Obama speaks at Boeing for 'free': Generosity or pay to play?

No drama, no scandal (according to his self-serving definition) former president Barack Hussein Obama (D) has not been heard from much recently. Well, at least publicly. But behind the scenes, which "fake news" (trademark courtesy of President Donald J. Trump [R]) media tend to ignore, he has been active. Fresh from vacationing in his native land of Hawaii – and no, he didn't row there to reduce his carbon footprint – he then jetted into Arizona to speak at Boeing's annual executive retreat. And he graciously didn't charge his hosts.

Awww, how nice. Awww, how typical of his original Illinois political mentors and their accepted Chicago Way of pay to play, a lesson he also learned well from his national political mentors, President Bill Clinton (D) and his wife Hillary Rodham Clinton (D), as companies fell into line, eagerly donating to the Clinton Foundation. In return for golfing and having more fun in the Arizona sun, Obama gave the Boeing executives a "motivational" speech – so motivational in fact that Boeing, a Chicago-based company, by the way, donated a sizable sum to the controversial Obama Library and Museum in...Chicago. Yeah, now you get it. Obama dropped in on the leadership sessions while traveling back to the mainland from his year-end holiday in Hawaii, and Arizona's top-notch golf courses were part of the allure. The former president waived his speaking fee for the informal address, said Katie Hill, Obama's spokeswoman. Boeing has emerged as one of the major corporate donors helping fund Obama's library and museum in Chicago. The aerospace giant gave $10 million to the project ahead of Obama's address to managers at a five-star Scottsdale resort in early January, according to the people, who aren't authorized to speak publicly. An Obama Foundation spokeswoman declined to confirm the exact amount of the donation, only pointing to the group's website, which says Boeing gave more than $1 million. True to Democrat parlance, free is very expensive for payers, as in free education for all and free medical care for all, while the advocates of such policies such as Obama and the Clintons somehow manage to benefit hugely. Coincidence, I'm sure. Image: Ari Levinson via Wikimedia Commons.