What I heard here locally was the total budget was $20,000, and that Bristol wanted $17,500. I’d have cut her too, if she’s more for the money than the message.
There are a few factors here ... at first blush, I’d agree: she isn’t worth $17,500. But it was no doubt calculated that if they spent $17.5K and she attracted a very large crowd, garnering publicity, it was worth every penny. The $17.5 figure is probably middle range for a ‘name’ speaker at any college.
The regrettable lesson here is that it pays to become a ‘celebrity.’ Frankly, I think Bristol has milked her celebrity for all it’s worth. Now it’s time to mother her son and get back to school as a student. Let her study hard, earn her degree, work hard, get some experience in the real world (like her mother did), then come back and let’s hear what she has to say. So far her expertise is restrict to being born to the right mother and becoming pregnant at 17. Not worth $17.5K for one night at WUSL or anywhere else.