Former U.S. President Bill Clinton received $500,000 for delivering a 45-minute speech at an event to be held in Israel, according to local reports.
Clinton will make a speech to celebrate Israeli President Shimon Peres’ 90th birthday at the Peres Academic Center in Rehovot on June 17. The Jewish National Fund, the nonprofit environmental organization in Israel, reportedly paid the fee.
The large sum of money for Clinton’s speech is generating coverage in the Israeli media. Liberal Israeli newspaper Haaretz called the figure a “cause for embarrassment.”
The money will be paid to the William J. Clinton Foundation, a foundation implementing public projects.
Clinton is one of the most sought-after speakers in the world, earning on average $18,000 per speech event. He was paid a record $750,000 for a speech in Hong Kong in 2011.
