MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” panel Thursday morning ripped Hillary Clinton for charging the University at Buffalo — a public school in the State University of New York system — $275,000 for a one-hour speech in October of 2013.
According to the Washington Post, the university paid the speaking fee in addition to complying with demands explained in a nine-page contract between SUNY Buffalo and Clinton’s representatives at the Harry Walker Agency speakers bureau.
MSNBC political analyst Steve Schmidt said that Clinton’s willingness to make such monetary demands reeks of “tone deafness,” considering that the former secretary of State will undoubtedly complain about the high cost of higher education and the burden of student loans during her inevitable campaign for the 2016 presidency.
“I think she is substantially weakened from where she was just a couple of months ago,” detailed Schmidt. “She’s gone from the most ecumenically admired figure in American politics — enjoying huge support even among Republicans — to 30 points in a couple of months just by being present talking about politics. It is a remarkable fall. If this was a Republican candidate in the same position, this would be the dominant political headline people would be shouting from the rooftops.”
MSNBC host Chuck Todd strongly agreed, speculating that no one on her staff must be thinking about how Hillary’s outrageous speaking fees would reflect on her as she prepares for a likely presidential run.
“Ex-presidents make money like this, not candidates before they run,” Todd added.
Emphasizing the fact that the Clintons as a couple are worth a whopping $100 million, host Joe Scarborough wondered why Hillary didn’t take the obvious route and just give the money back to the university instead of lining the pockets of the Clinton Foundation.
“Why do it?” he asked. “Why not give the speech and then announce at the end of the speech, ‘I’m going to give this money back to SUNY Buffalo for a scholarship fund for journalism or for political science or for disadvantaged youth.”
According to the Post report, Clinton’s contract for the SUNY Buffalo speech demanded that she have “final approval” of the introducer, moderator and set of the speech and also required the school to pay $1,000 for a transcript of the speech that would be available to Clinton’s eyes only.
This is certainly not the first time that individuals have criticized Clinton’s high-priced speeches. Last month, students at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas asked Hillary to return the $225,000 that she will receive for a speech she will make at the school’s foundation dinner this fall.
Watch the MSNBC clip below, via Washington Free Beacon.
