When Tony Snow appeared on The Tonight Show, Jay Leno joked that he may be “the poorest Republican in history” for citing financial reasons as his reason for stepping down as White House press secretary.
Snow is having the last laugh.
Sources say that Snow is getting $100,000 a speech on the lecture circuit, a surprising amount for someone defending an unpopular president. It’s also a big fee for someone who used to recite the same talking points in the White House briefing room every day—for free.
Snow’s speaking fees easily break all records set by his predecessors at the podium. Speakers’ agents say Marlin Fitzwater was bringing in about $5,000 a speech when he left the George H.W. Bush administration in the early 1990s but climbed to about $15,000 a speech. Mike McCurry, spokesman in the Clinton White House, is still pulling in about $10,000 to $15,000 a speech. After their days at the current Bush White House podium, Ari Fleischer and Scott McClellan are each in the $15,000-to-$25,000 range.
Snow is represented by the high-powered Washington Speakers Bureau because, unlike the others, he was a radio-and-TV star before becoming press secretary in 2006. A plus: Snow’s battle with cancer helps him connect even more with audiences.
This article originally appeared in the November 2007 issue of Washingtonian magazine.
Tony Talks, But for Big Money
Former White House press secretary's speaking fees break records.
When Tony Snow appeared on The Tonight Show, Jay Leno joked that he may be “the poorest Republican in history” for citing financial reasons as his reason for stepping down as White House press secretary.
Snow is having the last laugh.
Sources say that Snow is getting $100,000 a speech on the lecture circuit, a surprising amount for someone defending an unpopular president. It’s also a big fee for someone who used to recite the same talking points in the White House briefing room every day—for free.
Snow’s speaking fees easily break all records set by his predecessors at the podium. Speakers’ agents say Marlin Fitzwater was bringing in about $5,000 a speech when he left the George H.W. Bush administration in the early 1990s but climbed to about $15,000 a speech. Mike McCurry, spokesman in the Clinton White House, is still pulling in about $10,000 to $15,000 a speech. After their days at the current Bush White House podium, Ari Fleischer and Scott McClellan are each in the $15,000-to-$25,000 range.
Snow is represented by the high-powered Washington Speakers Bureau because, unlike the others, he was a radio-and-TV star before becoming press secretary in 2006. A plus: Snow’s battle with cancer helps him connect even more with audiences.
This article originally appeared in the November 2007 issue of Washingtonian magazine.
Most Popular in News & Politics
The Missing Men of Mount Pleasant
Another Mysterious Anti-Trump Statue Has Appeared on the National Mall
Muriel Bowser Defends Her BLM Plaza Decision and Looks Back on a Decade as Mayor
Yet Another Anti-Trump Statue Has Shown Up on the National Mall
8 Takeaways From Usha Vance’s Interview With Meghan McCain
Washingtonian Magazine
July Issue: The "Best Of" Issue
View IssueSubscribe
Follow Us on Social
Follow Us on Social
Related
How Would a New DC Stadium Compare to the Last One?
The Culture of Lacrosse Is More Complex Than People Think
Did Television Begin in Dupont Circle?
Kings Dominion’s Wild New Coaster Takes Flight in Virginia
More from News & Politics
Guest List: 5 People We’d Love to Hang Out With This July
The Washington Nationals Just Fired the Manager and GM Who Led Them to a Championship. Why Has the Team Been so Bad Since?
FBI Building Now on Track to Leave DC After All, Whistleblower Leaks Texts Suggesting Justice Department Planned to Blow Off Federal Court Orders, and NPS Cuts Leave Assateague Island Without Lifeguards
Families of DC Air Disaster Victims Criticize Army’s Response, Trump Settles His Scores Via Tariff, and Police Dog Kicked at Dulles Returns to Work
This DC-Area Lawyer Wants More Americans Betting on Elections
Trump Threatens DC Takeover, Says He’d Run the City “So Good”; Supreme Court OKs Mass Federal Worker Layoffs; and You Should Go Pick Some Sunflowers
Trump Pledges Support for RFK Stadium Plan, Ben’s Chili Bowl Will Strand Us Half-Smokeless for Months, and Pediatricians Are Suing RFK Jr.
Muriel Bowser Defends Her BLM Plaza Decision and Looks Back on a Decade as Mayor