Gingrich's $1.8 million consulting fee

[Sundial]

Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that the former House speaker made between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consultation fees in a nine-year span. Sources told Bloomberg that in 2006, Gingrich was asked “to build bridges to Capitol Hill Republicans and develop an argument on behalf of the company’s public-private structure that would resonate with conservatives seeking to dismantle it.”

Newt Gingrich to Release Freddie Mac Records, Denies Lobbying - ABC News

Earlier Newt said it was for his services as a historian. More recently he's said it was for "strategic advice". (What strategy were they following?) The fee was "relatively standard," he says, "for Washington".

Does anybody believe any of this? Is Newt just flat-out lying?

 

[RetiredGySgt]

Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that the former House speaker made between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consultation fees in a nine-year span. Sources told Bloomberg that in 2006, Gingrich was asked “to build bridges to Capitol Hill Republicans and develop an argument on behalf of the company’s public-private structure that would resonate with conservatives seeking to dismantle it.”

Newt Gingrich to Release Freddie Mac Records, Denies Lobbying - ABC News

Earlier Newt said it was for his services as a historian. More recently he's said it was for "strategic advice". (What strategy were they following?) The fee was "relatively standard," he says, "for Washington".

Does anybody believe any of this? Is Newt just flat-out lying?

Wanna d a little research on Democrats getting fees for the same thing? Well of course you don't )

 

[The Rabbi]

Was any of this illegal or unethical? No, I don't think so. The only issue is that it is a Republican doing it.

 

[Toro]

Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that the former House speaker made between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consultation fees in a nine-year span. Sources told Bloomberg that in 2006, Gingrich was asked “to build bridges to Capitol Hill Republicans and develop an argument on behalf of the company’s public-private structure that would resonate with conservatives seeking to dismantle it.”

Newt Gingrich to Release Freddie Mac Records, Denies Lobbying - ABC News

Earlier Newt said it was for his services as a historian. More recently he's said it was for "strategic advice". (What strategy were they following?) The fee was "relatively standard," he says, "for Washington".

Does anybody believe any of this? Is Newt just flat-out lying?

The strategic advice was for how to sell Freddie Mac to conservatives. He has a number of quotes about how awesome Freddie was. In 2007.

 

[The Rabbi]

Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that the former House speaker made between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consultation fees in a nine-year span. Sources told Bloomberg that in 2006, Gingrich was asked “to build bridges to Capitol Hill Republicans and develop an argument on behalf of the company’s public-private structure that would resonate with conservatives seeking to dismantle it.”

Newt Gingrich to Release Freddie Mac Records, Denies Lobbying - ABC News

Earlier Newt said it was for his services as a historian. More recently he's said it was for "strategic advice". (What strategy were they following?) The fee was "relatively standard," he says, "for Washington".

Does anybody believe any of this? Is Newt just flat-out lying?

The strategic advice was for how to sell Freddie Mac to conservatives. He has a number of quotes about how awesome Freddie was. In 2007.

That was of course his job. There are plenty of similar quotes from Democrats, who were supposed to be regulating the GSEs.

 

[editec]

Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that the former House speaker made between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consultation fees in a nine-year span. Sources told Bloomberg that in 2006, Gingrich was asked “to build bridges to Capitol Hill Republicans and develop an argument on behalf of the company’s public-private structure that would resonate with conservatives seeking to dismantle it.”

Newt Gingrich to Release Freddie Mac Records, Denies Lobbying - ABC News

Earlier Newt said it was for his services as a historian. More recently he's said it was for "strategic advice". (What strategy were they following?) The fee was "relatively standard," he says, "for Washington".

Does anybody believe any of this? Is Newt just flat-out lying?

Oh, I believe it.

using former pols to influence current policies is, just as Newt suggested, standard operating procedure.

Is it corruption?

Yes, it is in my opinion, and it is perfectly legal, too.

 

[JoeB131]

Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that the former House speaker made between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consultation fees in a nine-year span. Sources told Bloomberg that in 2006, Gingrich was asked “to build bridges to Capitol Hill Republicans and develop an argument on behalf of the company’s public-private structure that would resonate with conservatives seeking to dismantle it.”

Newt Gingrich to Release Freddie Mac Records, Denies Lobbying - ABC News

Earlier Newt said it was for his services as a historian. More recently he's said it was for "strategic advice". (What strategy were they following?) The fee was "relatively standard," he says, "for Washington".

Does anybody believe any of this? Is Newt just flat-out lying?

Sounds about right. Companies pay consultants ridiculous amounts of money all the time, usually because they've lost the ability to communicate with their employees and customers in a meaningful way.

I remember one time we had some consultants come into our company, and they made all their recommendations, which sounded like the complaints you'd hear in the lunch room.

 

[JoeB131]

Bloomberg News reported Tuesday that the former House speaker made between $1.6 million and $1.8 million in consultation fees in a nine-year span. Sources told Bloomberg that in 2006, Gingrich was asked “to build bridges to Capitol Hill Republicans and develop an argument on behalf of the company’s public-private structure that would resonate with conservatives seeking to dismantle it.”

Newt Gingrich to Release Freddie Mac Records, Denies Lobbying - ABC News

Earlier Newt said it was for his services as a historian. More recently he's said it was for "strategic advice". (What strategy were they following?) The fee was "relatively standard," he says, "for Washington".

Does anybody believe any of this? Is Newt just flat-out lying?

The strategic advice was for how to sell Freddie Mac to conservatives. He has a number of quotes about how awesome Freddie was. In 2007.

And so did everyone else.

Because Freddy wasn't the real problem. Fannie was, and what the Banksters on Wall Street were doing was, and what real estate speculators were doing was.

Freddy just got stuck holding the bag of crap when it was all over.