White House Says Bush Library Won’t Inform Bush About Its Donors

The White House has taken further steps to stamp out the scandal that erupted this week with the release of a video showing a Homeland Security adviser offering access to high-ranking officials in exchange for a big donation to Bush’s future presidential library fund.

Talking to the New York Times, White House spokeswoman Dana Perino revealed new rules to prevent the appearance of any quid pro quo.

On Wednesday, Ms. Perino said Mr. Bush had asked that members of his foundation “do not inform him about anyone who has written a check, or decided not to write a check, until after he’s no longer president.”

That comes on the heels of a Bush library spokesman this week saying the library has decided not to accept foreign donations until after Bush leaves office in January. It remains unclear whether the library will disclose its donors, which is not required by law.

The library foundation, which is planned for the campus of Southern Methodist University in Dallas, is expected to cost more than $200 million, most of which will be raised from donors. The library foundation has formed a fundraising committee, but formal fundraising has not yet begun, a library spokesman said.

So far, however, no one from the White House has told us what kind of relationship Bush has with the (now-former) Homeland Security adviser and longtime Bush fundraiser who was caught on video apparently peddling a cash-for-access deal.

It looks to us like the adviser, Stephen Payne, has known the president for at least 20 years.

So far, Perino has described Payne only as “somebody who’s been involved in Texas politics for a long time and been a supporter of the Republican Party.”