Hillary Clinton decries student debt — while receiving a $225k speaking fee
Hillary decries student debt — while receiving huge speaking fee
On Monday, Hillary Clinton gave a speech supporting affordable college for all, arguing that, "higher education shouldn't be a privilege for those able to afford it." Her message was appropriate to the venue — an annual dinner supporting the University of Nevada Las Vegas Foundation — but it might have had more impact if she hadn't charged UNLV a massive $225,000 speaking fee for the evening. The university reports that about $585,000 was raised through the event, meaning nearly half of the funds went to Clinton.
When Clinton's fees were first announced earlier this year, several UNLV student government leaders protested the decision, asking her to refuse the money. "We really appreciate anybody who would come to raise money for the university," said student Daniel Waqar. "But anybody who's being paid $225,000 to come speak, we think that's a little bit outrageous."
In-state tuition for one full-time semester at UNLV runs about $3,400, meaning Clinton's fee was roughly equivalent to ten students' complete tuition costs for a four-year degree. Her speaking contract reportedly included extensive requirements and limitations, and Clinton has raked in an estimated $750,000 monthly in speaking fees since leaving the State Department.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.
-
Political cartoons for January 8Cartoons Thursday’s political cartoons include a well-done steak, a silenced protester, and more
-
US nabs ‘shadow’ tanker claimed by RussiaSpeed Read The ship was one of two vessels seized by the US military
-
Avatar: Fire and Ash – third instalment feels like ‘a relic of an earlier era’Talking Point Latest sequel in James Cameron’s passion project is even ‘more humourless’ than the last
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
-
Trump says US ‘in charge’ of Venezuela after Maduro grabSpeed Read The American president claims the US will ‘run’ Venezuela for an unspecified amount of time, contradicting a statement from Secretary of State Marco Rubio
-
Bari Weiss’ ‘60 Minutes’ scandal is about more than one reportIN THE SPOTLIGHT By blocking an approved segment on a controversial prison holding US deportees in El Salvador, the editor-in-chief of CBS News has become the main story
-
CBS pulls ‘60 Minutes’ report on Trump deporteesSpeed Read An investigation into the deportations of Venezuelan migrants to El Salvador’s notorious prison was scrapped
-
Trump administration posts sliver of Epstein filesSpeed Read Many of the Justice Department documents were heavily redacted, though new photos of both Donald Trump and Bill Clinton emerged
-
Trump HHS moves to end care for trans youthSpeed Read The administration is making sweeping proposals that would eliminate gender-affirming care for Americans under age 18
-
Jack Smith tells House of ‘proof’ of Trump’s crimesSpeed Read President Donald Trump ‘engaged in a criminal scheme to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election,’ hoarded classified documents and ‘repeatedly tried to obstruct justice’
