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Hillary's Speeches Carry Hefty Price Tag, Specific Demands
Thursday, November 27, 2014 05:32 PM
By: Andrea Billups
While she doesn't come with a rock star's extensive backstage rider, new documents about requirements for hosting a Hillary Clinton speech offer insight into the former secretary of state's needs when she makes a public appearance.
The Washington Post, using a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, uncovered details about a $300,000 speech Clinton gave as a pricey paid speaker at UCLA. And as it turns out, the presumed 2016 Democratic presidential candidate is pretty fussy about chairs — and refuses to have any sort of medal placed around her neck.
While the Post acknowledged that it is uncertain how involved Clinton is in making such requests or reviewing the specifics, her reps at the Harry Walker Agency, which books her, seem to cover every detail, including the type of podium to be used, the lavaliere mic necessary for her TED-style talks, her backstage spread — which includes hummus dip and veggies, diet ginger ale, and sliced fruit.
Water — sparkling and still — is to be at room temperature, and the backstage prep should also include a computer, mouse, and scanner — which UCLA had to buy before the former first lady hit the stage there in 2013, the Post noted.
While Clinton made herself available to pose for donor and VIP photos, the numbers were limited to 100 individuals or 50 couples, with those wanting a snap warned to be organized, the Post noted.
"Clinton’s representatives wanted the group shots 'prestaged,' with participants assembled and ready to take the photographs before Clinton arrived 'so the secretary isn’t waiting for these folks to get their act together," noted UCLA administrator Patricia Lippert to colleagues of the speech. “She doesn’t like to stand around waiting for people.”
Previous media accounts have shown that Clinton travels like a top exec. According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, which also used a FOIA request for travel documents during an October Las Vegas fundraising trip where she spoke, Clinton always stays in "presidential suites," and often asks for use of a private jet — a $39 million, 16-passenger Gulfstream G450 or larger.
How her lifestyle and expensive public appearances square with any sort of populist message in 2016 remains to be seen. Bloomberg reports that Clinton earned $12 million in a 16-month period from when she left the Obama administration through July 2014 from her book and public appearances.
