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SAN FRANCISCO, CA, MARCH 12, 1998 | The conservative foundation underwriting Paula Jones' lawsuit against President Clinton has sent letters to a federal judge accusing the Paula Jones Legal Fund of misleading and possibly defrauding the public, Salon Magazine reports today. "We're talking mail fraud here," one person familiar with the correspondence told Salon, "and that's just unacceptable."

The Rutherford Institute has also threatened to report alleged fraud by Jones' legal fund to the Internal Revenue Service and other authorities.

The letters from the Charlottesville, Va.-based foundation to the federal judge are under court seal and have not been previously disclosed.

Paula Jones' fundraising appeal states that any contributions to her legal fund are not for her personal use. "It's all going to help my legal case," she writes in her direct-mail letter.

But, according to a source familiar with the Rutherford Institute's concerns, the foundation has not seen a penny of the money raised by the Paula Jones Legal Fund. "As far as I know, the fund is still going strong, they're still mailing these letters, and Rutherford hasn't seen any money," said the source.

In a related story, Salon reports on the mysterious benefactor who has secretly donated $50,000 to Paula Jones' war chest. The benefactor, Washington tax lawyer and conservative activist William Lehrfeld, has built a career out of doing tax-related legal work for conservative organizations, including a foundation controlled by Richard Mellon Scaife, an implacable foe of President Clinton.

Click here for the complete story

Salon features original writing by provocative writers on topics ranging form literature and entertainment to technology and politics. Salon Magazine can also be found on AOL via Keyword Salon Magazine.

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