Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton claimed that she met Jeffrey Epstein-associate Ghislaine Maxwell “on a few occasions” despite widespread reporting that Maxwell attended Chelsea Clinton’s wedding and played a substantial role in the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), one of President Bill Clinton’s signature post-White House endeavors.
The Justice Department released its latest tranche of documents relating to the late Epstein which revealed that Ghislaine Maxwell played a significant role in the Clinton orbit of politics.
Hillary Clinton recently said she had met Maxwell “on a few occasions,” attempting to distance herself from Maxwell and Epstein. Bill Clinton was featured prominently in the Epstein files.
Despite this claim, Maxwell, in her Justice Department interview last year, said she had a “very central” role in setting up the Clinton Global Initiative. She also said Epstein was involved in the effort.
The Epstein files have detailed Maxwell’s integral role in supporting the creation of the Clinton Global Initiative. Maxwell took part in budget discussions for the first CGI conference, discussed issues with Clinton aides, and worked with Publicis Groupe, the company that produced CGI’s first event.
Maxwell even arranged to wire $1 million to pay Publicis for its work on the “Clinton project.” The New York Times noted that the source for the payment remains unclear, and if Epstein provided the funds.
“Ask him to tell you why i million now and where will it be going,” Epstein wrote to Maxwell after she received wiring instructions from Publicis.
The Times provided more context:
Ms. Maxwell’s involvement in the launch of the Clinton Global Initiative took place in 2004, before Mr. Epstein’s 2006 indictment and 2008 guilty plea for solicitation of prostitution with a minor, and long before Ms. Maxwell, a daughter of the media baron Robert Maxwell, was sentenced in 2022 to two decades in prison for conspiring with Mr. Epstein to sexually exploit underage girls.The emails support an assertion Ms. Maxwell made last year in an interview with the Justice Department that she played a key role in helping set up the global conference.
CGI was conceived as Clinton’s version of the annual gathering of the global elite in Davos, Switzerland, albeit with a more philanthropic approach.
Former President Clinton said he stopped speaking with Epstein before his 2006 indictment.
“He knew nothing about Epstein’s crimes,” Angel Ureña, a spokesperson for the Clintons, said. “When it became clear Epstein had no genuine interest in lifesaving philanthropic work, there was no reason for further contact. The facts are the facts and the truth is the truth, and they’re both on our side.”
Maxwell has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for conspiring with Jeffrey Epstein to sexually abuse minors.
The Justice Department had started releasing files related to Jeffrey Epstein after the passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act, a bill championed by Reps. Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khanna (D-CA).
The Times also noted that Maxwell was “already known” to have attended Chelsea Clinton’s 2010 wedding with her then-boyfriend, Ted Waitt, a tech billionaire and a big donor to the Clinton Foundation.
In a Justice Department interview, Maxwell said, “President Clinton was my friend, not Epstein’s friend.”
Epstein reportedly donated to Bill Clinton’s 1992 presidential campaign, donated $10,000 to refurbish the White House, and donated $20,000 to Hillary Clinton’s Senate campaign in 1999.
Richard Attias, a former Publicis executive, said in an interview that Maxwell had played a key role in getting CGI established.
“She was in Davos with President Clinton, and this is when they realized the amazing impact of Davos and they came up with the idea of creating something similar, but with a different philosophy,” Attias said.
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