Heritage Foundation's Asian Belle [1]
Submitted by Diane Farsetta [2] on
As happened with neighboring Indonesia [3], "the 9/11 [4] attacks opened the door to improved U.S.-Malaysia relations." The Heritage Foundation [5] began promoting Malaysia in mid-2001, "at the same time a Hong Kong consulting firm co-founded by Edwin J. Feulner [6], Heritage's president, began representing Malaysian business interests." The firm, Belle Haven Consultants [7], lists Feulner's wife and Heritage consultant Ken Sheffer among its staff. "To help represent Malaysian clients," Belle Haven hired the Republican lobbying firm Alexander Strategy Group [8]. "Experts say that the relationship between one of Washington's most influential conservative think tanks [9] and a network of lobbying firms [10] collecting fees from Malaysian business interests - well in excess of $1 million over two years - could pose a problem for Heritage's status as a nonprofit group," reports the Washington Post.