Clinton offers new 'exit tax' on US-foreign company mergers

Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, made at least $35 million by giving 164 speeches to financial services, real estate and insurance companies after leaving the White House in 2001, according to an Associated Press analysis of public disclosure forms and records released by her campaign.

In an op-ed published on Monday, Clinton pledged to take a tough approach toward financial regulation, saying she would impose a new risk fee on big banks, strengthen oversight and impose tougher penalties on executives and institutions that break the rules.

The November announcement of a plan to merge drug-makers Pfizer and Allergan to create the world's biggest pharmaceutical company reignited a fierce political debate over whether such deals should be permitted.

Though the Treasury Department has unveiled new rules to deter companies from considering inversions, officials say only Congress has the authority to halt the practice.

Democrats favor immediate action and are seeking to use the issue as a political wedge ahead of next year's presidential election, accusing the GOP of protecting corporate loopholes.

Clinton's main rival for the Democratic nomination, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, introduced legislation in April that would continue to tax companies involved with inversion deals as American corporations as long as they remain U.S.-majority owned.