Obama should follow the Clintons’ money

As the well-drilled Clinton attack machine moves into high gear - releasing pictures of Barack Obama in a turban, spreading fear over 3am leadership - its opponent, apart from winning primaries (another in Mississippi last week), has yet to return effective fire.

For ammunition, Obama might look no further than a party thrown earlier this month in Toronto by the diminutive mining financier, movie producer and global philanthropist Frank Giustra (right).

The city's annual mining convention was taken by surprise by Giustra's guest list, which included Tom Cruise, John Travolta, Robin Williams, Elton John, Shakira and the star with the brightest celebrity wattage of all, former US president Bill Clinton.

The two men have been friends since Giustra flew Clinton in his private jet to Kazakhstan on a 2005 visit to see

the semi-democratic President Nazarbayev. The Kazakh strongman said the Clinton connection made "an impression". Two days later, the New York Times reports, Giustra signed a major deal giving him a stake in three uranium projects controlled by state-owned Kazatomprom. On another occasion, Clinton and Giustra flew down to Colombia to see President Uribe and, hey-ho, secured a lucrative oil contract.

In return, the 50-year-old Italian-Canadian has donated more than $130m to Clinton's charities and the pair have formed a separate foundation, the Clinton-Giustra Sustainable Growth Initiative, that's raised $350m so far. Giustra says he's "so energised by the thought of alleviating poverty" that he now devotes 90 per cent of his time to it.

Back over the border, Bill's back-scratching and interaction with questionable political regimes is raising new questions of ex-presidential propriety. If America is destined for a his'n'hers 'Billary' presidency, the argument goes, then it would behove the couple to be transparent in their affairs. But from Whitewater to the Rose law firm billing records, the