He’s in Camp Clinton.
State Democratic Committee Chairman Jay Jacobs donated more than $800,000 to charities aligned with Bill and Hillary Clinton since 2009, a Post review of tax forms shows.
The cash is a curious expenditure from Jacobs’ charity, the TLC Starfish Foundation, which boasts on its website that it “partners with charities to provide underserved children the opportunity to participate in a variety of summer camps.”
The cash was variously disbursed over the years to the Clinton Global Initiative and the William Clinton Foundation — despite neither organization being involved in summer camps.
“I am very proud of our contributions to the Clinton Foundation, which continue to this day. The Clinton Foundation represents the very best of American generosity doing life-changing work in Africa and other developing areas like bringing lifesaving medicines to those who could otherwise never afford nor access it. That is why I have supported the Clinton Foundation and will continue to support it in the years ahead,” Jacobs told The Post.
The donations came during a period where Hillary Clinton served as Secretary of State and the Democratic party’s 2016 presidential candidate. Jacobs was a trusted confidant of the family.
“It is no secret that Jacobs is a close friend of the Clintons, in both a personal and political sense, and the most casual observer would note that this reeks of impropriety. Chairman Jacobs should be ashamed of engaging in such blatant political chicanery with charitable funds,” said Gavin Wax, president of the New York Young Republicans Club.
During a 2015 summer camp conference in Atlantic City, Hillary Clinton sat with Jacobs on stage “for a 40 minute casual conversation covering a wide variety of topics of interest.” That same year Jacobs and wife Mindy accompanied Bill and Hillary on a nine-day trip to Africa with other high-profile foundation supporters, the Washington Post reported at the time.
The news is the latest unwelcome revelation for Jacobs, who is taking heat from progressive Democrats statewide, who blame him for the party’s poor midterm performance, instead of their own soft-on-crime policies. Jacobs also faced heat last week after revelations that various entities he controls donated tens of thousands of dollars to Gov. Hochul and former Gov. Cuomo despite having received more than $6 million in pandemic relief loans.
“Jay Jacobs spent years driving the State Democratic Party into the ground — it’s no surprise he’s misusing funds as well. How much longer will the governor allow Jay Jacobs to embarrass her? The Democratic Party needs competent leadership — Hochul should have replaced him yesterday,” Monica Klein, a Democratic strategist, told The Post.