It’s hard to pin too much blame on these candidates, but it’s good that they’re cutting any potential financial ties to companies that do business in Sudan anyway.
Presidential candidates Rudy Giuliani and John Edwards, who have spoken out about genocide in Darfur, did not know their financial holdings included investments in companies that do business in Sudan, aides said Thursday.
An Edwards campaign spokesman said the former Democratic senator from North Carolina would sell thousands of dollars of Sudan-related funds.
“He did not know about it and will divest,” Eric Schultz said following inquires about Edwards’ portfolio.
Giuliani, the Republican former mayor of New York, has at least one investment of between $500,000 and $1 million in a fund that holds stock in a company that is active in Sudan.
“The mayor was unaware of this connection, but is taking it very seriously,” spokeswoman Maria Comella said.
According to Giuliani’s financial disclosure, he invested between $500,000 and $1 million in a Vanguard Wellington Fund. Vanguard Wellington has a small percentage of stock in a French oil field services company that does business in Sudan.
Edwards’ 401(k) and his children’s trust invested between $30,000 and $100,000 in American Europacific Growth, which has stock in several companies that do business in Sudan, as well as $50,000 to $100,000 in Evergreen Equity Income Fund, another fund identified by a divestment task force as having stock in Sudan-related companies.