Taxpayers on the Hook for Bill Clinton’s Sattelite TV Bill [POLL]

Yesterday news broke that Former President Bill Clinton has his office's monthly satellite TV account, which includes premium movie channels as Cinemax is paid for by taxpayers.

The DirectTV bill, which totals $184.26 a month, is for his Harlem, New York office and is part of the nearly $1 million Clinton is allotted to cover business-related expenses.  Also in Clinton's DirectTV bill is DVR service, 145 “Office Choice” channels and 32 high-definition “Entertainment Unlimited” channels such as HBO and Showtime according to the Daily Caller said.  Clinton also has a $322.40 annual digital subscription to the New York Times paid for by the government.

The details of Clinton's spending came after a Freedom of Information Act request for documents from Fiscal Year 2011. Did you know that all former presidents are given money to spend as they see fit for their work after they leave the White House?  It’s true: Jimmy Carter was given $517,000, of which he spent $646.57 a year for Dish Network service in his Atlanta, Georgia offices.  His cable package had fewer bells and whistles than Clinton's and he skipped out on Cinemax. Former president George H.W. Bush received $835,000 and his son, George W. Bush, got $1.3 million in government funding.  That money does not include Secret Service protection for them or their wife, which is also paid for by the taxpayers.

The details on the spending of the ex-presidents has one Republican lawmaker calling for changes in the way government doles out money to them.  Jason Chaffetz, from Utah, wants a new law that would eliminate one dollar towards an ex-president for every dollar over $400,000 they earn annually.  Clinton has earned $89 million in the decade-plus he's been out of the White House, while George W. Bush has already earned $15 million in speaking fees.

How does this make you feel? Do you think it’s right that as taxpayers we’re picking up the tab for Clinton's bill?  Do you think it’s only fair that we do?