President Barack Obama just broke records by signing a $65 million contract for a post-White House memoir. The deal includes a book from Michelle Obama as well.
The deal is the largest in history for a former President. Clearly, the Obamas won’t have to suffer the damages caused to the economy by Obama’s job-killing policies.
The four or eight years of unimaginable stress aside, for the pocketbooks of politicians, winning the Presidency is only the beginning.
Bill Clinton’s presidency allowed him and his wife to rake in over $153 million in income for 729 speeches since he left office: a hefty $210,795 per speech. I wouldn’t mind four times the median household income for a speech either! Unlike Hillary, I might have some reservations about then railing against the top 1% afterwards, though.
While Hillary claims that she and Bill left the White House “dead broke,” so much so that they had trouble paying for their houses (yes – plural), that’s clearly not the case now. As for the Obamas, their new book deal is worth five times his net worth ($12.2 million).
Fox News puts the exact figure at $65 million.
Former President Barack Obama has inked a $65 million deal for his memoir, a joint agreement that also will include a book written by former first lady Michelle Obama.
It is the highest amount ever paid for a presidential memoir.
The deal, announced Tuesday by publisher Penguin Random House, will pay for the global rights to two books to be written separately by the former president and his wife, according to the Financial Times.
…
“We are absolutely thrilled to continue our publishing partnership with President and Mrs. Obama,” Penguin Random House CEO Markus Dohle said in a statement.
“With their words and their leadership, they changed the world, and every day, with the books we publish at Penguin Random House, we strive to do the same. Now, we are very much looking forward to working together with President and Mrs. Obama to make each of their books global publishing events of unprecedented scope and significance.”
Not a bad gig – especially considering that it will probably be written by a ghostwriter who earns pennies on the dollar to author it. As large a fortune they’re earning from this book, for some perspective, during his Presidency, the American taxpayer footed the bill for $100 million worth of Barack Obama and his families travel expenses. In other words, this record book deal isn’t even enough to cover his leisure that the rest of us paid for.
For some comparisons to a current (and a fellow former) President Donald Trump got a $500,000 advance for his 1987 book “The Art of the Deal,” while George W. Bush got an impressive $10 million for his 2010 “Decision Points.”
So far Obama is off to a good start in his post-presidency life. If only the rest of the country could’ve done as well. Instead, we’ve suffered from the Obama economy, his disastrous foreign policy, his socialized medicine scheme, his bailouts…
What do you think? Is this too much money for a book written by the Obamas?
