Major DNC Donor Knows All About the Path to Power

Eric Hotung, the tycoon whose large donations to the Democratic National Committee and brief meetings with White House officials were revealed in Senate hearings this week, is no stranger to Washington--or its political controversies.

The scion of an illustrious Hong Kong family with a tradition of philanthropy and politics, Hotung is a Georgetown University graduate, the founder of a think tank on U.S.-China relations, and now the proud owner of a $6-million home outside Washington.

That house belonged to Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), and Hotung, enamored of its prestigious location and history, paid $1 million more than the asking price. “Several serious buyers were looking at it,” he explained at the time. “I wanted to be sure I got it.”

The purchase--like his recent campaign contributions--has raised questions: What did he really get for his money? The answer, to Americans who expect to get a more tangible bang for their buck, may seem strange: prestige, an aura of power--and a voice in a political process that has implications far beyond the borders of the United States.

In Tuesday’s Senate hearings on campaign finance abuses, Sen. Fred Thompson (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Governmental Affairs Committee, tried to show that there was more to Hotung’s contributions. He suggested that Hotung sought--and then bought--a private meeting with top White House officials in 1995 to promote his views on Asia policy.

Thompson referred to a $100,000 pledge to the DNC by Hotung--a British citizen--and his American wife, Patricia, and a subsequent meeting with Samuel R. “Sandy” Berger, then the deputy national security advisor.

A White House spokesman denied that the meeting occurred in exchange for the contribution, said no policy was changed or affected by the meeting and added that Hotung had insights on Asia worth hearing.

He well might. The 71-year-old real estate investor is the descendant of Sir Robert Hotung, who started his fortune as the middleman between Jardine Matheson trading company and China, then went on to become one of the wealthiest men in Asia. Sir Robert supported nationalist leader Sun Yat-sen and harbored a refugee revolutionary trying to topple China’s Manchu regime.

Following in the family tradition, Hotung calls himself a “bridge” between superpowers. He has met with President Clinton and Chinese President Jiang Zemin. He has contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Democratic Party, and helped smooth arrangements for the release of famed Chinese physicist Fang Lizhi who sought asylum in the U.S. Embassy in Beijing in 1989.

“I’m just playing the role my family has played for generations,” Hotung said in a recent interview, “because we recognize that the U.S.-China relationship will be the most important relationship in the next century.”

Hotung has inherited a share of the family fortune and made a good deal more on his own. He just set a real estate record in Hong Kong--perhaps the world--with the sale price of his villa here: It brought nearly $100 million in May.

Hotung is careful to note that he does not have any business in China.

But in Hong Kong, where billionaires are plentiful, Hotung draws his distinction and pleasure in his own brand of private diplomacy. Many members of Congress have seen the inside of his pricey mansion on their way through Hong Kong to China or Taiwan. They might have noticed the array of silver-framed photographs on the grand piano, showing Hotung with former President Bush, Clinton, the late Commerce Secretary Ronald H. Brown, Jiang and Chinese Premier Li Peng.

It is these pictures and the relationships they imply that are the currency of power here. Just as Hotung sought to meet with top U.S. security advisors in 1995 to discuss “several policy options” about Taiwan and “provide insight” about China based on his connections with Chinese officials, he sat down with Li in April this year, to talk about U.S.-China relations and how to handle the takeover of Hong Kong. “It was very sensitive,” said Hotung.

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Today’s Witnesses

On its sixth day of hearings into campaign donations, the Senate committee will continue to examine the various aspects of John Huang’s job while he worked at the Commerce Department. Additionally, investigators will carefully examine the 400 phone calls that Huang made to Lippo while employed at Commerce.

THE LINEUP

Paula Greene: Former secretary at the Washington office of Stephens Inc., an Arkansas-based investment banking firm, which Huang used to make phone calls while at Commerce.

William W. Ginsberg: Former Chief of Staff to Commerce Secretary Ronald H. Brown who approached by Huang’s boss about a consultancy for Huang when Huang moved from Commerce to the Democratic National Committee.

Timothy Hauser: Former deputy undersecretary for international trade in Commerce.

Compiled by D’JAMILA SALEM FITZGERALD