The Weekly Standard wrote last year that former US President Bill Clinton and current Democratic-frontrunner Hillary Clinton were "no longer 'broke' if their choice of holiday destinations is any indication. A short article
at DominicanToday.com colorfully reports that the famous couple was in
the Dominican Republic to 'hobnob with tycoons at Dominican resorts'
around the turn of the year [2014-2015.] And while the Clintons are responsible for
their own expenses, the U.S. taxpayer picks up the tab for Secret
Service protection, and the hotel bill alone for this trip totaled at
least $104,093."
It remains a complete mystery exactly where the Clintons lodged during their outing to the Dominican Republic before Ms. Clinton declared her intentions to run for office. The Secret Service simply reported paying "Miscellaneous Foreign Awardees" instead of specifying where the Clintons stayed.
Alfonso Fanjul broke the Clintons out of poverty. Cuban History |
El Listin Diario, a large circulation daily in the Dominican Republic, directly reported that Ms. Clinton was on the island to ask the Fanjul family, described by CNN as the "First Family of Corporate Welfare," for their take on her having another shot at the presidency.
Although much has been written about the Koch brothers bankrolling conservative candidates, little has been written about the Fanjul brothers bankrolling runners on both sides of the American election, perhaps because of the Fanjuls' success in winning lawsuits.
Despite never becoming a US citizen, Alfonso Fanjul served in Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential campaign, while his brother Pepe served on George HW Bush's 1992 political committee. Regardless of which party or candidate won, the Fanjul brothers were guaranteed a secure, limited-competition market for their massively-subsidized international sugar empire.
Asked permission to become Presidente. DT |
This current election cycle was no different from 1992, and the hand of the Fanjuls was in the pockets of not just Hillary Clinton, but also of Marco Rubio in the Republican party, with the National Review writing that Mr. Rubio had a "billion-dollar sugar addiction."
The Dominican Republic is a country where people can't lose, everyone has to either tie or win, and the Fanjul brothers have fully assimilated to that ideology since leaving Cuba, giving them a flexibility that may make them the winners yet again if Hillary Clinton is elected.
If Ms. Clinton is elected president, the Clinton family will likely continue vacationing at Casa de Campo, where villas cost in one week what the average American makes in a year.
The Secret Service bill will be astronomical, but it would be even more absurdly ostentatious if it weren't subsidized by the Fanjuls; the politicians subsidize the sugar and in return the sugar barons subsidize the politician's vacations.