The President and Vice President Biden just released their financial disclosure forms. Image from Wikimedia Commons

The White House just released the financial statements of both the President and the Vice President.  Though neither of them are exactly Bill Gates, both Vice President Joe Biden and President Barack Obama are not the wealthiest of Washington impresarios but still not exactly hurting for a cash advance these days.  The President in particular did fairly well for himself as a result of advances and payments he received for his second book, which was a runaway success with readers and sold a lot of copies.  The Bidens, as it turns out, are fairly modest compared with many other Washington heavyweights.

Most expensive gift Biden received was a book

Reportedly, the most expensive gift that Vice President Biden received last year was a book. Granted, it wasn’t an ordinary book, but rather a rare first edition of “Anna Livia Plurabelle,” by James Joyce.  It was actually signed by the author, and is valued at more than $3,000, according to the Houston Chronicle at http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ap/top/all/7009468.html.  Joyce is one the Vice President’s favorite authors. Joyce died in 1941, about two years after the publication of the novel, so signed copies of it are rare indeed.

They actually have to

The President, Vice President and many other government officials are required by the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 to post statements regarding their financial status annually.  The act was signed by President Carter in the wake of the Watergate scandals to prevent financial conflicts of interest.  You can view the statements in depth at the White House Blog, but you”ll need Adobe to read them. The exact figures aren’t available for security reasons.

The President cleans up

It has been rumored that President Obama received millions for the two autobiographical books that he published. The Bidens, on the other hand, hold less than $750,000 in assets and only one home.  That’s a lot for most people but pretty modest by Washington standards.