Clinton's Golden Voice Part II

Searching the Washington Post archives, I discovered a complete listing of speeches that Clinton made during the 2001 - 2005 period.
link Over these five years, Clinton gave over 175 speeches (that's 35 a year) at an average rate of about $175,000 each. He gave 9 speeches for $300,000 or more.

Clinton commands a significant premium versus other retired politicians on the speaking tour. Even George H.W. Bush, the 41st president of the United States and friend of corporations and oil nations alike, only receives $50,000 to $75,000 per speech -- about the same rate as Jimmy Carter, ex-president, philanthropist, peace negotiator and peanut farmer. Then again, former vice presidents and presidential candidates don't do nearly as well -- Bob Dole commands $30,000-$50,000 while Walter Mondale's rate is around $25,000. Ed Koch, New York's colorful former mayor, gets only $10,000 per speech despite the high cost of living in New York City.

If you have the money and want to hear someone other than a politician, you can invite legendary basketball coach, Phil Jackson, for $75,000 or former Yankees manager Joe Torre for about the same. Don't want to listen to a coach either? Even egomaniac Donald Trump gets only receives $75,000 per speech -- less than half of Clinton's rate.

The Newark Star Ledger had an article today about the impact of the steroid controversy on the sports collectible market. Unlike Clinton whose fees seem immune to controversy -- Barry Bonds, Mark McGuire and Sammy Sosa have all seen the value of their collectibles (such as bats and game jerseys) drop to about a third of the value they once had before the steroid scandal struck. link

The nexus of the steroids controversy and speaking fees, has not proven to be a bonanza for former U.S. senator George Mitchell, who authored the Major League Baseball Commission report on steroids. You can get him to speak for the bargain rate of only $50,000. Perhaps his rate would be higher if he actually used steroids rather than simply write about them.