Judicial Watch: New State Department Records Reveal Clinton Aide Abedin Secured State Dept. Lunch Invitation for Major Clinton Foundation Donor

New documents also contain classified material

(Washington, DC) – Judicial Watch today released 549 pages of new State Department records, including previously unreleased email exchanges in which Hillary Clinton top aide Huma Abedin secured an invitation to a 2009 State Department luncheon for Sant S. Chatwal, a businessman under investigation in two countries and was also a Clinton Foundation trustee and contributor.  The emails also contain an email to Clinton, shared with Abedin, divulging the classified names of intelligence agency employees.

The records contain 21 previously undisclosed Clinton emails – of a total of at least 259 that were not part of the 55,000 pages of emails that Clinton turned over to the State Department – further appear to contradict statements by Clinton that, “as far as she knew,” all of her government emails were turned over to the State Department. Two of these emails are now available on the State Department’s website.

The records were obtained in response to a court order from a May 5, 2015, lawsuit filed against the State Department (Judicial Watch, Inc. v. U.S. Department of State (No. 1:15-cv-00684)) after it failed to respond to a March 18 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request seeking:

• All emails of official State Department business received or sent by former Deputy Chief of Staff Huma Abedin from January 1, 2009 through February 1, 2013 using a non-“state.gov” email address.

In November 2009, Abedin secured and oversaw the invitation for Clinton Foundation donor Sant S. Chatwal to attend the State Department luncheon for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Vice President Joe Biden. Chatwal attended both the State lunch and dinner.

From: Deena Howard [Redacted]

To: Huma Abedin; [email protected]

Sent: Thu Nov 12 17:41:21 2009

Subject: State Dinner

Dear Huma,

Long time no hear. I’ve been watching your travels on the news. Hope all is going well.

As you know, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and President Obama are having a State Dinner. Any possibilities to include me and my wife for this dinner? If so, that would be really great! But, if not, that’s ok too I totally understand.

With Best Regards,

Sant Chatwal

 

From: Huma Abedin [mailto: [email protected]]

Sent, Friday, November 13, 2009 3:13 PM

To: santchatwal [Redacted]

Subject: Re: State Dinner

So nice to hear from you!

Was going to send you an email myself. We have no control over the white house state dinner. But, Hillary is hosting the state lunch for the prime minister with vice president biden at the state department and you should be receiving your invitation to that soon. Will be the same day, nov 24^th. Hope all is well.

At the time Abedin oversaw the State Department luncheon invitation, Chatwal had a track record of legal troubles in the U.S. and abroad. Despite his record, in 2001, Chatwal was appointed a Clinton Foundation trustee, and reportedly raised millions of dollars for the operation.

Included is an unsecured email from Clinton to Abedin, which is also available on the State Department website, containing an analysis of the U.S. Afghanistan policy by Clinton confidant Sidney Blumenthal.  The email shows that names were redacted under laws that protect the names of individuals working with the Defense Intelligence Agency/National Reconnaissance Office/National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency.

The Abedin emails also contain a message from Clinton Foundation executive and Teneo founder Doug Band, instructing Abedin on having Secretary of State Clinton appear at a Clinton Global reception in Davos. The November 16, 2009, message read: “Hosting a reception a at davos for cgi as we did the last few years. It’s the single to be at the event and will be jan 27 or whenever she would be there as having her drop by would help a lot.”  According to Clinton’s schedule, she did not attend the Davos meeting.

“These new emails provide further proof that Hillary Clinton used her official office to provide special treatment for donors to the Clinton Foundation and members of the Foundation staff,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “And the new national security material in these emails will increase pressure on the Trump administration to authorize a serious investigation of Clinton’s email practices.”

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