The Note: Inside 'Clinton Cash'

— -- NOTABLES

--BILL CLINTON CASHED IN WHEN HILLARY BECAME SECRETARY OF STATE: After his wife became Secretary of State, former President Bill Clinton began to collect speaking fees that often doubled or tripled what he had been charging earlier in his post White House years, bringing in millions of dollars from groups that included several with interests pending before the State Department, an ABC News review of financial disclosure records shows. Where he once had drawn $150,000 for a typical address in the years following his presidency, Clinton saw a succession of staggering paydays for speeches in 2010 and 2011, including $500,000 paid by a Russian investment bank and $750,000 to address a telecom conference in China, ABC's MATTHEW MOSK and BRIAN ROSS report. That steady flow of income has come under scrutiny in recent days, as it formed an element of a book by author and conservative think tank fellow Peter Schweizer called "Clinton Cash," due for release in coming days. http://abcn.ws/1DhN8Fe

--BUT THE BOOK OFFERS NO PROOF THAT HILLARY CLINTON TOOK ANY DIRECT ACTION TO BENEFIT THE GROUPS AND INTERESTS THAT WERE PAYING HER HUSBAND: An independent review of source material by ABC News uncovered errors in the book, including an instance where paid and unpaid speaking appearances were conflated. Schweizer said the errors would be corrected. But those same records supported the premise that former President Clinton accepted speaking fees from numerous companies and individuals with interests pending before the State Department. http://abcn.ws/1DhN8Fe

--CHELSEA CLINTON PLAYS DEFENSE: Chelsea Clinton defended her family's charity yesterday against allegations that foreign governments received favors in return for donations, saying that despite all the questions, the Clinton Foundation does "important" work and is "among the most transparent" of foundations. "What the Clinton Foundation has said is that we will be even more transparent, even though Transparency International and others have said we're among the most transparent of foundations," the former First Daughter and Vice Chair of the Clinton Foundation said when asked Thursday morning. ABC's LIZ KREUTZ has more. http://abcn.ws/1Qod1h5