President Donald Trump said he donates 100% of his presidential salary to preservation projects at the White House.
“I do, much of it goes to the White House preservation and I fix things up, you might have seen the path outside, did you see it? It’s beautiful, I’ll let you take a look at it later. It’s beautiful, beautiful black granite, it was stone that was all broken and in terrible shape, Trump said on Full Measure with Sharyl Attkisson on Sunday.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he was the only president, aside from George Washington, to donate his salary. As reports show the statement being untrue, he did note that his first paycheck went to the White House Historical Association, emphasizing that the funds support “much-needed renovations” to what he called the “beautiful ‘People’s House.’”
He then criticized the condition of the White House during the Biden administration, emphasizing his background as a real estate developer and saying he takes a more hands-on approach to restoring and funding improvements himself.
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“The White House was not properly maintained. You think a guy like Joe Biden would maintain it? He didn’t know he was alive, but I do, I’m very good. I was a great real estate developer. I can fix things and make them look beautiful, and pay for it myself. But no, I devote 100% of my salary to different things, but I like White House preservation,” he says.
During his first term in 2017, he donated his first paycheck to the National Park Service and to other departments, including the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Veterans Affairs. In August 2025, he also completed a $2 million Rose Garden renovation, which was funded by private citizens. In his current term, his most recent known project is the addition of the White House ballroom.