The scandal-plagued Obama Presidential Center in Chicago already stirred up plenty of controversy. Now the money trail surrounding it raises even more uncomfortable questions about how former President Barack Obama’s inner circle is cashing in while taxpayers get screwed over.
New federal tax filings reveal the staggering salaries flowing through the Obama Foundation as construction of the $850 million Obama Presidential Center in Jackson Park nears completion. The foundation will operate the massive 19.3-acre campus, which sits on publicly owned Chicago parkland. The project includes a museum, an athletic center, and a public library branch. It will not operate as a traditional presidential library overseen by the National Archives.
The land it sits on is a big part of the scheme. The Obama Foundation secured a 99-year agreement with the city, under which the foundation pays just $10 per year to use the plot. That deal alone costs Chicago tens of millions of dollars in potential value while handing over prime public property to a private nonprofit run by a former president.
With such a sweet deal in place, the foundation has been able to pay its officers inflated salaries, the most eye‑popping of which is paid to Valerie Jarrett, one of Obama’s closest political confidantes. Jarrett “earned” $740,000 in 2024 as CEO of the Obama Foundation. That salary easily outpaces the compensation paid to leaders at several other presidential foundations.
And she’s just the tip of the iceberg.
Six of the foundation’s 10 highest-paid executives previously held senior roles in the Obama administration or campaign. David Simas, Obama’s former White House political director, earned up to $626,000 annually while leading the foundation from 2017 through 2020. Adewale Adeyemo, another senior Obama official who later became deputy Treasury secretary under Joe Biden, earned about $540,000 as the foundation’s first president.
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The list keeps going. Anne Filipic, a former White House public engagement official, earned roughly $400,000 annually. Christina Tchen, former chief of staff to Michelle Obama, also pulled in roughly $400,000 a year. Michael Strautmanis, another Obama campaign and White House aide, earned more than $300,000 annually.
Compensation across the organization has ballooned. Salaries and benefits climbed from $18.5 million in 2018 to $43.7 million in 2024. Staffing expanded to 337 employees.
Illinois Republicans smell the stench of classic Chicago corruption.
“Illinois Democrats are truly living their best lives — making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to help design the ugliest building in Chicago,” Illinois GOP Chairman Kathy Salvi said. Though, to be fair, it might be the ugliest building in the country. “Their jaw-dropping salaries prove that Illinois’ culture of corruption is alive and well as Barack Obama’s top allies rake in the cash.”
Despite the red flags that raise eyebrows among Republicans and charity watchdogs, the Obama Foundation insists its pay structure follows industry standards. In a statement to Fox News Digital, the organization claimed, “Executive salaries are based on competitive market rates for roles of the same level in similar institutions nationwide.”
Yeah, and if you like your health plan, you can keep it, too.
The foundation also argued that its salaries actually trail those in the private sector. According to the report, the foundation “pointed to compensation levels at major philanthropic institutions, where leaders at the Rockefeller and Mellon foundations earned more than $1.4 million in 2023, and the Ford and MacArthur foundations each reported CEO compensation of roughly $1.29 million, according to public filings.”
However, here’s what the foundation left out:
Those organizations operate with multibillion-dollar endowments, money that earns enough interest each year to cover operating costs. The Ford Foundation reports assets of roughly $16 billion, while the Mellon and MacArthur foundations each report assets exceeding $8 billion.
The Obama Foundation reported more than $1.1 billion in total assets at the end of 2024, though much of that reflects construction-related assets and restricted funds tied to the presidential center rather than a traditional invested endowment.
The Obama Foundation pledged to establish a $470 million endowment, though public filings show approximately $1 million deposited to date, according to a Fox News Digital investigation.
Obama spent eight years in the White House under a cloud of multiple scandals and rampant corruption. The media and his allies largely gave him a pass, and so it’s hardly surprising that corruption has carried over to the Obama Foundation. If the Obama Presidential Center is supposed to preserve his legacy, it’s doing exactly that — including the corruption.
The Obama Foundation doesn’t just reflect Obama’s legacy of corruption — it exposes how his inner circle still cashes in while taxpayers eat the losses. We’ve been calling out that corruption for years while the mainstream turns a blind eye to it. Join PJ Media VIP with promo code FIGHT for 60% off, support our work, and help keep us alive. Don’t wait — back fearless conservative journalism today.
