Before Boxer Battle, Fiorina Got Cozy With Iran
No evidence of laws broken, but critics suspicious of Hewlett-Packard's trade ties under former CEO
By MATT BAUME
Updated 1:38 PM EST, Wed, Sep 2, 2009
It's been a bumpy ride for Carly Fiorina, the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard who's planning to run against Barbara Boxer for her Senate seat in California.
First there were questions about whether a company she claimed to run actually existed; then there were issues about her voting record -- or lack thereof -- and now it's emerged that under her leadership and despite a trade embargo, HP somehow found a way to sell a lot of printers and other tech gear in Iran.
Of course, Fiorina's campaign (now accustomed to damage control) insists that everything was utterly above-board, and it does appear as though the company managed to avoid breaking the letter of the law; sales were conducted through a third party, so HP managed to steer clear of the embargo.
But during her time at the helm time, Fiorina and her company's partners were making a lot of positive comments about trading in Iran; and, more broadly, Fiorina has heaped praise upon Islamic civilzation in general.
Fiorina's opponent in the upcoming primary, Chuck DeVore, has so far avoided international controversy. (He has also managed to avoid raising enough money for his campaign.) Polls show Barbara Boxer winning the election, but the margin is narrowing -- or at least is was before this latest news hit.
Copyright NBC Local Media
First Published: Sep 1, 2009 12:58 PM EST on NBC Bay Area
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