Posted on 07/09/2015 3:22:30 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Former President George W. Bush is under fire for charging $100,000 to speak to a group of veterans wounded in a pair of wars he started when he was in office, just the latest front in a political battle over speaking fees that has hit both sides of the aisle.
Members of the Texas-based Helping a Hero charity told ABC News that Bush charged $100,000 for his 2012 speech at a charity fundraiser for veterans who lost limbs in the Afghanistan and Iraq Wars. The former president was also given use of a private jet at a cost of $20,000 and former First Lady Laura Bush was paid $50,000 to speak to the group last year.
The fees infuriated one of the board members, who told CNN Wednesday that Bush should not have accepted any money.
"The point here is that a leader should not charge to speak on behalf of the men that he sent into combat, at any level, let alone the commander in chief," said Eddie Wright, a Marine who lost both his hands in a 2004 rocket attack in Fallujah, Iraq.
Helping a Hero builds houses for wounded veterans. But Wright and others were involved in a legal battle last year accusing some of the group's leaders of siphoning money and forcing veterans' wives to sell beauty products. The criminal complaint and a defamation lawsuit filed in response were settled out of court, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Following the reports, Helping a Hero issued a statement supporting Bush.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
It’s CNN, but it doesn’t sound good. This isn’t a situation where you can take fees from one charity and then turn around and “donate to charity” and come off as generous. It also doesn’t sound like GWB, so I’d like to hear more.
Agreed!
There is us....and then there is THEM!
Go away.
It’s better than the kind of stuff Hillary does. And according to the article: “But Chuck Jenness, the group’s chairman, lists Bush as a “close friend” and said the Bush speech grossed $3.2 million.”
Still, I don’t know why Bush should charge anything for a speech to a group like this. I suppose he probably gets thousands of requests for charitable appearances, and can’t afford to do all of them, but I would think this is one that he should agree to do without charge.
i saw this yesterday and the lamestream media is clearly running interference for Hillary because she has lots of embarrassing revelations in this area herself, but... i’m still disappointed in Dubya’s judgement on this. you’ve got to know how this looks and you’ve got to know eventually some ‘RAT will publicize it to call the GOP either hypocrites or uncaring bastards. these extravagant speaking fees for the the self-appointed governing elite are really a scandal in a country that has suffered through essentially zero real job growth for nearly 7 years now, and which has a 42.9% real unemployment rate. the gap between the rich and the middle class (and poor) is getting larger no matter whether the ‘RATS or the GOP are in charge. it’s bad for the future of the country. we’re living in a new era of robber barons, only these robber barons aren’t industrialists... they are politicians, media elite, and monopoly money internet gazillionaires.
George W Bush charged a military veterans’ charity $100,000 to speak at a fundraiser in 2012.
“It was great because he reduced his normal fee of $250,000 down to $100,000,” Meredith Iler, the former chair of Helping a Hero, told ABC News.
The former president was also provided with a private jet to travel to the event in Houston at a cost of $20,000, ABC News reported, citing unnamed officials.
A spokesman for the former president, Freddy Ford, confirmed the payment to ABC News.
Don't be naive. It sounds exactly like that self-serving clown.
It was a fundraiser, how much did they raise? Also, who else has spoken at this charities fundraisers and how much were they paid vs amount raised. Lets open the books and see if this is a legit story or just a smear. Got to get the immigration issue out of the news.....
Think about what the Clintoons rake in!
When charities request someone speak for them they pay them for the travel, hotels expenses etc. It’s SOP. Bush negotiated a deal at a lower cost then he normally gets from $250,000 down to $100,000. He’s entitled to it.
What’s not mentioned in the article is the enormous amount of time he provides free of charge because that’s the kind of guy he is.
If its from CNN, thats what is, B/S.
Oh Blech so what ?
How much did they raise in that event?
They make me sick. What is Hillary making to speak at the Girl Scouts or to sell uraniu to our state deptdesignated enemies and what is she doing with that cash?
CNNreporters should be ashamed
The usual pattern with these types of stories is that some sensational headlines are spread all over the place. When the real facts are known, the retraction is on page 16 or in the midnight news on TV about two weeks later.
Missing a lot of detail. Private donor paid the fee. Raised about $2.5 million which was considerably more than normally received at this type of event. Just trying to distract from the Clinton’s escapades.
shameful w! give back the money right away. what was he thinking? Shame shame shame shame
That's like your wife going out and buying a $500 dress, then telling you she saved you $200, because it normally sells for $700.
Wow, what a classy MOFO he is and they are moving back to their liberal lilly white neighborhood from whence they came.I’m shocked I tell ya.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.