Hillary Clinton hits the speaking circuit

April 24, 2013

By MAGGIE HABERMAN, POLITICO – Hillary Clinton’s next chapter — the paid speaking circuit — begins today.

The former first lady, senator and secretary of state has overnight become one of the most in-demand speakers in the world — as a a reported $200,000-a-pop fee attests — even before she takes the stage at the National Multi-Housing Council in Dallas. A few hours earlier, also in Dallas, former Florida governor and fellow potential 2016 contender Jeb Bush will give his own address to the World Affairs Council.

Both speeches — Bush’s is open to the press, Clinton’s is not — are on the eve of Thursday’s opening of the George W. Bush presidential library.

Clinton has worn a number of hats, but paid speaker is a first.

But unlike her husband, who started giving paid speeches soon after he left office 13 years ago, Clinton is potentially facing another election in less than four years. With speculation already rampant about a possible 2016 Clinton campaign, every word, every inflection, every laugh line will be parsed and picked over like tea leaves at the bottom of a cup.

That doesn’t mean she will deliver much beyond what nonpaying listeners have heard at women’s issues forums the past few weeks.

via Hillary Clinton hits the speaking circuit – Maggie Haberman – POLITICO.com.

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