President Joe Biden raised more than $22 million to fund his White House transition
President Joe Biden raised $22.1 million from private donors for his transition to the White House, more than three times the $6.5 million that Donald Trump collected for the same purposes four years ago, according to newly filed report.
Biden’s transition report, made public Monday by the General Service Administration, shows Biden spent even more — $24 million — as he readied to assume the presidency.
Payroll expenses topped the list at $13.6 million, followed by travel and event expenses at a little more than $5 million.
The 1,021-page filing shows thousands of people contributed to the Biden effort. They include well-known figures who made the $5,000 maximum contribution, such as Chicago financier Mellody Hobson, producer Jeffrey Katzenberg and Jeff Zients, who would become the White House’s Covid-19 response coordinator, to people who donated as little as $2.
Presidential transitions are funded with a combination of private and public funds.
In a break from tradition, the General Services Administration did not formally sign off on Biden’s victory until November 23, more than two weeks after the Democrat was declared the winner. The delay came amid baseless claims of widespread election fraud from Trump and his allies.
The GSA’s belated acknowledgment of Biden win allowed his team to tap more than $6 million in government funds for the transition.
