After serving in office for eight years, Barack Obama took a well-deserved hiatus immediately following the elections this past November. While the Trump administration set up camp in the White House, Obama managed to avoid the spotlight and the press during his post-term vacation.
Snapping back to reality, Obama went on a circuit of public appearances earlier this May and will soon pass by Montreal, where he plans to deliver a keynote speech at the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal to the Montreal Board of Trade on June 6. It will be his first trip back to Canada since his last visit to Ottawa in June 2016. His arrival will coincide with the city’s celebrations of its 375th anniversary. (globalnews.com)
No post-presidency blues for Obama, who so far, is approaching his post-presidency lifestyle with a relatively low profile to slowly transition into his new life out of office. There is a resurge, if not a continued popularity in Obama, especially considering the unpopularity of his successor; the public is excited to learn his decision to remain engaged in civic life. (Washingtonpost.com)
With so much already happening in the Trump administration, one would assume any public appearance made by a new, fresh-faced Obama would feel like a breath of fresh air, especially with the hard hit feeling of nostalgia towards the Obama administration. However, though there is much to be missed about Obama, who came to be known as the ‘people’s leader’, shocking details exposed about his recent public speeches have left a bitter taste in the public’s mouth. (Washingtonpost.com)
During his second post-presidency public appearance, Obama spoke with young leaders at a University of Chicago; the same day Fox Business reported the generous salary Obama averages for his public speeches. The public was outraged in light of the hypocrisy displayed by a former president who often spoke out against the greed of Wall Street bankers, famously dubbing them as ‘fat cats’. Obama is said to receive $400,000 for a speech he has agreed to deliver at a Wall Street conference organized by the financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald LP later this year. (Foxbusiness.com)
During his time in office, Obama didn’t shy away from criticizing Wall Street bankers for their high salaries especially while the average American suffered during the financial crisis of 2008. Although he is following a well-worn path followed by most ex-presidents of delivering paid speeches after leaving office, Obama has been subject to public outrage. After leaving office, Obama made much of his money from his outside business ventures including his two book deals with Audacity of Hope and of Thee I Sing: A Letter to My Daughters and Dreams from my Father making up three fourths of the $20 million he made from his time in Washington between 2005 and 2016, $10.8 million of which was made while in office. In other words, Obama has made $15.6 million as an author and only $3.1 from his presidential salary. (Forbes.com)
The Montreal Board of Trade has not yet commented on how much Obama would be compensated for his keynote speech. Montrealers on the other hand seem indifferent and are excited the former president of the United States is visiting their hometown. His upcoming visit has sparked so much demand that tickets sold out in under an hour. (ctv.com)
However, much like concert tickets, tickets to see Obama are being resold at skyrocketing prices; tickets that originally sold between $57 and $373 are now being sold for as much as $568;they have surfaced on sites such as Stubhub and Kijiji in copious amounts whereas when they originally went on sale, they could only be bought in limits of 10 tickets per person. Reselling tickets for such events are common practice; most often but for the sole purpose of making profit from resell prices. (ctv.com)
