Uranium One controversy

{{Short description|Alleged US political scandal}}    {{Use mdy dates|date=November 2019}} [[File:MonthlyUraniumSpot.png|thumb|Monthly uranium spot price]] The '''Uranium One controversy''' involves various conspiracy theories promoted by conservative media, politicians, and commentators that characterized the sale of the uranium mining company [[Uranium One]] to the Russian state-owned corporation [[Rosatom]] as a $145 million bribery scandal involving [[Hillary Clinton]] and the [[Clinton Foundation]].<ref>{{cite book|first1=Yochai|last1=Benkler|first2=Robert|last2=Faris|first3=Hal|last3=Roberts|title=Network Propaganda: Manipulation, Disinformation, and Radicalization in American Politics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MVRuDwAAQBAJ|publisher=Oxford University Press|date=17 September 2018|isbn=978-0-19-092364-8|via=Google Books|pages=167}}</ref><ref name="Rutledge">{{cite book|first1=Paul E.|last1=Rutledge|first2=Chapman|last2=Rackaway|title=The Unorthodox Presidency of Donald J. Trump|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HrquEAAAQBAJ|publisher=University Press of Kansas|date=16 July 2021|isbn=978-0-7006-3232-9|via=Google Books|pages=43}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|first1=Alison|last1=Dagnes|title=Super Mad at Everything All the Time |chapter=Negative Objectives: The Right-Wing Media Circle and Everyone Else|chapter-url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-06131-9_5|publisher=Springer International Publishing|date=12 March 2019|location=Cham|isbn=978-3-030-06131-9|pages=167–217|via=Springer Link|doi=10.1007/978-3-030-06131-9_5}}</ref> No evidence of wrongdoing was ever found.<ref name="Rutledge" />

Since the 2015 publication of the book ''[[Clinton Cash]]'' by ''[[Breitbart News]]'' editor and [[Steve Bannon]] collaborator [[Peter Schweizer]], as well as a 2015 ''[[The New York Times|New York Times]]'' article that used some of Schweizer's raw research,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/24/us/cash-flowed-to-clinton-foundation-as-russians-pressed-for-control-of-uranium-company.html|title=Cash Flowed to Clinton Foundation Amid Russian Uranium Deal|last1=Becker|first1=Jo|last2=McIntire|first2=Mike|work=The New York Times |date=April 23, 2015|via=NYTimes.com|access-date=March 31, 2018}}</ref> allegations of a bribery scheme involving Hillary Clinton, the Clinton Foundation and the 2010 sale of Uranium One persisted, primarily in conservative media. Fox News host [[Sean Hannity]] characterized it as "the biggest scandal{{snd}}or, at least, one of them{{snd}}in American history," while his frequent guest and former Trump advisor [[Seb Gorka]] equated it with treason worthy of a death sentence.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/10/27/in-trump-world-the-uranium-deal-approved-by-clinton-is-watergate-and-worthy-of-the-chair/|title=Analysis | In Trump world, the uranium deal approved by Clinton is 'Watergate' and worthy of 'the chair'|first=Callum|last=Borchers|via=www.washingtonpost.com}}</ref>

Despite four years of discussion and analysis of the matter{{snd}}as well as an FBI investigation<ref name="nytimes.com">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/02/us/politics/fbi-james-comey-hillary-clinton-donald-trump.html|title=F.B.I.'s Email Disclosure Broke a Pattern Followed Even This Summer|last1=Apuzzo|first1=Matt|last2=Schmidt|first2=Michael S.|date=November 1, 2016|via=NYTimes.com|access-date=March 31, 2018|last3=Goldman|first3=Adam|last4=Rashbaum|first4=William K.|work=The New York Times }}</ref>{{snd}}no evidence of any wrongdoing surfaced. Numerous Republican politicians and pundits, including [[President Donald Trump]], insisted that the Clinton-Uranium One story was the "real" Russian scandal, rather than the [[Mueller special counsel investigation|matters for which the Trump administration was investigated]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-clintons-obama-uranium-deal-fbi-2017-10|title=Trump rants at 'Fake Media' for ignoring stories on Russia uranium deal tied to Clinton|last=Lockie|first=Alex|date=September 17, 2017|work=[[Business Insider]]|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/356161-trump-uranium-deal-with-russia-biggest-story-that-fake-media-doesnt/|title=Trump: Uranium deal with Russia 'biggest story that Fake Media doesn't want to follow'|last=Savransky|first=Rebecca|date=October 19, 2017|work=[[The Hill (newspaper)|The Hill]]|access-date=October 24, 2018|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/10/19/making-sense-of-russia-uranium-and-hillary-clinton/|title=Analysis {{!}} Making sense of Russia, Uranium One and Hillary Clinton, as Congress opens an investigation|last=Borchers|first=Callum|date=October 24, 2017|newspaper=[[Washington Post]]|language=en|access-date=October 24, 2018}}</ref> ''The Washington Post'' reported in January 2020 that an additional Justice Department investigation into the matter, initiated after Donald Trump took office in 2017, was winding down after finding nothing worth pursuing.<ref name="wapoNothing">{{cite news|last1=Barrett|first1=Devlin|last2=Zapotosky|first2=Matt|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/justice-dept-winds-down-clinton-related-inquiry-once-championed-by-trump-it-found-nothing-of-consequence/2020/01/09/ca83932e-32f9-11ea-a053-dc6d944ba776_story.html|title=Justice Dept. winds down Clinton-related inquiry once championed by Trump. It found nothing of consequence.|date=January 9, 2020|newspaper=[[Washington Post]]}}</ref> {{TOC limit|3}}

== Timeline of events ==

=== 2005: $145 million alleged bribes to Clinton Foundation === [[Frank Giustra]] donated $31.3 million to the Clinton Foundation, to be followed in 2007 with a pledge of at least $100 million. These amounts constituted the bulk of the $145 million in supposed bribes paid to the Clinton Foundation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/frank-giustras-amazing-comment-about-bill-clinton-2015-4|title=The billionaire linked to the 'Clinton Cash' scandals once said something amazing about doing business with Bill Clinton|last=Walker|first=Hunter|date=April 24, 2015|website=[[Business Insider]]|access-date=February 16, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/31/us/politics/31donor.html|title=After Mining Deal, Financier Donated to Clinton|first1=Jo|last1=Becker|first2=Don Van Jr.|last2=Natta|work=The New York Times |date=January 31, 2008|via=NYTimes.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/jun/30/donald-trump/donald-trump-inaccurately-suggests-clinton-got-pai/|title=Did Clinton help Russia obtain uranium for donations? Nope|website=@politifact}}</ref>

=== 2007: Uranium One acquired UrAsia Energy === On April 20, 2007, Uranium One, a Canadian mining company with headquarters in Toronto, acquired UrAsia Energy, a Canadian firm with headquarters in Vancouver, from Frank Giustra, who then resigned from the UrAsia Energy Board of Directors.<ref name="nyt20080131">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/31/us/politics/31donor.html|title=After Mining Deal, Financier Donated to Clinton|last1=Becker|first1=Jo|date=January 31, 2008|work=The New York Times|access-date=October 28, 2017|last2=Van Natta Jr.|first2=Don|quote=The monster deal stunned the mining industry, turning an unknown shell company into one of the world's largest uranium producers in a transaction ultimately worth tens of millions of dollars to Mr. Giustra, analysts said.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/uranium-one-and-urasia-energy-announce-combination-to-create-emerging-senior-uranium-company-533382081.html|title=Uranium One and UrAsia Energy Announce Combination to Create Emerging Senior Uranium Company|website=www.newswire.ca|access-date=March 30, 2018|archive-date=March 30, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180330081606/https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/uranium-one-and-urasia-energy-announce-combination-to-create-emerging-senior-uranium-company-533382081.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Having severed ties with UrAsia Energy and Uranium One in 2007, Giustra had no evident beneficial interest in the subsequent sale of Uranium One to [[Rosatom]] in 2010, as he sold the 2,790,000 Uranium One shares he received in exchange for his shares of UrAsia in 2007. (Per the deal terms, UrAsia shareholders received 0.45 shares of Uranium One for each share of UrAsia they held.)

UrAsia has interests in rich uranium operations in Kazakhstan,<ref name="WISEUrAsia">[http://www.wise-uranium.org/ucura.html "UrAsia Energy Ltd."] updated April 21, 2007, accessed April 23, 2015.</ref> and UrAsia Energy's acquisition of its Kazakhstan uranium interests from [[Kazatomprom]] followed a trip to [[Almaty]] in 2005 by Giustra and former U.S. President [[Bill Clinton]] where they met with [[Nursultan Nazarbayev]], the leader of Kazakhstan. Giustra denies reporting by ''The New York Times'' that he and Clinton traveled together to Almaty.<ref>{{cite press release|url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/statement-from-frank-giustra-founder-and-chairman-of-the-clinton-giustra-enterprise-partnership-canada-502399291.html|title=Statement from Frank Giustra, Founder and Chairman of the Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership (Canada)|last=(Canada)|first=Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership|website=www.prnewswire.com|access-date=March 30, 2018}}</ref> Substantial contributions to the [[Clinton Foundation]] by Giustra followed,<ref name="nyt20080131" /><ref name="NYT42115">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/24/us/cash-flowed-to-clinton-foundation-as-russians-pressed-for-control-of-uranium-company.html|title=Cash Flowed to Clinton Foundation as Russians Pressed for Control of Uranium Company|author1=Jo Becker and Mike Mcintire|date=April 23, 2015|work=The New York Times|access-date=April 23, 2015|quote=Canadian mining financier Frank Giustra orchestrated his first big uranium deal, with Mr. Clinton at his side.}}</ref> with Clinton, Giustra, and Mexican telecommunications billionaire [[Carlos Slim]] in 2007, establishing the Clinton Foundation's [[Clinton Foundation#Clinton Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative|Clinton Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative]] to combat poverty in the developing world.<ref name="SusGrowth">{{cite web|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/environment-clinton-poverty-mining-dc/clinton-mining-industry-launch-anti-poverty-effort-idUKN2139844220070621|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171023011945/http://uk.reuters.com/article/environment-clinton-poverty-mining-dc/clinton-mining-industry-launch-anti-poverty-effort-idUKN2139844220070621|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 23, 2017|title=Clinton, mining industry launch anti-poverty effort|last=Parsons|first=Claudia|date=June 22, 2007|access-date=October 22, 2017|work=Reuters}}</ref> In addition to his initial pledge of $100 million, Giustra pledged to contribute half of his future earnings from mining to the initiative.<ref name="SusGrowth" /> There is no indication that Giustra was contemplating any transaction with Russian interests at the time he began donating to the Clinton Foundation in 2005; rather, he sold UrAsia Energy to Uranium One, a South African-Canadian company based in Toronto, in 2007. That sale was completed two months before he made his pledges to the Clinton Foundation.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/giustra-slim-donate-100-million-each-to-clinton-foundation/article20404756/|title=Giustra, Slim donate $100-million each to Clinton Foundation|newspaper=The Globe and Mail|date=June 21, 2007 |access-date=March 30, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/how-a-tiny-miners-bet-went-nuclear/article17990858/|title=How a tiny miner's bet went nuclear|access-date=June 25, 2019}}</ref>

Since uranium is considered a strategic asset with national security implications and Uranium One owned uranium mining operations in the United States, the acquisition of Uranium One by Rosatom was reviewed by the [[Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States]] (CFIUS), a committee of nine government cabinet departments and agencies including the [[United States Department of State]], which was then headed by [[Hillary Clinton]]. Clinton herself did not sit on CFIUS, but rather the State Department was represented by [[Jose W. Fernandez|Jose Fernandez]], the Assistant Secretary of State for Economic, Energy and Business Affairs, who stated that Clinton was not involved in the Uranium One matter.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2016/jun/30/donald-trump/donald-trump-inaccurately-suggests-clinton-got-pai/|title=Did Clinton help Russia obtain uranium for donations? Nope|access-date=July 12, 2016}}</ref><ref name="nyt042315">{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/24/us/cash-flowed-to-clinton-foundation-as-russians-pressed-for-control-of-uranium-company.html?_r=1|title=Cash Flowed to Clinton Foundation Amid Russian Uranium Deal|last1=Becker|first1=Jo|date=April 23, 2015|newspaper=The New York Times|last2=McIntire|first2=Mike}}</ref><ref name="yf042315">{{cite web|url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/clinton-foundation-received-millions-uranium-132500796.html|title=The Clinton Foundation received millions from investors as Putin took over 20% of US uranium deposits|last1=Campbell|first1=Colin|last2=Engel|first2=Pamela|date=April 23, 2015|website=Yahoo! Finance|access-date=August 31, 2016}}</ref> Although CFIUS members can object to such a foreign transaction, none did,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/fox-news-shep-smith-hillary-clinton-scandal-the-uranium-one-deal-2017-11|title=Fox News anchor Shep Smith annihilates his network's favorite Hillary Clinton 'scandal,' the Uranium One deal|website=[[Business Insider]] |access-date=March 29, 2018}}</ref> and no member can veto a decision; veto power rests solely with the president.<ref name="Kiely 2016">{{cite web|url=http://www.factcheck.org/2015/04/no-veto-power-for-clinton-on-uranium-deal/|title=No 'Veto Power' for Clinton on Uranium Deal|last=Kiely|first=Eugene|date=April 28, 2015|website=factcheck.org|access-date=July 12, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.factcheck.org/2017/10/facts-uranium-one/|title=The Facts on Uranium One - FactCheck.org|date=October 26, 2017|access-date=March 29, 2018}}</ref> CFIUS unanimously approved the Uranium One sale.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/prosecutors-ask-fbi-agents-info-uranium-one-deal-n831436|title=Attorney General Sessions orders fresh look at Uranium One deal|website=[[NBC News]] |date=December 21, 2017 |access-date=March 30, 2018}}</ref> The Utah Division of Radiation Control and Canada's [[Foreign Investment Review Agency|foreign investment review agency]] also approved the transaction.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://archive.sltrib.com/article.php?id=50850101&itype=CMSID|title=Uranium company deal nearly done|access-date=March 29, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://time.com/3831794/clinton-allies-knock-down-donor-allegations-new-questions-pop-up/|title=Clinton Allies Knock Down Donor Allegations, New Questions Pop Up|magazine=Time|access-date=March 29, 2018|archive-date=March 26, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326030414/http://time.com/3831794/clinton-allies-knock-down-donor-allegations-new-questions-pop-up/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== 2010: $500,000 payment to Bill Clinton === On June 29, 2010, [[Renaissance Capital (Russian company)|Renaissance Capital]], a Russian investment bank with ties to the [[Moscow Kremlin|Kremlin]] and which was promoting Uranium One stock, paid Bill Clinton $500,000 for a speech in Moscow shortly after the Rosatom acquisition of Uranium One was announced.<ref name="nyt042315" /><ref name="yf042315" />

=== 2015: ''New York Times'' coverage === On April 23, 2015, ''[[The New York Times]]'' reported that during the acquisition, the family foundation of Uranium One's chairman, [[Ian Telfer]], made $2.35 million in donations to the Clinton Foundation.<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/24/us/cash-flowed-to-clinton-foundation-as-russians-pressed-for-control-of-uranium-company.html?_r=0| author=Jo Becker and Mike McIntire| title=Cash Flowed to Clinton Foundation Amid Russian Uranium Deal| work=New York Times| date= April 23, 2015}}</ref> The donations were legal but not publicly disclosed by the Clinton Foundation, despite an agreement with the White House to disclose all contributors.<ref name="Kiely">{{cite web|url=http://www.factcheck.org/2017/10/facts-uranium-one/|title=The Facts on Uranium One|last=Kiely|first=Eugene|date=October 26, 2017|website=FactCheck.org|access-date=October 29, 2017}}</ref> In a follow-up story six days later, ''The Times'' clarified that the donations went to "the Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership (Canada), [which] operates in parallel to a Clinton Foundation project called the Clinton Giustra Enterprise Partnership, which is expressly covered by an agreement Mrs. Clinton signed to make all donors public while she led the State Department. However, the foundation maintains that the Canadian partnership is not bound by that agreement and that under Canadian law contributors' names cannot be made public."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/30/us/politics/canadian-partnership-shielded-identities-of-donors-to-clinton-foundation.html|title=Canadian Partnership Shielded Identities of Donors to Clinton Foundation|last1=McIntire|first1=Mike|last2=Becker|first2=Jo|work=The New York Times |date=April 29, 2015|via=NYTimes.com|access-date=March 29, 2018}}</ref>

In his May 5, 2015, book ''[[Clinton Cash]]'', [[Breitbart News]] editor [[Peter Schweizer]] alleged that the Clinton Foundation received $145 million in pledges and donations in exchange for Hillary Clinton's support of the Uranium One deal.<ref name="Kiely"/> This allegation has been repeated numerous times across conservative media, particularly by Sean Hannity, as evidence of a bribery scheme.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Borchers|first=Callum|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2017/10/19/making-sense-of-russia-uranium-and-hillary-clinton/|title=Making sense of Russia, Uranium One and Hillary Clinton, as Congress opens an investigation|date=October 24, 2017|access-date=February 2, 2020|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> However, $31 million of this amount was donated by Frank Giustra in 2005, and another $100 million pledged by him in 2007, the latter amount after he had severed ties with Uranium One.<ref name="Kiely"/> Both cases occurred years before any prospective Uranium One sale to Russian interests was known. [[PolitiFact]] identified about $4 million in donations from various Uranium One investors in the years before and after the Russian deal.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Jacobson|first1=Louis|last2=Kruzel|first2=John|url=https://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2017/oct/24/what-you-need-know-about-hillary-clinton-and-urani/|title=What you need to know about Hillary Clinton, Russia, and uranium|date=October 24, 2017|access-date=February 2, 2020|work=Politifact}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Myer|first=Greg|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/11/06/561587174/the-alternative-russia-scandal|title=The Alternative 'Russia Scandal'|date=November 6, 2017|website=NPR|access-date=March 31, 2018}}</ref>

=== 2016: FBI investigate Clinton Foundation === By August 2016, the FBI had begun to confidentially investigate the Clinton Foundation, based largely on Schweizer's book and reporting by ''The New York Times'', but they failed to find much evidence to support corruption allegations.<ref name="nytimes.com" /> As the investigation lay dormant, [[United States Attorney General|Attorney General]] [[Jeff Sessions]] in December 2017 ordered Justice Department prosecutors to ask FBI investigators about the evidence they had gathered. Sessions was responding to demands of Republican members of Congress for a special counsel to be appointed to investigate Uranium One and other matters relating to Hillary Clinton and the FBI.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/prosecutors-ask-fbi-agents-info-uranium-one-deal-n831436|title=Attorney General Sessions orders fresh look at Uranium One deal|website=[[NBC News]] |date=December 21, 2017 |access-date=March 31, 2018}}</ref> CNN reported on March 29, 2018, that Sessions had appointed [[John W. Huber]], the [[United States Attorney]] for the District of Utah, to investigate "a cluster of Republican-driven accusations against the FBI," which includes allegations that the FBI acted inappropriately in two matters involving Hillary Clinton, including her emails and the sale of Uranium One to Rosatom. In a letter to three Republican Congressional committee chairmen, Sessions said he would rely on Huber's findings to decide if a special counsel needed to be appointed. Huber had been investigating the matters for a time, but his involvement had not previously been disclosed.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/29/politics/sessions-prosecutor-fbi-misconduct-clinton-uranium-one-special-counsel/index.html|title=Sessions does not appoint second special counsel|first=Laura |last=Jarrett|date=March 29, 2018 |publisher=CNN|access-date=March 31, 2018}}</ref>

Several members of Clinton's State Department staff and officials from the Obama-era Department of Justice have said that CFIUS reviews are handled by civil servants and that it would be unlikely that Clinton would have had more than nominal involvement in her department's signing off on the acquisition.<ref name="SchneiderMallonee">{{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/24/politics/obama-era-uranium-deal/index.html|title=Obama-era uranium deal yields new questions, new accusations and new investigation|last1=Schneider|first1=Jessica|last2=Mallonee|first2=Mary Kay|date=October 24, 2017|publisher=CNN|access-date=October 27, 2017}}</ref> According to [[Snopes]], the timing of donations might have been questionable if Hillary Clinton had played a key role in approving the deal, but all evidence suggests that she did not and may in fact have had no role in approving the deal at all.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.snopes.com/hillary-clinton-uranium-russia-deal/|title=FACT CHECK: Hillary Clinton Gave 20 Percent of United States' Uranium to Russia in Exchange for Clinton Foundation Donations?|date=October 25, 2016|website=Snopes.com|access-date=January 28, 2018}}</ref>

=== 2017 ===

==== Investigation on the sale of Uranium One ==== In October 2017, following a report by [[John F. Solomon]] and Alison Spann published in ''[[The Hill (newspaper)|The Hill]]'' and citing anonymous sources,<ref name="SolomonSpann2017">{{cite news|url=https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/356630-fbi-watched-then-acted-as-russian-spy-moved-closer-to-hillary/|title=FBI watched, then acted as Russian spy moved closer to Hillary Clinton|last1=Solomon|first1=John|date=October 22, 2017|work=[[The Hill (newspaper)|The Hill]]|access-date=November 10, 2017|last2=Spann|first2=Alison|archive-date=March 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210314192100/http://thehill.com/policy/national-security/356630-fbi-watched-then-acted-as-russian-spy-moved-closer-to-hillary|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="conca">{{Cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesconca/2017/10/27/claims-of-clinton-russia-uranium-scandal-are-a-real-empty-barrel/#405bc9257b55|title=Claims of Clinton-Russia Uranium Collusion Are A Real Empty Barrel|last=Conca|first=James|date=October 27, 2017|work=Forbes|access-date=November 3, 2017}} Forbes Energy BeltwayBrief contributed by geoscientist, adjunct professor at WSU, and trustee at the Herbert M. Parkier Foundation for education in the radiological sciences</ref> the Republican-controlled [[United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence|House Intelligence Committee]] opened an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the sale of Uranium One.<ref name="SchneiderMallonee" /> ''The Hill'' story insinuated payments from Russians to the Clinton Foundation at the time when the Obama administration approved the sale of Uranium One to Rosatom.<ref name="Benkler 2018">{{Cite book|url=https://global.oup.com/academic/product/network-propaganda-9780190923631|title=Network Propaganda: Manipulation, Disinformation, and Radicalization in American Politics|last1=Benkler|first1=Yochai|last2=Faris|first2=Robert|last3=Roberts|first3=Hal|date=November 22, 2018|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=9780190923631|location=Oxford, New York|pages=173–176}}</ref> The story also focused on the alleged failures of the Department of Justice to investigate and report on the controversy, suggesting a cover-up.<ref name="Benkler 2018" /> Subsequently, the story "took off like wildfire in the right-wing media ecosystem," according to a 2018 study by scholars at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society, [[Harvard University]].<ref name="Benkler 2018" /> ''The Hill'' reported, "There is no evidence in any of the public records that the FBI believed that the Clintons or anyone close to them did anything illegal. But there's definitive evidence the Russians were seeking their influence with a specific eye on the State Department."

[[FactCheck.org]] reported that there was "no evidence" connecting the Uranium One–Rosatom merger deal with a [[money laundering]] and bribery case involving a different Rosatom subsidiary which resulted in the conviction of a Russian individual in 2015, contrary to what is implied in the Solomon-Spann story.<ref name="Kiely" /><ref name="wemple">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/erik-wemple/wp/2017/10/20/trump-says-the-media-wont-cover-real-russia-story-it-already-did-years-ago/|title=Trump says the media won't cover 'real' Russia story. It already did. Years ago.|last=Wemple|first=Eric|date=October 20, 2017|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=November 4, 2017}}</ref> [[Glenn Kessler (journalist)|Glenn Kessler]] of ''[[The Washington Post]]'' wrote that the problem with some of the accusations that Republican commentators levied against Clinton is that she "by all accounts, did not participate in any discussions regarding the Uranium One sale." The Treasury Department and the CFIUS approved the investment without any participation by Clinton.<ref name="Kessler">{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/fact-checker/wp/2017/10/29/the-dossier-and-the-uranium-deal-a-guide-to-the-latest-allegations/|title=The 'dossier' and the uranium deal: A guide to the latest allegations|last=Kessler|first=Glenn|date=October 29, 2017|newspaper=Washington Post|access-date=October 31, 2017|language=en-US|issn=0190-8286}}</ref>

==== Lift gag order ====

In October 2017, President Trump directed the [[U.S. Department of Justice]] (DOJ) to lift a [[gag order]] it had placed on a former FBI informant involved in the investigation. The DOJ released the informant from his [[nondisclosure agreement]] on October 25, 2017,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/27/us/politics/trump-gag-order-justice-department.html|title=Trump Urged Gag Order to Be Lifted on Federal Informant|last=Davis|first=Julie Hirschfeld|date=October 27, 2017|work=New York Times|access-date=January 28, 2018}}</ref><ref name="the-hill-informant">{{cite web|url=https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/357230-fbi-informant-in-obama-era-russian-nuclear-bribery-cleared-to-testify-before/|title=FBI informant in Obama-era Russian nuclear bribery cleared to testify before Congress|last=Solomon|first=John|date=October 25, 2017|work=The Hill|access-date=October 27, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/gag-order-lifted-doj-says-informant-can-speak-to-congress-on-uranium-one-russia-bribery-case-with-clinton-links|title=Gag order lifted: DOJ says informant can speak to Congress on Uranium One, Russia bribery case with Clinton links|date=October 26, 2017|website=FoxNews.com|access-date=January 28, 2018}}</ref> authorizing him to provide the leaders of the [[United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary|Senate Judiciary Committee]], House Oversight Committee, and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence "any information or documents he has concerning alleged corruption or bribery involving transactions in the [[uranium market]]" involving Rosatom, its subsidiaries Tenex and Uranium One, and the Clinton Foundation.<ref name="Fox lift gag">{{cite web|url=https://www.foxnews.com/politics/uranium-one-probe-order-to-lift-gag-on-russia-informant-came-from-trump-source-says|title=Uranium One probe: Order to lift 'gag' on Russia informant came from Trump, source says|date=October 26, 2017|publisher=Fox News|access-date=October 27, 2017}}</ref> The informant's lawyer said that the informant "can tell what all the Russians were talking about during the time that all these bribery payments were made."<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/2017/10/23/clinton-uranium-one-deal-fbi-informant-blocked-by-obama-era-ag-can-unlock-key-info-attorney-says.html|title=Clinton Uranium One deal: FBI informant blocked by Obama-era AG can unlock key info, attorney says|date=October 23, 2017|work=[[Fox Business]]|access-date=November 7, 2017|language=en-US}}</ref> During a [[C-SPAN]] interview, Hillary Clinton said that any allegations that she was bribed to approve the Uranium One deal were "baloney."<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/26/politics/doj-fbi-informant-uranium-congress/index.html|title=FBI informant allowed to testify on uranium|last1=Tatum|first1=Sophie|date=October 27, 2017|work=CNN|access-date=November 7, 2017|last2=Mallonee|first2=Mary Kay|last3=Schneider|first3=Jessica}}</ref> On November 16, 2017, William Douglas Campbell identified himself as the FBI informant. He is a former [[Lobbying|lobbyist]] for Tenex, the US-based arm of Russia's Rosatom.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-clinton-informant-exclusive/exclusive-secret-witness-in-senate-clinton-probe-is-ex-lobbyist-for-russian-firm-idUSKBN1DG1SB|title=Exclusive: Secret witness in Senate Clinton probe is ex-lobbyist for Russian firm|last=Schectman|first=Joel|date=November 16, 2017|work=[[Reuters]]|access-date=November 18, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.businessinsider.com/uranium-one-hillary-clinton-lobbyist-russia-2017-11|title=The secret witness in the Clinton uranium one probe is an ex-lobbyist for a Russian energy firm|last1=Schectman|first1=Joel|date=November 16, 2017|work=[[Business Insider]]|access-date=November 18, 2017|last2=Damon|first2=Darlin|language=en|last3=Ross|first3=Colvin|archive-date=April 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419103049/https://www.businessinsider.com/uranium-one-hillary-clinton-lobbyist-russia-2017-11|url-status=dead}}</ref> On March 8, 2018, ''The Hill'' reported, "A confidential informant [Campbell] billed by House Republicans as having "explosive" information about the 2010 Uranium One deal approved during Hillary Clinton's tenure as secretary of State provided "no evidence of a quid pro quo" involving Clinton, Democratic staff said in a summary of the informant's closed-door testimony obtained by The Hill on Thursday."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/377404-dems-uranium-one-informant-provided-no-evidence-of-wrongdoing-by/|title=Dems: Uranium One informant provided 'no evidence' of Clinton 'quid pro quo'|last=Weaver|first=Dustin|date=March 8, 2018|access-date=March 30, 2018}}</ref> CNN reported that the summary document also stated that the Justice Department had expressed concerns about Campbell's credibility due to "inconsistencies between Campbell's statements and documents" in a separate investigation in 2015.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2018/03/08/politics/uranium-one-whistleblower-congress-democrats/index.html|title=Democrats say Uranium One whistleblower provided no evidence against Clintons|last=Herb|first=Jeremy|date=March 8, 2018|work=[[CNN]]|access-date=July 29, 2018}}</ref>

In November 2017, [[Shepard Smith]] of [[Fox News]] described President Trump's accusations against Clinton regarding Uranium One "inaccurate in a number of ways." Smith said that the sale of Uranium One was "not a Hillary Clinton approval" but instead a unanimous decision by the nine cabinet-level department heads of CFIUS, approved by the president and with permits issued by the [[Nuclear Regulatory Commission]]. Smith added that "most of the Clinton Foundation donations" came from Frank Giustra, who said he "sold his stake in the company" three years before it was sold to Russia. Lastly, Smith noted that "none of the uranium was exported for use by the U.S. to Russia."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2017/11/15/fox-news-shepherd-smith-debunks-his-networks-hillary-clinton-scandal-story-infuriates-viewers/|title=Fox News's Shepard Smith debunks his network's favorite Hillary Clinton 'scandal', infuriates viewers|last1=Barbash|first1=Fred|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|access-date=January 29, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2017/nov/15/fox-news-anchor-debunks-networks-clinton-uranium-scandal-sparking-fury|title=Fox News anchor debunks 'Clinton uranium scandal' – and sparks viewer fury|last1=Walters|first1=Joanna|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=November 15, 2017 |access-date=January 29, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://kdvr.com/2017/11/15/shepard-smith-fact-checks-fox-news-on-clinton-uranium-one-deal/|title=Shepard Smith fact checks Fox News on Clinton, Uranium One deal|date=November 15, 2017|publisher=[[CNN]]|access-date=January 29, 2018|archive-date=April 19, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190419065906/https://kdvr.com/2017/11/15/shepard-smith-fact-checks-fox-news-on-clinton-uranium-one-deal/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==== Review of FBI investigation ordered by Attorney General Sessions ==== In March 2018, Attorney General Jeff Sessions revealed that he had declined to appoint a special counsel to investigate, among other matters, the alleged connections between Uranium One and the Clinton Foundation and, instead, had ordered [[John W. Huber]], U.S. Attorney for the District of Utah, on November 22, 2017, to look into whether further investigation was warranted.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://thehill.com/policy/national-security/381888-mystery-surrounds-sessions-appointee-to-fbi-investigation/|title=Mystery surrounds Sessions appointee to FBI investigation|last=Williams|first=Katie Bo|date=April 6, 2018|access-date=July 26, 2018|website=The Hill}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.judicialwatch.org/bulletins/clinton-comey-uranium-one-john-w-huber/|title=Clinton, Comey, Uranium One: Who Is John W. Huber?|last=Williams|first=Katie Bo|date=April 10, 2018|website=Judicial Watch|access-date=July 26, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/sessions-for-now-rebuffs-gop-calls-for-second-special-counsel-to-probe-fbi-actions-in-clinton-and-russia-probes/2018/03/29/3f79a938-3393-11e8-8bdd-cdb33a5eef83_story.html|title=Sessions, for now, rebuffs GOP calls for second special counsel to probe FBI actions in Clinton and Russia investigations|last=Zapotosky|first=Matt|date=March 29, 2018|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=July 26, 2018}}</ref><ref name="Huber_order">{{Cite news|url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/doj-finds-letter-it-said-didnt-exist-ordering-scrutiny-of-uranium-one-hillary-clinton|title=It Exists: DOJ Finds Letter Ordering Scrutiny of Uranium One, Hillary Clinton|last=Woodruff|first=Betsy|date=March 9, 2019|work=[[Daily Beast]]|access-date=March 10, 2019|language=en}}</ref> Huber found nothing worth investigating, a result law enforcement officials indicated was largely expected, and the investigation was quietly wound down.<ref name="wapoNothing" />

[[Nonprofit organization|Nonprofit]] [[American Oversight]] obtained Session's letter in 2019 through a [[Freedom of Information Act (United States)|Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)]] request they had filed in 2017; the [[United States Department of Justice]] had claimed in 2018 that the letter did not exist.<ref name="Huber_order"/>

=== 2018: Indictment rumor ===

In 2018, several sources, including the ''New York Post'', incorrectly reported an indictment in the Tenex/Rosatam kickback scheme as a "first indictment" resulting from Rosatom's purchase of Uranium One.<ref name="greenberg">{{cite web|last=Greenberg|first=Jon|url=http://www.politifact.com/punditfact/statements/2018/jan/17/republican-news/no-uranium-one-investigation-has-not-led-indictmen/|title=No, Uranium One investigation has not led to an indictment|date=January 17, 2018|access-date=March 31, 2018}}</ref> The rumor was rated false by [[PolitiFact]] and [[Snopes]].<ref name="greenberg"/><ref name="palma">{{cite news|last=Palma|first=Bethania|url= https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/has-indictment-been-issued-uranium-one/ |title=Has an Indictment Been Issued in the Uranium One Investigation?|website=Snopes|date=January 2016|access-date=May 10, 2019}}</ref>

== References == {{reflist}}

[[Category:Charity scandals]] [[Category:Clinton Foundation|State Department controversy]] [[Category:Federal Bureau of Investigation operations]] [[Category:Hillary Clinton controversies]] [[Category:Obama administration controversies]] [[Category:Rosatom]] [[Category:Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections]] [[Category:United States Department of State]] [[Category:Conspiracy theories promoted by Donald Trump]] [[Category:Hillary Clinton's tenure as Secretary of State]]