White House Salaries Released: Which West Wing Staffers Are In The Money?

The White House released a full list of its employees titles and salaries on Friday. Those salaries range from $0 for some policy advisers to $172,200 for Obama's top aides like Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, Special Adviser David Axelrod and Economic Adviser Larry Summers. In total, 23 members of the White House staff earn that much.

The list, however, is topped by two "detailees" -- employees from other agencies who have effectively been lent out to the White House for temporary duties -- who make nearly $179,700 a year.

CNN does the math, and calculates that the "average salary is $82,700 a year, while the median employee salary is $66,000. The lowest full time salary is just under $38,000 a year."

The White House spends a grand total of $38,796,307 a year in staff salaries.

View a selection of the White House's top earners -- those who earn $172,000 or more -- or look below for a full list of White House salaries:

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David Axelrod

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The President's Senior Adviser netted the maximum salary for his role in helping to develop Obama's political strategy.

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The President's Senior Adviser netted the maximum salary for his role in helping to develop Obama's political strategy.

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Comments

[Jeannette Harris]

11:48 PM on 07/09/2010

Especially considering the cost of living in the D.C. area, and expenses for some of maintaining two households in disparate locations nationally, along with the responsibilities and work ethic of this administration, those salaries seem modest. Of course, our President only earns $400,000 annually, plus benefits, while our corporate CEOs are rolling in dough (substantial portions of which are, technically, ours) as if it's toilet paper so we all know that true worth and honorable mention historically are not measured in paperbacks and pennies.

[lendiggy]

03:34 PM on 07/06/2010

Marie Antionette would be proud, Obama

[GoDogGo]

01:16 PM on 07/06/2010

If you don't pay people in government a wage they can live on, you'll only be hiring millionaires with a business agenda. Those people in the White House are primarily career civil servants, not the type to write books and go on speaking tours after their done.

People who seek to criticize what are honestly VERY humble salaries (relative to the private sector and in DC) fail to realize the cost of living in that city. It's not Iowa. You can't get a nice little house with a picket fence for $250,000 there. Not even if it was condemned and housing a crack den.

People have to live. They have to raise their kids in safety and be able to afford a decent meal. It doesn't matter if you lost your job or you don't like the WH policies. The government needs to be run by decent people and that requires a decent (though certainly not extravagant) salary.

[hulagirrrl]

12:52 PM on 07/06/2010

Wow, I recall a few weeks ago a discussion here in Hawaii to raise compensation for the new superintendent of schools above the current base pay of 160.000 annually. The reason for the request was that some senior principals of Hawaii's public schools are making more than that figure right now. I thought that 160.000 a year in the lowest ranking school system in the nation is a lot, and should really be tied to incentive pay. Now I look at Mr. Axelrod's pay, and although I am sure there are allowances somewhere for travel and housing, considering the stress level, 24 hour availability he is not paid a lot, or maybe the other way around and the superintendent is overpaid.....

[BrickSykes]

02:29 PM on 07/06/2010

Thoroughly agreed! The ONLY reason these Trolls are moaning about highly paid WH staff is because they've been CONNED into believing that this is part of 'a Big Government' takeover! They have no real world point of relevance because many of them are military retirees or SocSec 'retirees' or 'disabled' retirees, and the Repewbs have them convinced that they are the only people that deserve 'America', and they've promised to help them 'Take Back' America which rightfully belongs to them!

'Two-Digit Saps' is about the closest I can come to describing them, and I'm kind of ashamed I'm having to do it! But they will never ever have a chance at 'seeing the light' if they're not called out for their naivete.

Brick

[Winston120]

04:26 PM on 07/06/2010

Axelrod is not overpaid and it is chump change to him in any case. The problem I have is with the gophers making 80K and MO's chief of staff at 172K. MO makes such a big deal about "her connection" with the average american. Ha, we're paying someone 60K to bring her lattes.

[nlc3]

10:55 AM on 07/06/2010

Huffington Post I am not sure where you are going with this story as usual. According to the list no one is “in the money”. Yet another non story and poorly thought out title.

[changling]

10:33 AM on 07/06/2010

These salaries are not unfair for top executives. Under $200,000. is actually mid to low. These are older, college graduated, experienced people. So, for top executives this is ok by me. However, other than the top execs, no one should make more than the average, middle American if they are working for us.

[hulagirrrl]

12:53 PM on 07/06/2010

Absolutely.

[GoDogGo]

01:06 PM on 07/06/2010

Actually, the salaries listed are *extremely* low for the experience and education required and the cost of living in DC.

Folks complaining here have no concept of what it takes to buy a home or rent an apartment and live in a non-crack infested neighborhood. I mean, think of $100,000 living in NYC. That's peanuts!

[CaptainObvvious]

08:03 AM on 07/06/2010

People in public service shouldn't make a FORTUNE but let's be realistic they need to be paid well, especially in top positions.

If we pay them minimum wage because service should be its own reward then we would hope to attract people who are in it for the honor of duty. What we would probably end up getting are less skilled people and the incredibly wealthy who don't care about the money but use their power to help only themselves.

We need to attract great people and sometimes that means paying them a good salary.

[Hazelnut101]

04:39 AM on 07/06/2010

Crap... Corporate makes more money than these dudes...what's wrong with this picture? Oh forgot Corporate is the ones that reeaallyy run this country. they just let us small people vote to pretend we are doing something.

[emma richmond]

04:28 AM on 07/06/2010

Most of the President Staff are Millionaires, Hillary, Rahm, Valenie Jarrett, Gibbs, Melody Barnes and David Axerod, and others, the money they make is not very much, for the Jobs they have, Hell the President only Make 400,000 Dollars a years, not worth the head aches he have to deal with, last year his finance report showed that he made over 12 Millions dollars through Royalities and Property, 1.5 Millions Dollars Off the Peace Prize., First Lady Said he don't like to shop and buy clothes, most all the West Wing are very Rich. We read somewhere the President have set up his daughters College funds 200 thousands each can you imagine the interest they are making! Look at Former President Clinton he have made more money then he made in the WH., 65 Million Dollars in Speaking engagement. You're right he will be pretty heavy and so will Michele. Congress and the Senate make more money then the President Staff, some of them make almost much as the President, yet they whine

[supergenius02]

01:00 AM on 07/06/2010

Look at all that taxpayer cash. While Obama's people are making cake the rest of America is left to eat cake!

[talkofliberty]

12:39 AM on 07/06/2010

Our overlords are doing quite well.

[JudScott]

01:15 PM on 07/06/2010

do you work 24/7? are you on call all the time?

[talkofliberty]

02:53 PM on 07/06/2010

sure.

[Loveforlife]

12:25 AM on 07/06/2010

Where is the income for Timothy Geithner?

[Chuck Hannington]

12:13 AM on 07/06/2010

I'm just glad they actually hired employees that have actual credentials from accredited universities. The previous WH employed people from a fake school(liberty university) and a fake law school. Essentially a degree mint for conservatives.

[Loveforlife]

12:22 AM on 07/06/2010

Do tell on the previous administration's lack of credentials.

In other words. Prove your post.

[Il Bu]

07:54 AM on 07/06/2010

"Fisher said four Liberty graduates will clerk for judges, one at the appellate level. "

Nope, real. Chuck is just your typical lib. A liar when it suits his argument.

[Chuck Hannington]

05:42 PM on 07/06/2010

Whenever there was a major Bush administration scandal it always traced back to some incompetent political hack appointment that graduated from Regent University.
The school says its mission is to create an army of evangelical lawyers, integrating the Bible and public policy, and producing graduates that provide "Christian leadership to change the world."
U.S. News and World Report, which does the definitive ranking of colleges, lists Regent as a tier-four school, which is the lowest score it gives. It's not a hard school to get into. This is for the people who couldn't get into the University of Phoenix.

The Justice Department was entirely staffed with Jesus freaks from a televangelist’s diploma mill. 150 graduates of the low-rated Regent University were hired by the Bush administration. Most of them had very little knowledge of the law.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., asked at a hearing, "Should we be concerned with the experience level of the people who are making these highly significant decisions?" But in the Bush administration experience didn't matter. All that mattered was loyalty to Bush, Pat Robertson and Jesus, in that order.

How a 'fourth tier' religious law school infiltrated the US Government:

http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/law/article2033067.ece

[mudshark12]

11:52 PM on 07/05/2010

Dayum! Its no wonder we are going broke!

[berryessence]

11:48 PM on 07/05/2010

Don't forget the perks......

At best $40M for salaries is actually "within normal limits" which Bush & Clinton had