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YOU ARE HERE: LAT HomeCollectionsNorman Hsu

Political donor skips day in court

The Nation

September 06, 2007|Dan Morain, Chuck Neubauer and Robin Fields, Times Staff Writers

Howard Wolfson, a spokesman for the Clinton campaign, said in a statement: "We believe that Mr. Hsu, like any individual who has obligations before the court, should be meeting them, and he should do so now."

Hsu has generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations for Clinton's presidential campaign.


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Hsu earned the title of "HillRaiser" for pledging to raise more than $100,000 for Clinton's presidential campaign.

The Clinton campaign has said it will give $23,000 in direct donations from Hsu to charity, but keep the money he bundled. Wolfson declined to release the names of bundled donors. He said that the campaign had not been contacted by the FBI about Hsu's fundraising.

Public Citizen, a Washington watchdog group that has pushed presidential candidates to identify bundlers and the money they bring in, urged Clinton to at least disclose which donations were tied to Hsu.

"She should say who they are," said Taylor Lincoln, research director for the group's Congress Watch division. "If she really wanted to be a standard-bearer, she should return all the money."

Hsu's disappearance stunned many of those who had defended him, including former Sen. Bob Kerrey (D-Neb.), president of the New School. Kerrey had recruited Hsu to join the school's board of directors and, even after his past was revealed last week, called him an exemplary member.

On Wednesday, Kerrey expressed bafflement and dismay.

"There's a lot more there than I thought," he said. "Obviously, there's a lot about him I didn't know."

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dan.morain@latimes.com

chuck.neubauer@latimes.com

robin.fields@latimes.com

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