Trump needs to tell Qatar’s emir to come clean about gifts to US universities
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When President Trump hosts the emir of Qatar at the White House Tuesday, the president should confront him about a topic much discussed in Washington these days: foreign influence.
Qatar has spent tens of millions of dollars on Washington lobbyists, but it spends far more on gifts to top American universities. With total donations of more than $1.4 billion, it is the top foreign donor overall. It has directed funding to Georgetown, Texas A&M, Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), Cornell, Michigan, Northwestern, and others. Georgetown, VCU, Cornell, and Texas A&M have even established branch campuses in Qatar.
The problem, according to a letter from the U.S. Department of Education announcing an investigation, is that disclosure reports made by Georgetown and Texas A&M “may not fully capture” Qatari gifts, the department noted in the letter. Federal law requires them to report foreign donations worth more than $250,000. The department’s inquiry is part of a broader push to monitor foreign money at American schools.
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