Common Cause has urged Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and the Clinton Foundation to create an independent review of major donations to the foundation.
"As Mrs. Clinton herself observed earlier this week, voluntary disclosure is not enough," said Common Cause President Miles Rapoport,
according to The Washington Examiner.
"A report in
Thursday's New York Times indicates that the Clinton Foundation violated an agreement to identify all of its donors. The foundation's omissions create significant gaps in the information that voters need to make informed decisions at the polls."
Common Cause is a liberal, non-profit advocacy organization based in Washington, D.C., which was founded in 1970. The group was created to serve as a citizens' lobby to establish greater transparency and accountability in U.S. political institutions.
Rapoport said the foundation should open its books fully and to make public the complete report of its audit. He also said that to avoid future conflicts of interest, the foundation should stop accepting donations from foreign governments and corporations, the Examiner reported.
"There already is too much 'dark money' in our elections, in the form of spending by supposedly independent nonprofit groups that are not required to disclose their donors and operate as sort of shadow campaigns," Rapoport said.
"The Clinton Foundation and any other foundations tied to a candidate or his or her family provide one more way for potential donors to gain access and curry favor from candidates — without the public knowing about it. That lack of transparency creates a clear risk of undue influence and conflicts of interest."
Although Hillary Clinton, the former secretary of state, has cut her association with the Clinton Foundation, her husband, former President Bill Clinton, and daughter Chelsea are still active in its operations, the newspaper reported.
"Six years ago, at Mrs. Clinton's confirmation hearing for her appointment as secretary of state, then-Sen. Dick Lugar observed that 'that foreign governments and entities may perceive the Clinton Foundation as a means to gain favor with the secretary of state.' He was right, and his remarks remain relevant today as Mrs. Clinton seeks the presidency," Rapoport said.