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Will Donald Trump Really Turn Down Annual Presidential Salary? Refusing $400,000 Might Not Make Much Difference To The Richest Ever President-Elect

By Patrick Frye
Published on: 09:50 PST, Nov 10, 2016

Republican President-elect Donald Trump could forgo the annual president’s salary entitled to him. Trump had earlier confirmed that he won’t take a single dollar of the presidential salary.

Republican presidential candidate and America’s presidential-elect, Donald Trump, had once graciously confirmed he would turn down the salary an American president earns while serving his term. Back then, he had clearly said that if elected, he would forgo the annual salary he is entitled to. If that’s not all, he had even proclaimed that he would not seek outside contributions to his campaign. Trump hasn’t yet reiterated last year’s promise of giving up the presidential salary.

Asked if he would roll back generous pension and healthcare benefits given to members of Congress, Donald Trump, one of the rarest breeds of non-political president-elect said the following.

“The first thing I’m going to do is tell you that if I’m elected president, I’m accepting no salary, OK? That’s no big deal for me. I won’t take even one dollar. I’m totally giving up my salary if I become president.”

Here’s what the “Compensation” clause laid out in the United States Code says on the matter.

“The President shall receive in full for his services during the term for which he shall have been elected compensation in the aggregate amount of $400,000 a year, to be paid monthly, and in addition an expense allowance of $50,000 to assist in defraying expenses relating to or resulting from the discharge of his official duties. He shall be entitled also to the use of the furniture and other effects belonging to the United States and kept in the Executive Residence at the White House.”

Although $400,000 salary is twice what former president Bill Clinton earned, it is apparent Donald Trump won’t lose any sleep over the amount. Trump’s personal fortune is in the billions. While his exact net worth remains a mystery, Forbes has placed him at No. 405 on its list of billionaires. With an estimated net worth exceeding $4 billion, he is easily the richest president-elect, and would be the wealthiest President of the United States, come January, 2017. Trump would easily beat the net worth of the nation’s first and previously wealthiest leader, George Washington, reported International Business Times.

Interestingly, Donald Trump had walked back on his promise to self-finance his entire campaign, reported Business Insider. Although Trump did dip his hands into his personal cash pile and self-funded the vast majority of his race to the White House, he did reverse his proposal, reported Politico. After receiving the Republican presidential nomination, Trump gradually began raising money for himself and the Republican National Committee.

Donald Trump was declared the president-elect on early Wednesday. Needless to add, Trump’s ascension to the most powerful chair in the world has been nothing but surprising to many who had pegged Hillary Clinton as the next President of the United States. Ms. Clinton was all but confirmed as the 45th Commander-In-Chief of America by many analysts. While the exact figures are hard to come by, Trump’s odds of winning the election were pegged to be as low as 1 percent. However, after three states defied the predictions and patterns, Donald Trump won with a wide margin.

In order to win the hearts of Americans, Donald Trump had made many promises, which quite a few conservative circles were quick to label as extreme, xenophobic, and downright racist. From renegotiating a number of international trade deals, to building a wall between America and Mexico, and forcing America’s poor neighbor to pay for the same, Donald Trump now has a laundry-list of commitments that might seem far-fetched for actual implementation.

One of the most poignant promises Donald Trump kept making was repealing Obamacare. While the president-elect offered no confirmation that it was still on the table, he did categorically say that every American will have better healthcare, and added that his iteration, tentatively labeled as Trumpcare, will be far better than the one being currently offered under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

[Featured Image by Joe Raedle/Getty Images]

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