Michelle Singletary on Hillary Clinton Being Rich but Broke

Michelle Singletary Explains the Financial Fast

Don’t you hate it when wealthy folks cry poor?

Former first lady, U.S. senator and secretary of state Hillary Clinton had to backpedal from a comment about her financial state of affairs this week. Clinton said that she and her husband were “broke” after leaving the White House. Clinton was talking about her personal finances as she begins a national tour for her latest book, “Hard Choices.”

In an interview with ABC’s Diane Sawyer, Clinton said: “We came out of the White House not only dead broke but in debt. We had no money when we got there, and we struggled to piece together the resources for mortgages for houses, for Chelsea’s education. You know, it was not easy.”

Clinton explained that she and the former president had several million dollars in legal bills when they left the White House in 2001, reported The Washington Post’s Philip Rucker.

“As I recall we were something like $12 million in debt,” Clinton told Robin Roberts on “Good Morning America.”

But then Clinton had to circle back to say she can appreciate the regular folks who struggle to pay their bills.

“Let me just clarify that I fully appreciate how hard life is for so many Americans today,” Clinton told Roberts. “It’s an issue that I’ve worked on and cared about my entire adult life. Bill and I were obviously blessed; we worked hard for everything we got in our lives, and we have continued to work hard.”

But the Clintons aren’t struggling any more. They have earned more than $100 million over the past 14 years, reported Rucker. Since leaving her good government job, Hillary Clinton has been able to command about $200,000 or more per speech.

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Source: Washington Post

Readers may write to Michelle Singletary at The Washington Post, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C., 20071, or michelle.singletary@washpost.com. Personal responses may not be possible, and comments or questions may be used in a future column, with the writer’s name, unless otherwise requested. To read previous Color of Money columns, go to http://www.postbusiness.com.

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