Politics on the Hudson

Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton and former President Bill Clinton last month divested the stocks they owned in a blind trust valued at $5 million to $25 million, while retaining ownership of bonds issued by government entities such as the New York State Thruway Authority. The couple also kept bonds issued by the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York and the Panama New York Central School District in the westernmost corner of the state.

Because she is running for president, New York’s junior senator was required by the Office of Government Ethics to disclose the details of the investments that under Senate rules could be kept secret. Under a blind trust, investment decisions are made by a third party and not disclosed to the owner.

As a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination Hillary Clinton could be criticized for investments that included foreign companies—Grupo Televisa SA, Hong Kong and China Gas Ltd., HSBC Holdings PLC and National Bank of Greece—or in sectors such as health care that she wants to overhaul with universal health coverage.

The couple decided to sell all their stock and put the money into noncontroversial government bonds and cash accounts.
Details of the blind trust divestiture were separate from another public disclosure filing she made as a senator regarding her 2006 personal wealth.

The Senate filing showed that Bill Clinton earned $10.24 million from 57 speeches last year.

The presidential report, which includes the couple’s finances through this year, shows the former president earned an additional $5.3 million for 34 speeches between a Jan. 3 and June 13.