Unsavory Donors Put Clinton in Bind on Women's Rights

Next month will likely see Hillary Clinton announce she's running for president, the New York Times reports, and women's rights are set to be a theme of her campaign. Though she has long championed the issue, things have recently gotten complicated: The Bill, Hillary & Chelsea Clinton Foundation is facing controversy over its acceptance of major donations from countries like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates with particularly poor histories when it comes to women's rights, the Times reports. Clinton's own State Department in 2011 slammed Saudi Arabia—which has donated at least $10 million to the foundation since 2001—for "common" violence against women, human trafficking, and other serious issues.

Conservatives have launched attacks over the donations, with former HP CEO Carly Fiorina telling a crowd that Clinton "tweets about women’s rights in this country and takes money from governments that deny women the most basic human rights." Bill Clinton this weekend defended the money: "Do we agree with everything they do? No, [but] you've got to decide when you do this work whether it will do more good than harm if someone helps you from another country." Today, Hillary Clinton's efforts on behalf of women continue: She, along with daughter Chelsea and Melinda Gates, will present an extensive report on the state of women's rights, dubbed "No Ceilings": "It is time to renew our effort to address the great unfinished business of the 21st century," Clinton writes in the report, per Politico. (Meanwhile, controversy continues over her use of private email.)