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He wants more money after he leave office.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/03/18/obama-seeks-hike-in-post-presidency-payments.html?intcmp=hpbt1

"When middle class Americans are barely scraping by, leave it to Obama to put a raise for himself in the budget. Congress must just say no."

One of the comments

Well hey it makes sense right? After all look at all the expenses Obama has to pay for out of his own pocket. Like I'm sure the rent of the White House isn't cheap, right? Plus keeping the lights on in that place. It's gotta be tough for him, probably crazy electric bills he has to pay. Then you have to factor in the money he spends on groceries. Oh and the bills he pays for the cars that drive him around. Oh and the bills he pays for when he uses air force one and other things. Is jet fuel cheap man? No it's not cheap.

So many bills a president has to pay out of his own pocket, I mean they only get like half a million bucks a year. Wait I think 400k, and obviously a good chunk of that must go to maintaining the White House. I mean the lawn doesn't mow itself, so Obama has to pay for a grounds keeper or some shit too.

Then the money he has to pay out of pocket for security guards as well..it's crazy NOT to give them bigger retirements.

Originally posted by Time-Immemorial
He wants more money after he leave office.

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/03/18/obama-seeks-hike-in-post-presidency-payments.html?intcmp=hpbt1

"When middle class Americans are barely scraping by, leave it to Obama to put a raise for himself in the budget. Congress must just say no."

One of the comments
Why you speaking in ebonics, my man?

He currently gets $400,000 a year.


So he doubled our debt.

Divided our country.

Reset Race Relations to the 1950s

Lost two wars

Responsible for the Rise of ISIS and the genocide that is currently happening

Let Russia invade the Crimea and the Ukraine

Stood idly by why Christian women got sold into slavery.

alienated our allies

allowed our nation to be further invaded by illegal aliens.

Screwed over everyones healthcare plans.

Now he wants a pay increase for his retirement?

You're forgetting all the White House bills he pays for directly out of pocket. The place ain't cheap.

Let's hope Hilary doesn't try to nominate him for the judge role if she somehow wins. I doubt the salary is high enough for Big O.

He does not pay the white house bills, we do.

And he wants this pay raise after he leaves the office, so he wants us to pay him more for doing nothing after his term is over, this makes sense how?

Originally posted by Time-Immemorial
He does not pay the white house bills, we do.

And he wants this pay raise after he leaves the office, so he wants us to pay him more for doing nothing after his term is over, this makes sense how?

Ohhh damn. Well it looks like someone should be given more money...us.

Wait, doesn't this increased benefit mean that Bush Sr., Bush Jr., Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and all of their spouses also get increased retirement benefits, as well as any successive presidents? Obama's not just padding himself. According to the article the appropriation of $588k for 2017 would be split between all 5 living presidents, not just Obama.

Bush and Carter and the Clintons don't more money

He'll probably have to finance his own Hawaiian vacations, of course he'll want a raise.

The Bush family is old money, and the Clinton's have parlayed their political influence into a multi million dollar estate. They're exceptions, though, not the rule. Jimmy Carter got into diplomacy and charitable efforts after his tenure. He didn't go about creating a fortune. I think his current net worth is only like $3-5M, and that's from writing several books and his pension benefit.

Originally posted by MF DELPH
Wait, doesn't this increased benefit mean that Bush Sr., Bush Jr., Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and all of their spouses also get increased retirement benefits, as well as any successive presidents? Obama's not just padding himself. According to the article the appropriation of $588k for 2017 would be split between all 5 living presidents, not just Obama.

You are correct. After all even Obama isn't dumb enough to propose a "just give me specifically more money" type of deal. This way he can use it as an excuse because hey it's not like he'd be the only one benefiting.

I guess we need to ask do the Bushes and Clintons and Carters need even more money?

EDIT: So you just said Carters net worth is 3-5 million. Okay, doesn't compare to the Clintons or Bushes, but it's not chump change either. Why do they need more? Also Carter is 91 frickin years old. I mean..you said he's worth millions and he is 91. His wife is 88. Surely these two people can live on 3-5 million bucks for..however long they have left.

So while Obama wouldn't be the only one getting more money..he'd pretty much be the only one truly profiting off of it to me. I like Jimmy, but the man looks like the next stiff breeze that hits him might kill him. Do we really need to give any of these people more money? Especially when the money I'm guessing comes from us the tax payers. Now if a bunch of wealthy rich d-bags want to donate money to the presidential retirement fund I say...okay, have at it.

Pensions get passed on to families after their death (a situation my family is dealing with now). Survivor Benefits. It means that the families of former presidents, spouses and children, also receive the pension.

Originally posted by MF DELPH
Pensions get passed on to families after their death (a situation my family is dealing with now). Survivor Benefits. It means that the families of former presidents, spouses and children, also receive the pension.

But why should the families get money they didn't earn? Why should they in turn get even more money? So we're not only paying for them, but for their kids..and the children of their kids?

It's like winning the lottery without ever having bought a ticket. I could see money going to the spouse, but that is it. Why should anyone else beyond that..be taken care of by the american people?

Pensions are based on the earnings of the employee. In this case, the POTUS. The family of the POTUS inherits the POTUS's retirement benefits upon his/her death (Survivor Benefits). It's the same thing for Police, Firemen, etc (surviving spouse inherits benefit upon death, and then it's passed to children, with certain requirements). It's the difference between a Pension and a 401k or an IRA.

*edit

My Dad was a building inspector and drafter for a construction company. His pension worked in the same manner, as does my Mother's pension from Kaiser Permanente.

What I'm asking is why the children of the president deserve extra money for doing nothing. If Jimmy Carter is worth 5 million, why shouldn't he just leave that money to his kids?

It comes off like they want more money so their already comfortable lives can get even more comfortable.

Cops don't tend to earn 400 k a year and get assloads of free shit.

If they want extra money show us that these people are destitute and can't afford a pot to piss in. If Obama can show us that then okay.

Originally posted by Surtur
What I'm asking is why the children of the president deserve extra money for doing nothing. If Jimmy Carter is worth 5 million, why shouldn't he just leave that money to his kids?

It comes off like they want more money so their already comfortable lives can get even more comfortable.

Cops don't tend to earn 400 k a year and get assloads of free shit.

The children inherit the benefit of their parent which their parent earned for their service. It's simply an inheritance. And while being an officer might be a bit more grueling on a day to day basis as far as being a beat cop or homicide detective in the line of fire, being the Commander in Chief comes with it's consequences as well. You make decisions that could mean the lives, or livelihoods, of millions to billions of people.

Okay, but then you haven't explained why they should get even MORE money then they already do. Are they not given enough to live comfortably on?

We need an actual valid reason to give these people more money. If they are already given enough to live comfortably..would you agree they shouldn't get another penny?

Cost of living increases and inflation. These benefits have been increased periodically for the last 40+ years. The reason it's newsworthy is because Obama is the one doing it, and this is an election year. He's not the first President to increase the benefit percentage. It's the same reason why Senators and Representatives also vote for pension as well as salary increases and make appropriations for that as well.

Originally posted by MF DELPH
Cost of living increases and inflation. These benefits have been increased periodically for the last 40+ years. The reason it's newsworthy is because Obama is the one doing it, and this is an election year. He's not the first President to increase the benefit percentage. It's the same reason why Senators and Representatives also vote for pension as well as salary increases and make appropriations for that as well.

The cost of living thing doesn't matter much to me. What I'm saying is we need a valid reason. So if you factor in the increased costs of living and find they can't maintain their lifestyle okay.

If they can maintain their lifestyle just fine, should they be given more money? See because my parents worked the same jobs for a long time without getting raises, despite rising costs of life. We still lived fine. If we can do it then I don't see why people should be given even more money unless it's proven it's desperately needed.

I would want a valid reason. I'd want the numbers to be crunched to show there is NO possible way they could survive on what they are getting.

Also, I want to add I don't say "He's not the first president to do it" to qualify that it's right or wrong or that it's only an issue because it's Obama, but ______ did it as well. I'm saying it because it's a fiscal reality. As time goes on our money doesn't go as far, and pension benefits cover a lot of unforeseen expenses. It's not just about a cushy life. The descendant of a president could use the benefit to cover the costs of cancer treatments, etc., and wipe out their funds.

Originally posted by Surtur
The cost of living thing doesn't matter much to me. What I'm saying is we need a valid reason. So if you factor in the increased costs of living and find they can't maintain their lifestyle okay.

If they can maintain their lifestyle just fine, should they be given more money? See because my parents worked the same jobs for a long time without getting raises, despite rising costs of life. We still lived fine. If we can do it then I don't see why people should be given even more money unless it's proven it's desperately needed.

I would want a valid reason. I'd want the numbers to be crunched to show there is NO possible way they could survive on what they are getting.

There needs to be a valid reason for a person's pension to be passed to their family members?

*edit

Oh, you mean the increase. Well, for my job in the financial services industry we get an annual 2.8% "COLA" bump (Cost of living adjustment) on top of our merit increase. I'm just an accountant, however. The President of the United States is a different ballgame, and they are only employed for 8 years. However, like military service, their benefits are for life, and pensions and retirement benefits for Vets can be increased as well due to COLA. I'm not in the government but I'm assuming that's the general rule in play.

I don't doubt he's not the first and I don't doubt it happens periodically. What I'm saying is though we need to actually put time and effort into figuring out if they should get more. If they are just going "well it's been a few years, time for mo money" then no that's kind of bullshit.

Also in the past this country might of been better off when it comes to our money situation and our economy. Just like inflation fluctuates, so too does our economy. If we didn't begin to to take a good long hard look at if they truly needed more money in the past..that needs to change.

Originally posted by MF DELPH
There needs to be a valid reason for a person's pension to be passed to their family members?

No, a valid reason to give them even more money. Especially if these people are friggin rich. Which they ALL ARE. It's just weird to see rich people whine about inflation and the cost of living. I am not saying anyone is whining for this, but unless there has been a huge change it shouldn't be something we need to think about. Not now, not with the state of our country. Allowing the rich to maintain their riches should be way at the bottom of the list.

Originally posted by MF DELPH
Also, I want to add I don't say "He's not the first president to do it" to qualify that it's right or wrong or that it's only an issue because it's Obama, but ______ did it as well. I'm saying it because it's a fiscal reality. As time goes on our money doesn't go as far, and pension benefits cover a lot of unforeseen expenses. It's not just about a cushy life. The descendant of a president could use the benefit to cover the costs of cancer treatments, etc., and wipe out their funds.

Yup

Originally posted by Surtur
I don't doubt he's not the first and I don't doubt it happens periodically. What I'm saying is though we need to actually put time and effort into figuring out if they should get more. If they are just going "well it's been a few years, time for mo money" then no that's kind of bullshit.

Also in the past this country might of been better off when it comes to our money situation and our economy. Just like inflation fluctuates, so too does our economy. If we didn't begin to to take a good long hard look at if they truly needed more money in the past..that needs to change.



No, a valid reason to give them even more money. Especially if these people are friggin rich. Which they ALL ARE. It's just weird to see rich people whine about inflation and the cost of living. I am not saying anyone is whining for this, but unless there has been a huge change it shouldn't be something we need to think about. Not now, not with the state of our country. Allowing the rich to maintain their riches should be way at the bottom of the list.

Yeah, sorry, I didn't grasp that part in my initial response. My mistake.

Also again you want to talk about cancer treatment and stuff. How do these people worth millions of dollars not already have health insurance for themselves and their families?

Even with health insurance some treatments are insanely expensive and the costs add up quick. And we're talking about children inheriting the benefits from a deceased parent. It would be the survivor's who would be using the funds to provide all of their insurance coverages, etc. Adult children aren't on their parent's health care plans.

Originally posted by MF DELPH
Even with health insurance some treatments are insanely expensive and the costs add up quick. And we're talking about children inheriting the benefits from a deceased parent. It would be the survivor's who would be using the funds to provide all of their insurance coverages, etc. Adult children aren't on their parent's health care plans.

I get this, but I'm pretty sure Carters children have jobs of their own and most likely health insurance. The ones I found on wiki either have jobs that would provide it or married people who have jobs that would provide it.

Just how many generations of the Carter family should we be looking out for? If anyone beyond the children of the presidents get it(like grandchildren) well where do you draw the line. If the grandchildren deserve money why not the great grand children? Why not all his nieces and nephews and *their* families?

I think you can agree the Bushes and Clintons aren't even worth discussing.

But here is an idea: instead of just giving them overall more money why not just give them health insurance if they ever need it? That is at least life and death. Having a fancy home or fancy car..are not. I have no problem with "the presidents kid is sick and they can't afford treatment, lets help him out".

I think POTUS Benefits are different than Military Benefits, so I'm not sure how many generations that would extend. I think it's just spouse and children. So basically it's for as long as, say, Chelsea Clinton or Ronald Reagan Jr. lives, or Obama's kids. It doesn't get passed to the children's children. For the Obama's it'd just be Sasha and Malia after Michelle passed, assuming they outlive their parents to inherit the benefit.

*edit

And they don't just inherit health benefits because they inherit their father's pension. We're not just giving them money, we''re giving them the money their father earned via his service and would have received had he survived.

Except to me that is silly. I could understand if the president died young, but Jimmy Carter is 91 years old. He's been getting money like this since 1980. We've been paying him for his service for over 35 years.

Now suddenly we have to give them the money he'd of earned if he lived to be 100? or 110?

Just like I would understand if a cop is killed on the job his family gets money. But if the cop retires and dies at age 90..I think he's been given what he's owed.

It pays to be the Commander in Chief.

Yes, and pays should be in bold letters because holy f*ck does it pay. To your spouse, to your kids. Does the family pet get something too?

Since I think "Bo" deserves mad doe. But f*ck Sunny.

Actually, I've done some digging into this, and it's apparently not as costly as I'd initially thought. I found this PDF which breaks down the benefit:

https://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL34631.pdf

Basically, as things stand now, the President receives an annual pension of $208k until death. Upon death the First Lady is not entitled to the entirety of that pension, but receives a $20k/yr Survivors Benefit for life which is transferable to the President's surviving children. With Obama's proposed increase that annual pension would increase from $208k to $245k/yr, and the Survivors benefit would increase from $20k/yr to $23.6k/yr.

But that's nearly 40 grand of money that could be spent elsewhere. Is it truly needed? Actually not even 40 grand, it's nearly 40 k per president.

So Clintons, Carter, Bush, Obama. So 40 k times 4. Something like 160 grand.

Yeah, Obama's basically adding anywhere from $100k-300k annually to the budget with this increase, but given the age of Jimmy Carter and Bush Sr, it's likely to be a short term increase. Clinton, Dubya, and Obama himself will likely account for an additional $120k/yr for the next decade or two. Honestly, that's not a big amount of money. That's the equivalent of three $19/hr salaries being added to the budget. It's a COLA.

It's not a big amount of money in the grand scheme of things this is true. But the question should be..do they *need* this increase?

I just think we need to redo how we do pensions in general. If you look at my topic about pensions...there are some professors and shit getting a quarter of a million bucks, half a million bucks. I mean college professors and stuff. These people aren't exactly putting their lives on the line.

It's not an increase for Obama. It's the budget that will have 5 former presidents to support instead of 4 next year. Framing this as if Obama is getting a raise, is nonsense, he's just rightly planning that expenditure for former presidents will increase, if there are more former presidents.

This is true, in reality it's not just the Big O getting mo money.

Originally posted by Bardock42
It's not an increase for Obama. It's the budget that will have 5 former presidents to support instead of 4 next year. Framing this as if Obama is getting a raise, is nonsense, he's just rightly planning that expenditure for former presidents will increase, if there are more former presidents.

Nice spin but it won't work. He is getting a pay raise.

I'm curious as to what Obama's current net worth is compared to the other presidents still alive.

He's likely in 4th place. I think he and Michelle are worth about $9M-13M currently. I think the order would be Clinton in first with about $80M, then Bush Sr., Bush Jr., Obama, Carter.

Wait he's worth nearly 10 million? Christ, rich people problems.

We've had a lot of multi-millionaire Presidents, historically.