WASHINGTON – President-elect Donald Trump has said he will not accept a salary when he takes up the US presidency next year.
Following his US presidential election win earlier this week, questions have been raised about whether the billionaire will accept the massive $400,000 salary the US President is entitled to.
Trump said at a September 17, 2015, event in Rochester, New Hampshire: “The first thing I’m going to do is tell you that if I’m elected president, I’m accepting no salary, okay? That’s not a big deal for me.”
Someone on Twitter asked Trump in a Q & A session, a video of which was posted on Trump’s Twitter account on September 21, 2015: ‘@realDonaldTrump, will you forgo the presidential salary if elected?’
Later that week in a Twitter Q&A session a similar question was asked, to which Trump replied: “As far as the salary is concerned – I won’t take even one dollar. I am totally giving up my salary if I become president.”
In the same video, Trump said he was ‘totally self-funding’ his campaign and said that he ‘won’t take money other than the small stuff’.
However, he later started fundraising for both himself and the Republican National Committee, the Business Insider pointed out.
If he turns down the $400,000 salary, Trump will become only the third President in US history not to accept the hefty sum.
Herbert Hoover, who was elected in 1929, had made a fortune from mining before turning to politics while John F. Kennedy came from a renowned wealthy family and became president in 1961. As a result, both presidents chose to donate their salaries to charity.
Although Trump has not made any announcements regarding his salary since winning the election, he is expected to stick to his word and refuse the sizeable pay-packet.
Many questions have been raised about how much the President-elect is actually worth – on Friday, Forbes estimated his net worth to be around £2.9 billion ($3.7 billion), although Trump has previously claimed that he is worth “in excess of £7.6 billion”.
The US Code says on its website: ‘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.’
News of Trump’s victory in the US presidential election on Tuesday shocked the world and while some welcomed the news, there were protests and riots in cities across America.
