Administration faces question: Are donors paying for Obama access?

By Rachel Rose Hartman, Yahoo News

White House spokesman Jay Carney on Monday answered growing questions about whether big donors to President Barack Obama’s nonprofit Organizing for America (OFA) are being promised access to the president.

His answer? Well, kind of.

While Carney had responded “no” when Fox News’ Ed Henry asked if a recent report “suggests that access to the president is being sold,” his explanation sidestepped the issue. He offered instead a string of policy proposals, definitions and a recitation of campaign finance rules.

On Friday, New York Times reporter Nicholas Confessore wrote of an alleged pay-for-access arrangement through OFA: “Giving or raising $500,000 or more puts donors on a national advisory board for Mr. Obama’s group and the privilege of attending quarterly meetings with the president, along with other meetings at the White House.”

On Monday, Carney emphasized that the group, which was born out of the president’s campaign committee, is an “independent organization”; that administration officials follow rules regarding separation between outside groups and the administration; and that the president supports campaign finance transparency.

When pressed again to explain the reports, Carney referred questions to OFA.

Related articles

• Carney Ducks Questions about Access to President Being Sold (nationalreview.com)
• Jay Carney dodges questions about buying a meeting with Obama (redalertpolitics.com)
• OFA Donors Who Give $500,000 Get Quarterly Meetings with Obama (thelibertybeacon.com)
• Are donors paying for access to Obama? (cbsnews.com)
• Are donors paying for access to Obama? (cbsnews.com)
• Jay Carney Struggles To Deny $500,000 OFA Donation Gets You Access To The President (buzzfeed.com)
• White House defends donor access to Obama (firstread.nbcnews.com)
• Chicago-style “Pay to Play” emerges in DC with OFA (illinoisreview.typepad.com)

Filed under: 2012 Politics, 2012 Presidential Election, barack obama, Congressman Bill Posey, Current TV, michelle obama, Mitt Romney, Obama Family, obama fraud, politics, Presidential Election, U.S. Congress, U.S. Government, U.S. Senate Tagged: Jay Carney, New York Times, Nicholas Confessore, Organizing for America, White House