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MSNBC Mocks Bill Clinton's 'Gotta Pay Our Bills' Defense of Making $500K for a Speech

May 4, 2015

Speaking with NBC from Nairobi, Kenya, former president Bill Clinton said he would continue to accept paid speech engagements if his wife wins in 2016.

"I gotta pay our bills," he said. "And I also give a lot of it to the foundation every year."

MSNBC’s Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough began to laugh.

"They can't help themselves. ‘We've got to pay our bills.’ What are they doing?" Scarborough said as he tried to contain his chuckling.

The comment may turn into another gaffe from the Clintons when it comes to talking about money.

Clinton’s words echo his wife’s infamous "dead broke" comment in regard to their post-White House life. She later said she regretted complaining about how much debt the first family had after leaving the White House. Bill Clinton has also said that he was the poorest president of the 20th century.

"They made $150 million already and they've got to pay their bills? He goes and gives a speech and once she became Secretary of State he made $550,000 for an hour," Scarborough said.

The Clinton’s worth now surpasses $100 million thanks in part to paid speeches, often from foreign governments and companies connected with the Clinton Foundation.

"When you lift poor people up and lift yourself up at the same time and do so in a way that has the New York Times and Washington Post and Wall Street Journal questioning whether there's a quid pro quo, I think that's the issue," Scarborough said.