What charities did Trump claim to donate his presidential salary to?
Executive summary
Donald Trump has publicly said he donated his presidential salary to several government entities and a nonprofit: his first-term donations included the National Park Service (via the Department of the Interior) and the Department of Education for a STEM camp, and in August 2025 he announced a donation to the White House Historical Association for renovations [1] [2] [3]. News outlets and the Department of the Interior record a $78,333 first-quarter donation used for Antietam restoration and the White House archive lists the Department of Education donation for a STEM camp [1] [2].
1. Trump’s stated recipients: Interior/National Park Service and Education
Official White House messaging from Trump’s first term said quarterly presidential paychecks were routed to federal agencies: Quarter 1 to the Department of the Interior (for the National Park Service) and Quarter 2 to the Department of Education to fund a STEM-focused camp for students [2]. The Department of the Interior’s press release notes the first-quarter gift—reported as $78,333—was used toward restoration projects at Antietam National Battlefield and was later supplemented by private matching funds [1].
2. White House Historical Association donation claim
In August 2025 Trump posted that his “first ‘Paycheck’” of the new term went to the White House Historical Association to support White House renovations; that claim was reported by multiple outlets, including KFOX and NDTV [3] [4]. Local and national outlets covering the announcement described the donation as part of Trump’s practice of forgoing or redirecting the presidential salary [5] [3].
3. How much was each donation and how that fits the $400,000 salary
Reporting and government statements show presidential pay is $400,000 per year, paid quarterly; the Department of the Interior recorded the first-quarter 2017 donation as $78,333 and noted an anonymous donor rounded it to $100,000 for battlefield restoration [1]. White House and news accounts treat the donations as quarterly allocations from that quarterly salary amount [2] [1].
4. Outside verification and context: public records vs. claims
The Department of the Interior publicly documented the use of a reported quarterly donation for Antietam projects and linked other contributions that brought the total to six figures, indicating at least some public accounting for that gift [1]. The Trump White House archive post about donating a quarter’s pay to the Department of Education cites the intended use (a STEM camp), but available sources do not provide an independent audit trail for every donation beyond the cited press releases [2].
5. Claims of uniqueness and historical comparisons
Trump has framed these gifts as exceptional, saying he is “the only President (with the possible exception of George Washington) to donate my Salary.” Several outlets disputed that assertion: reporting notes other presidents, including John F. Kennedy and Herbert Hoover, also donated earnings, and fact-checking outlets have flagged the “only” claim as inaccurate [4] [6]. The public record therefore challenges the uniqueness claim even while confirming that Trump did donate portions of his salary [4] [6].
6. What is not in the provided reporting
Available sources do not mention full accounting documents that track every quarterly payment across both of Trump’s administrations, nor do they show contemporaneous IRS or Treasury records of the transfers beyond agency press releases and White House statements (not found in current reporting). Additionally, while news stories quote Trump’s statements and agency releases, comprehensive third‑party audits of all salary donations are not present in the supplied material (not found in current reporting).
7. Competing perspectives and likely motivations
Trump and his communications present the donations as civic gestures and proof of rejecting a federal paycheck; government releases present tangible uses for those funds (restoration projects, STEM camp) [2] [1]. Critics and some news outlets emphasize historical inaccuracies in his “only president” claim and seek fuller documentation; supporters frame donation announcements as continuity with his prior practice and as funding public projects [4] [3].
8. Bottom line for readers
Public statements and agency releases show Trump donated at least one quarter’s pay to the National Park Service (used at Antietam) and another quarter to the Department of Education for a STEM initiative, and in 2025 he announced a donation to the White House Historical Association for renovations [1] [2] [3]. Independent, consolidated accounting for every quarterly donation across terms is not provided in the selected sources, and his claim to be singular among presidents in donating a salary is contradicted by historical examples cited in reporting [4] [6].