-Caveat Lector- US Ambassador's Japan Deals Curbed By LARRY MARGASAK .c The Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) -- Thomas Foley, the U.S. ambassador to Japan, will have to withdraw from matters involving the think tank where his wife is a researcher and the major Japanese bank closely tied to it. Heather Foley was often controversial as the unpaid chief of staff to her husband when he was House speaker. The State Department, billing itself as ``family friendly,'' has ruled that Mrs. Foley's new job conforms with ethics rules but that her husband must not be involved in decisions on matters involving the think tank, the Japan Research Institute, or its affiliate, Sumitomo Bank, which, in turn, is part of a huge Japanese conglomerate. ``Mrs. Foley has authorized us to say that she is happy to be working,'' the State Department said in a statement. State officials said a department review before Mrs. Foley began her job in October found ``her employment conforms with all relevant State Department regulations regarding employment overseas.'' Sensitive to even the appearance of a conflict of interest, the department said Foley ``should recuse himself from official activities involving the institute and Sumitomo Bank, unless properly authorized'' by the agency. Foley became ambassador to Japan in October 1997 after 30 years in the House, where he served as speaker from 1989 until his defeat in the 1994 elections. During most of Foley's tenure as a Democrat from Washington state, Mrs. Foley was his unpaid chief of staff. She gained considerable behind-the-scenes influence among then-controlling Democrats when her husband became a party leader. She tried to stay out of the limelight, but made headlines when she was forced to testify before a federal grand jury in 1992 during an investigation of scandals at the House Post Office. She was neither a subject nor a target of that investigation, according to the U.S. attorney at the time. But out of the limelight, Mrs. Foley had much to do with hiring and firing of staff, and remodeling much of the House side of the Capitol -- a task that brought criticism for perceived excesses, including marble floors in elevators. After Democrats took considerable heat when it became known that the old House bank was covering overdrafts for lawmakers, Mrs. Foley quietly presented a list of members who were overdrawing their accounts to Republican leaders -- a warning that both parties could be hurt by the scandal. The State Department official said the agency ``reviewed carefully'' her new job, pointing out she was a private citizen. ``As a family-friendly employer, the department sympathetically reviews requests for employment by family members of its employees ... in their areas of professional experience,'' the department said. ``Under department regulations ... the spouse of a ... department employee may accept outside employment in a foreign country unless such employment would violate any law of such country, could require a waiver of diplomatic immunity deemed unacceptably broad by the chief of mission, or could otherwise damage the interests of the United States as determined by the chief of mission.'' The chief of mission normally is the ambassador, but in this case, department officials in Washington made the determination that her employment ``merited approval.'' Several conditions were established: Mrs. Foley's name cannot appear on any institute materials or reports that are distributed outside of the institute; the institute should not use her name to publicize its work, to raise funds or to attract new clients; and Mrs. Foley should not use her access to the embassy or to other State Department resources to further the interests of the institute, Sumitomo Bank or the bank's clients. DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance�not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
