Anthony Weiner Defends Wife As Senator Questions Her Private Consulting Work
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - One U.S. senator is looking into New York City mayoral hopeful Anthony Weiner's wife's employment past to try to determine if any rules were broken.
Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) has questioned whether Huma Abedin disclosed her dual role to the federal government.
While working as then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's aide, Abedin was also earning a six-figure salary as a consultant.
Anthony Weiner Defends Wife As Senator Questions Her Private Consulting Work
Weiner said Sunday he and his wife have nothing to hide.
"Lots of disclosures that have had to be made. I've had to make them. So we've got perhaps a couple of the most transparent lives financially that there is and, obviously, neither one of us went into public service because we wanted to get rich," Weiner told 1010 WINS' Glenn Schuck. "This was all done with the approval of the State Department. Over 100 employees have a similar status as my wife does."
The mayoral hopeful added he's very proud of his wife's work.
"I gotta tell you, the American people have gotten a real bargain from her service. She works, frankly, 24/7," Weiner told Schuck.
In a letter sent to Abedin and current Secretary of State John Kerry, Sen. Grassley said the couple earned as much as $350,000 on top of her $135,000 government salary.
Abedin was able to work as a private contractor when her long-time title of deputy chief of staff to Clinton was changed to "special government employee."
Grassley wrote that her status change "blurs the line between public- and private-sector employees, especially when employees receive full-time salaries for what appears to be part-time work."
Abedin's title change took effect after she had her son and began working from New York. She left the State Department when Clinton resigned earlier this year.
A State Department source told Politico that Abedin went through a routine process.
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