Schweizer claims that Hillary's state department returned favors to foreign entities who donated money, using her sway in her role as Secretary of State, according to The New York Times, which received a copy of the book along with The Washington Post, and (not surprisingly) Fox News as part of an exclusive agreement to report on storylines from the book.

"We will see a pattern of financial transactions involving the Clintons that occurred contemporaneous with favorable U.S. policy decisions benefiting those providing the funds," Schweizer says about his book.

Already, conservative candidates for the presidency are using Clinton Cash in their campaign advertisements. Marco Rubio and Rand Paul were briefed about Clinton Cash as part of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and have jumped at the opportunity to use the book as part of their lambasting of the Clintons. Paul has stated that Clinton Cash has "big news" that will "shock people."

However, Democratic-leaning politician have called out Schweizer for his long-term, public affiliation with conservative politicians and groups. Schweizer was the former speechwriting consultant to George W. Bush, contributor to the conservative online publication Breitbart.com, and a fellow at the conservative Hoover Institute. Brian Fallon, a Clinton campain spokesperson has called Clinton Cash "partisan-fueled fiction."

And it certainly has not been the first book attacking the Clintons. The New York Times called the market for books against the political family "robust," remarking at how the anti-Clinton and anti-Obama book Blood Feud even overtook Clinton's memoir Hard Choices on the bestseller list.

The seemingly perfectly timed release (for Republicans, that is) of Clinton Cash is reminiscent of the 1996 release of Primary Colors, a thinly veiled book about Bill Clinton's first presidential campaign in 1992, released just in time for his reelection campaign. The book showcased Clinton as an insincere cheat, and it was first published anonymously before political columnist Joe Klein admitted to being the author. It spent nine weeks atop the New York Times bestseller list.

Clinton Cash is likely just the first punch in what will be a long road to November 2016.