The White House has also not offered any more details about how the news media might make its suggestions. The White House press office did not respond to questions from The Post about why Trump is waiting until year's end to donate the money when charities might prefer to have the funds now. The way that we can avoid scrutiny is to let the press corps determine where it should go." "And he has kindly asked that you all help determine where that goes. "The president's intention right now is to donate his salary at the end of the year," Spicer said, in response to a question from One America News Network reporter Trey Yingst. On Monday, Spicer offered reporters a new explanation for what Trump intends to do with the money. Trump's $400,000 annual salary works out to about $33,333 per month before taxes. "He is required to get a paycheck but will be giving it back to treasury or donating," Sanders told the fact-checking site. So last month, White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders told PolitiFact that Trump would indeed take the money - but then give it back, or give it away. "That's not a big deal for me."īut the Constitution requires the president to be compensated. "I'm accepting no salary," he told a crowd in New Hampshire in September 2015. Trump, who boasted frequently as a candidate about his wealth, promised early in the campaign not to take his presidential pay. That search turned up one donation from Trump himself between 20 - a gift of less than $10,000 to the Police Athletic League in New York City. It asked whether each had received a gift from Trump's own pocket. The Post called 450 charities that seemed close to the candidate - nonprofit groups that he had praised on Twitter or that had paid him to rent banquet space. Before he actually paid, Trump's campaign manager made a false claim that the money had already been spent.ĭuring last year's presidential campaign, The Post also showed that Trump had spent years promising large donations to charity - building a public reputation as a man whose generosity was as impressive as his wealth.īut The Post found little evidence to show Trump's actual generosity matched his boasting. But Trump did not make good on his $1 million promise until four months later, under pressure from the media. In January 2016, for instance, Trump said he had donated $1 million of his own money - and raised an additional $5 million from others - for veterans' charities. Washington Post reports last year highlighted past Trump promises of charity that months later had not come to fruition. Trump's charitable promises have sparked controversy in the past. If "you have promised to take steps that would at least lessen the appearance of impropriety, and then you don't take those steps, it would affect my evaluation of him," said Erik Jensen, a professor at the Case Western Reserve University School of Law in Cleveland who has studied conflict-of-interest rules.
The Trump inaugural committee has provided no details about what it plans to donate. He still intends to give the money away at year's end, said press secretary Sean Spicer, but Trump has not yet chosen a charity to receive it. A spokeswoman provided few specifics about how the amount would be calculated.Įarlier in the week, the White House seemed to acknowledge that Trump has been keeping his monthly paycheck. On Friday, for instance, the Trump Organization said it would not make its donations until the end of each calendar year. In all three cases, these pledges of generosity seemed designed to allay a concern about Trump expressed by some critics - that this wealthy president, who had refused to relinquish ownership of his businesses, might use his public office to enrich himself or his friends.īut nearly two months into the Trump presidency, little information has been released to show how, or if, those promises are being kept. treasury.Īnd the committee that raised a record $90 million for Trump's inauguration pledged that, after running a no-frills celebration, the remaining funds would be given to charity. Those proceeds, Trump's attorney said, would be given to the U.S. The Trump Organization - the president's global real estate and branding business - pledged not to keep any profits that it made by renting hotel rooms and banquet halls to foreign governments. An aide said he would donate the money instead. Little information has been released to show how Trump is keeping promiseīefore he took office, Donald Trump said he would not accept his presidential salary.His organisation pledged not to keep profits but donate it to US treasury.Before he took office, Trump said he would not accept his $400,000 salary.
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