How rich are the Clintons?
Hillary claimed they were "dead broke" leaving the White House in late January 2001: "We had no money when we got there, and we struggled to piece together the resources for mortgages for houses, for Chelsea’s education. It was not easy. Bill has worked really hard. And it’s been amazing to me. He’s worked very hard."
They did not start a business.
Neither of them was the CEO of any business.
They started a non-profit 'charity' where 85% to 90% of the spending goes to salaries, travel, meals and other overhead. It's a stretch to call that a charity. I call it a slush fund.
They gave short speeches for huge amounts of money.
-- Hillary is an awful public speaker.
Her speeches complemented whatever industry hired her.
Her speech transcripts, as demanded by Bernie Sanders, were never released.
-- Bill is a mediocre public speaker.
His speeches were about the charity.
The Clintons reported $237 million of adjusted gross income since leaving the White House, mostly from speeches.
Assuming state and local income taxes at a 40% rate, and assuming $225,000 a month to pay their bills, they should have a net worth of $100 million left.
2015 was a bad year for the Clintons -- only $10.6 million in taxable income, down 60% from their personal record of $27.9 million in 2014.
60% of the $10.6 million, or $6.7 million, was from speaking fees.
The Clintons also donated $1 million to "charity", of which 96% went to the Clinton Foundation.
Total Clinton income through 2015 was $237 million since leaving the White House in 2001.
According to tax filings, the Clintons went from making $357,000 in 2000 to nearly $16 million in 2001.
CNN reported:
"The Clintons are millionaires, thanks to big businesses paying them sizable sums to speak at corporate events. It's a great way to make money, but it also comes with questions about whether the Clintons are too tied to corporate cash."
"Nothing will change until we elect candidates who reject Wall Street money," a Bernie Sanders ad said about Hillary's speeches to Wall Street firm.
Bernie eventually endorsed Hillary, and recently bought a $600,000 lakefront home -- his third home -- perhaps a more relaxing location to plan the "revolution"!
