April 15, 2009
Obamas Donated 6.5% of Income to Charity Last Year
President Obama and his wife, Michelle, last year donated 6.5 percent of their income to charity, according to figures the White House released today.
Vice President Biden and his wife, Jill, donated less than 1 percent of their income to charitable causes.
The figures come from the release of the tax returns filed by the president and vice president.
The Obamas reported giving a total of $172,050 to charitable organizations. Their adjusted gross income last year was nearly $2.66-million.
The Obamas donated to 37 organizations. Their largest contributions were $25,000 to CARE and $25,000 to the United Negro College Fund.
The Bidens took a charitable-tax deduction of $1,885. Their adjusted gross income last year was $269,256.
However, the vice president’s office said that “the charitable donations claimed by the Bidens on their tax returns are not the sum of their annual contributions to charity. They donate to their church, and they contribute to their favorite causes with their time as well as their checkbooks.”
The tax return filed by the Bidens shows they made cash gifts of $1,335 to organizations whose names they did not disclose and $550 in clothing to Goodwill Industries.
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It would be interesting to see what the Obama’s charitable deductions were in 2006 and 2007 before it became clear he would be a presidental candidate? My guess is that the amount will be much smaller.
Shame on Joe Biden…
— steve rasmussen Apr 16, 01:33 PM #
Why shame on Joe Biden? It’s a well known fact that he is (and has been) one of the least wealthy members of congress (and now VP) for years. And yet you shame him for still giving at least something?
That’s shameful in itself.
— John Apr 16, 01:38 PM #
I don’t think we should judge him for how much he gives/doesn’t.
— Mari Apr 16, 01:45 PM #
I am thrilled that the Obama’s are expressing leadership and signifying the value of giving back to community/the world community with their level of giving.
— Carol Townsend Apr 16, 02:06 PM #
Biden least wealthy? He made $269K last year and gave $1,800. That’s .7% and shameful in my book.
— Thomas Apr 16, 02:44 PM #
I will always be grateful for any amount given to any credible organization that is working hard to make this world a better place. When I receive a $10 donation from a senior citizen on a fixed income it is the “widows mite” that is ever as important as the $10,000 donation towards a home sponsorship. President or pauper – every amount is valuable. Being grateful is a choice.
— Cathie W. Apr 16, 02:46 PM #
The numbers reported aren’t the total of how much they gave to charity last year. It is a total of how much charitable giving they deducted on their tax returns.
— Clarissa Apr 16, 03:10 PM #
No shame for Joe from me, but lose that note about giving time. Voluntarism is valuable and important, but it’s not a cash donation. It’s not deductible and has no place in an official document. It is however, patently apologetic. Personally, I’m tired of our board members who don’t give, but say they give their time. Leadership IS Giving. FYI—most of my donors make less than Joe and give more. But then politicians have never been good donors, except to each other with gifts from their own campaign funds (not their money).
— Ken Apr 16, 05:51 PM #
Who Is the Most Generous President?
Obama 6.5%
Bush 23%
— Jeff Apr 16, 09:55 PM #
It should be noted that most of the money Obama made last year was from the sale of his book sale. his senator’s salary is prob not much more than Biden’s. and i suspect his giving may be less in past years. i also suspect that when you are president (bush), you don’t have as many expenses (home or other) to pay and therefore more to give away. plus being an oil tycoon helps. maybe the obamas’ charitable gifts will increase this year. we’ll have to wait and see.
— rob Apr 17, 02:59 PM #
I am happy to see that Pres Bush gave such an impressive amount—-since he and Cheney stole BILLIONS—-it was the least he could do!
— Jean Apr 20, 08:45 PM #
Joe is just trying to be patriotic … paying more taxes by not making charitable donations that could be deducted. Oh wait, not giving might mean he pays more taxes, but he has more money in his pocket and the charities have less. Another example of an out-of-touch politician telling us how to live but not doing it himself.
— Chicago Apr 20, 10:14 PM #
Here are the years and percentages Obama gave BEFORE he ran for office and these records would be made public:
2000 1.0%
2001 0.4%
2002 0.5%
2003 1.4%
2004 1.2%
2005 – when he began campaign for Senate and began bid for pres. 4.7%
2006 6.1%
2007 5.8%
— Tami Apr 24, 09:13 PM #
It appears their giving went up with their income and decrease in expenses. With their moving to the white house, no doubt it will be even higher donation percentage next year!
— socialtalker May 1, 11:26 AM #
Ken, while cash is wonderful for a charitable organization, and usually preferable, the amount of positive publicity which comes from having a major political figure working within your organization is immeasurable. I work for a NPO in Olympia, WA which provides services to over 1000 members-people with mental health-related disabilities a year, and we would love to have one of our legislators (and their family members) donate time. If nothing else, we might be able to use it in an awareness/anti-stigma campaign. Also, one of the sad things about congregational giving is that many people don’t recognize it as a valid form of charitable giving. Religious organizations provide major support for people in all walks of life who have fallen on hard times, often whether they are part of the congregation or not. Perhaps some take more off the top than they should, but one of the major things our homeless outreach program keeps track of is which churches/temples/mosques/etc in our area are currently giving for 1st month rental assistance/deposit. That kind of $50-at-a-time assistance can make a massive difference, especially 2-6 months down the road when someone’s stabilized and starting to look for a job. Heck, if Veep Biden wanted to donate three hours of his time to come in and lend a hand, he could come over anytime. Maybe his church might think of us when they’re writing checks.
— Shaun May 5, 07:44 PM #