Construction on the Obama Presidential Center is nearing completion in Chicago, with federal tax filings revealing that the Obama Foundation paid CEO Valerie Jarrett $740,000 in 2024. The former senior advisor to President Barack Obama leads a foundation where six of its ten highest-paid executives previously held senior roles in the Obama administration or campaign.
The $850 million presidential center spans 19.3 acres on publicly owned Chicago parkland under a 99-year use agreement. Unlike traditional presidential libraries overseen by the National Archives Records Administration, the Obama Center will operate independently under the foundation's management, which also runs leadership and community programs domestically and internationally.
What the Left Is Saying
Progressive defenders of the foundation's compensation structure point to market rates for large national nonprofits and note that Jarrett's $740,000 salary represents less than 1% of the foundation's total expenses. The Obama Foundation emphasized that executive compensation is reviewed annually by its board using external comparability data and compensation consultants.
The foundation stated that executive salaries reflect competitive market rates for roles of the same level in similar institutions nationwide. The organization noted that salaries throughout the foundation, across all levels, are discounted relative to those in the private sector.
The foundation pointed to compensation levels at major philanthropic institutions, citing examples where leaders at the Rockefeller Foundation and other large philanthropies earn comparable or higher salaries. The comparison comes as the foundation prepares to open the center, which will include a museum, athletic center and public library branch.
What the Right Is Saying
Illinois GOP Chairman Kathy Salvi criticized the compensation figures, telling Fox News that Illinois Democrats are making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to help design what she called 'the ugliest building in Chicago.' Salvi characterized the salaries as evidence that Illinois' culture of corruption is alive and well.
Nonprofit governance experts say political connections among leadership warrant heightened scrutiny. 'Any time you are dealing with a nonprofit that is politically connected in some way, there is always a heightened risk of nepotism creeping in,' said Laurie Styron, CEO of CharityWatch, an independent charity watchdog group. 'If multiple highly paid executives have ties to the former president's administration, the public deserves significant transparency about how those hiring and compensation decisions were made.'
Styron noted that high salaries are not inherently problematic but should be assessed based on market comparables and organizational complexity. The foundation's staffing has expanded significantly, growing from 2018 levels to 337 employees by 2024, with annual revenue reaching nearly $210 million.
What the Numbers Show
The Obama Foundation's salary and benefits expenses grew from $18.5 million in 2018 to $43.7 million in 2024, representing a substantial increase as the organization scaled up for the center's opening. Jarrett's $740,000 compensation in 2024 exceeds the most recently reported pay of leaders at several other presidential foundations.
The George W. Bush Presidential Center reported CEO compensation of roughly $661,000 in 2024. The Carter Center and the Reagan Foundation reported pay in the $500,000 range, while the Clinton Foundation's most recent filings show CEO compensation below $500,000. However, when examining proportional shares of total expenses, Jarrett's compensation accounted for less than 1% of the Obama Foundation's total expenses in 2024, while CEO compensation at the George W. Bush Presidential Center represented a larger share of total expenses.
Other top earners at the Obama Foundation included David Simas, Obama's former White House political director, who earned up to $626,000 annually while leading the foundation from 2017 through 2020. Adewale Adeyemo, a senior Obama administration official and later Biden's deputy Treasury secretary, earned roughly $540,000 during his tenure as the foundation's first president. Former White House public engagement official Anne Filipic and Christina Tchen, former chief of staff to Michelle Obama, each earned roughly $400,000 annually. Michael Strautmanis, another former campaign and White House aide, has earned more than $300,000 per year.
The Bottom Line
The Obama Foundation's executive compensation has become a point of political contention as the presidential center prepares to open on Chicago parkland. While the foundation argues its pay reflects market rates for large national nonprofits, critics question whether the concentration of former Obama administration officials in high-paying roles warrants additional scrutiny.
The center represents a departure from the traditional presidential library model, as it will not be overseen by the National Archives Records Administration. Instead, the foundation—which is directly tied to the former president's legacy—will operate the facility. What to watch: whether calls for additional transparency around hiring and compensation practices gain traction, and how the center's programming distinguishes itself from traditional presidential libraries when it opens.