Unlike Bush's Privately Funded Portrait, Senators' Portraits Cost Taxpayers Up to $70,000 Each

(CNSNews.com) - Portraits of Senate leaders are almost always paid for with taxpayer money, at a cost of up to $70,000 each. By contrast, portraits of President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush – unveiled on Friday – were paid for with private donations.

The Washington Post reported Friday that Bush’s portrait cost $160,000 and Laura Bush’s, $40,000. The private donations for the Bushes’ portraits were made to a Smithsonian fund designated for the paintings, Bethany Bentley, a spokeswoman for the National Portrait Gallery, told CNSNews.com.

In the Senate, portraits traditionally are commissioned for the majority and minority leaders, and former members who have been out of the Senate for 25 years who are chosen by a special commission of the Senate Rules Committee, said Donald Ritchie, the Senate historian.