LONG BEACH, Calif. — A startling report from Politico reveals a very stark contrast between two of the most well-known women in politics.
When Alabama native and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice spoke at a fundraiser for the Long Beach Boys and Girls Club in 2009, she collected $60,000, almost the entirety of which she donated back to the charity; when Hillary Clinton visited the same non-profit she collected $200,000 and kept every penny for her own embattled foundation.
According to the Politico article, the Clinton Family Foundation has collected more than $11.7 million in speaking fees from smaller non-profits since former President Bill Clinton left office in early 2001.
While the Clintons have raised a good deal more in funds from speaking engagements to for-profit companies and organizations—$139 million to date—the number is still quite shocking.
The donations were used “to effectively and efficiently use our resources to implement programs that are fighting HIV/AIDS and childhood obesity, increasing opportunity for women and girls, lifting people out of poverty and combating climate change,” said to Foundation spokesman Craig Minassian.
But non-profit fundraising expert Marc A. Pitman says it is a highly uncommon practice for a large non-profit to use smaller non-profits to raise funds.
“I don’t know of any other foundation that collects speaking fees,” Pitman said.
According to Politico, representatives from the other non-profits they reached out to that paid Bill and Hillary Clinton for speeches said they typically do not offer speaking fees, only expenses—but they made exceptions to entice the Clintons.
Ready to add insult to injury? Hillary Clinton’s speech to the Boys and Girls Club fundraiser was one of the least profitable in the organization’s history, while Condoleezza Rice’s raised nearly $258,000 after expenses—close to 10 percent of the organization’s annual budget
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— Elizabeth BeShears (@LizEBeesh) January 21, 2015
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