Would Deborah Ross Also Tell Hillary Clinton "To Her Face" Her Pay-To-Play Scheme Was Wrong? | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Press Release:

As Ross tours NC highlighting her "ethics" plan, NCGOP questions where Ross stands on Clinton's corrupt behavior as Secretary of State

    Raleigh, N.C.     Democrat Senate candidate Deborah Ross is touting her "ethics" plan in Fayetteville today, which directly calls for eliminating pay-to-play schemes. In light of the continued revelations into the pay-to-play structure Hillary Clinton built between her State Department and Clinton Foundation, the North Carolina Republican Party questions whether or not Deborah Ross would tell Hillary Clinton "to her face" that her pay-to-play scheme was wrong, just as Ross said she would do over Clinton's email scandal.

• "Deborah Ross took Hillary Clinton to task over her email scandal, saying she 'would tell Hillary Clinton to her face that she handled her email in the wrong way.' As Ross promotes her 'ethics' plan that calls for eliminating pay-to-play, would Ross also tell Hillary Clinton the pay-to-play scheme between the Clinton Foundation and the State Deparmtent was wrong? North Carolinians deserve to know if Deborah Ross is actually against pay-to-play or if she's all talk. If Ross won't tell Clinton her corrupt actions while serving as our nation's top diplomat were deplorable, North Carolinians will believe she's just as untrustworthy as Hillary Clinton." - Robin Hayes, NCGOP Chairman

    Deborah Ross Says She Would Tell Hillary Clinton To Her Face That She Handled Her Email In The Wrong Way. "'I would tell Hillary Clinton to her face that she handled her email in the wrong way,' Ross told reporters. 'I mean, it was wrong. No two ways about it. ... It was wrong. She said it was wrong.'" (Bert Gutiérrez, "Democratic Senate candidate Ross on Clinton emails: 'It was wrong. No two ways about it,'" Winston Salem Journal, 8/24/16)

    The Frequency Of The Meetings "Shows The Intermingling Of Access And Donations, And Fuels Perceptions That Giving The Foundation Money Was The Price Of Admission For Face Time With Clinton." "But the frequency of the overlaps shows the intermingling of access and donations, and fuels perceptions that giving the foundation money was a price of admission for face time with Clinton. Her calendars and emails released as recently as this week describe scores of contacts she and her top aides had with foundation donors." (Stephen Braun and Eileen Sullivan, "Clinton Foundation Donors Got Face Time With Her At State," The Associated Press, 8/24/16)

    More Than Half Of The Non-Government People That Clinton Met With At The State Department Were Donors To The Clinton Foundation. "More than half the people outside the government who met with Hillary Clinton while she was secretary of state gave money - either personally or through companies or groups - to the Clinton Foundation. It's an extraordinary proportion indicating her possible ethics challenges if elected president." (Stephen Braun and Eileen Sullivan, "Clinton Foundation Donors Got Face Time With Her At State," The Associated Press, 8/24/16)

    The 85 Of The 154 Individuals With Private Interests Clinton Met With Or Talked To Over The Phone Had Contributed As Much As $156 Million To The Foundation. "They are among at least 85 of 154 people with private interests who either met or had phone conversations scheduled with Clinton and also gave to her family's charities, according to a review of State Department calendars released so far to The Associated Press. Combined, the 85 donors contributed as much as $156 million. The 154 does not include U.S. federal employees or foreign government representatives." (Stephen Braun and Eileen Sullivan, "Clinton Foundation Donors Got Face Time With Her At State," The Associated Press, 8/24/16)

    Deborah Ross' Ethics Plan Calls For The Elimination Of Pay-To-Play Schemes For Government Contractors. "Eliminate pay-to-play schemes for government contractors: Existing law already prohibits corporations and individuals doing business directly with the federal government from making contributions in federal elections. But this law has too many loopholes, and doesn't apply the same prohibitions to executives, lobbyists, and political action committees for federal contractors. Meanwhile, evidence shows that increased political contributions correspond with more success in landing government contracts. As your United States Senator, I'll support proposals that close these loopholes and crack down on pay-to-play schemes for government contractors. Our government should do business with companies that do the best work at the best value for the American taxpayer, not whichever give the most to Senators' reelection campaigns." (Deborah Ross, 'Putting People First' ethics plan, 8/29/16)

• Contact: NCGOP Communications
•     communications@ncgop.org