Politico reports that as secretary of state, Hillary Clinton exchanged personal emails with a former Clinton administration official who was lobbying on behalf of a foreign government, emails released by the State Department show:
The lobbyist, Jeffrey Farrow, emailed Clinton in 2009 about the American relationship with Palau while the United States was determining how much financial assistance it would give the Micronesian island, and shortly after Palau agreed to become the first nation to accept prisoners from the U.S. military prison in Guantanamo Bay.
The email release includes a handful of messages from Farrow to Clinton and one response from the secretary of state, as well as two instances where Clinton forwarded Farrow’s messages to top members of her staff.
While none of the emails reveal Clinton granting Farrow out-sized influence, they recall earlier questions about relationships between foreign governments and both Bill and Hillary Clinton.
Farrow advised Bill Clinton’s White House on matters relating to Puerto Rico and other territories, and played a similar role for Hillary Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign.
Records show that Farrow registered to lobbying on behalf of Palau in 2009, the same year Hillary Clinton became secretary of state. He first emailed Clinton in June 2009, and made repeated requests to Clinton for a larger U.S. aid package to his client.