WASHINGTON – Turncoat Sen. Jim Jeffords is cashing in on his defection from the GOP – first a tete-a-tete with actress Sharon Stone and now a two-book deal with a big-time New York publisher.
The Vermont senator, who last month quit the Republican Party and turned the Senate over to the Democrats, will pen two memoirs for Simon & Schuster, it was disclosed yesterday. That’s the same publisher that agreed to pay Hillary Rodham Clinton $8 million for her story.
Neither Jeffords nor his publisher would reveal how much he’ll be paid.
The first book, to be called “My Declaration of Independence,” will be published this fall and will contain an expansion of the statement Jeffords delivered in May when he announced his decision to become an independent.
The second, to be published next year, will detail the events leading up to the decision.
“I continue to be amazed at the response to my decision,” said Jeffords.
“I look forward to the opportunity to share my story with a wider audience.”
Publisher spokeswoman Victoria Meyer said the deal was cooked up in the last 10 days. The idea came from a Simon & Schuster executive and not from Jeffords, she said.