# What does the President's paycheck look like? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 18, 2004, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785 "2004-10-18T05:00:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/1 "2004-10-18T05:00:43Z")
Anyone know? I’m curious about withholdings and whatnot. Is he paid biweekly? Once a month? Does he have automatic deposit? Do any of our former U.S. presidents have old pay stubs on display somewhere? Any articles, website and/or books on the subject would interest me. If a factual answer cannot be reasonably determined, feel free to move this thread to IMHO. Thankewvermuch. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/2 "2004-10-18T05:17:54Z")
Just picturing GWB endorsing his paycheck to cover his bar tab… ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/3 "2004-10-18T05:35:11Z")
Surely the US government pays its employees via direct credit to their bank accounts? I find it hard to believe that it would still use paper-based cheques. ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/4 "2004-10-18T05:43:14Z")
I get direct deposit, but I’m still given a paper check stub every pay period which itemizes my deductions, taxes, fees, dues, etc. I imagine many Americans do, too — including the president. Also, in many private American firms, direct deposit is still an optional feature, not mandatory. Not sure how it works for federal employees. ---
**Author:** ![MsRobyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/90ced4/32.png) [@MsRobyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsRobyn)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/5 "2004-10-18T05:45:07Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > I get direct deposit, but I’m still given a paper check stub every pay period which itemizes my deductions, taxes, fees, dues, etc. I imagine many Americans do, too — including the president. > > Also, in many private American firms, direct deposit is still an optional feature, not mandatory. Not sure how it works for federal employees. Don’t know about the President, and wouldn’t even begin to get into that, but the federal government generally prefers its employees to have direct deposit. In fact, for some agencies, it’s mandatory. If you don’t have a bank account, they’ll tell you to get one, but they will still cut a paper check. They’re just not happy about it. Robin ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/6 "2004-10-18T06:53:19Z")
I don’t think he gets paid until he leaves office. I’ll look for a cite. ---
**Author:** ![Iceland\_Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/4bbf92/32.png) [@Iceland\_Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iceland_Blue)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/7 "2004-10-18T10:28:01Z")
I wanna see his resume… Job…Duties…Why did you leave position? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/8 "2004-10-18T10:33:24Z")
I always thought he’d line up at a little hatch in the Capitol with all the Congressmen and Senators, and get a bunch of bills and coins stuffed in a little brown envelope. Then off to the pub before the wife gets her hands on it! ---
**Author:** ![spingears](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ebca7d/32.png) [@spingears](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spingears)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/9 "2004-10-18T12:22:57Z")
> [@Askia](#): > > Anyone know? I’m curious about withholdings and whatnot. Is he paid biweekly? Once a month? Does he have automatic deposit?Do any of our former U.S. presidents have old pay stubs on display somewhere? Any articles, website and/or books on the subject would interest me. If a factual answer cannot be reasonably determined, feel free to move this thread to IMHO. Thankewvermuch. I strongly suspect the the POTUS as well as CEO’s such as D. Trump have someone whose duties include tracking such items. It is doublful that the principal ever sees the deposit receipt. Once signed up for direct deposit an annual message is sent from the SSA regarding payments for the coming year and a SSA-1099 covering payment for year just past for income reporting. The monthly bank statement would list the direct deposits. With the implementation of “Check 21” later this year, original checks will NOT be returned, an electronic image only will be included with monthly statement. The banks and Federal Feserve are interested in minimizing paper handling/transcations. The use of instant payment withdrawls from checking with check cards (e.g. Visa) are being PUSHED! Use of charge cards will be discouraged unless it is used on a long term payment account. ---
**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/10 "2004-10-18T14:04:33Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > I don’t think he gets paid until he leaves office. I’ll look for a cite. You mean, he’s paid on strictly a commission basis based on the quality of his performance? 😃 - Jinx ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/11 "2004-10-18T14:11:34Z")
> [@MsRobyn](#): > > Don’t know about the President, and wouldn’t even begin to get into that, but the federal government generally prefers its employees to have direct deposit. In fact, for some agencies, it’s mandatory. If you don’t have a bank account, they’ll tell you to get one, but they will still cut a paper check. They’re just not happy about it. > > Robin I’ll go out on a limb, here, and say that I don’t think _any_ Federal employee can get a paper check. Remember, the checks that they used to issue were issued by the Treasury Department, not by each individual agency. IIRC, the Treasury told the agencies, “we ain’t printing and mailing any more paper checks as of such-and-such a date, so get your employees to get with the program.” ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/12 "2004-10-18T14:15:08Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > I always thought he’d line up at a little hatch in the Capitol with all the Congressmen and Senators, and get a bunch of bills and coins stuffed in a little brown envelope. Then off to the pub before the wife gets her hands on it! You might be right. We’ve certainly got ample evidence that a fair number of our elected representatives have been indulging in _something_ that impairs their judgment! ---
**Author:** ![Roland\_Orzabal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c2a13f/32.png) [@Roland\_Orzabal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Roland_Orzabal)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/13 "2004-10-18T14:18:58Z")
> [@Early Out](#): > > I’ll go out on a limb, here, and say that I don’t think _any_ Federal employee can get a paper check. Remember, the checks that they used to issue were issued by the Treasury Department, not by each individual agency. IIRC, the Treasury told the agencies, “we ain’t printing and mailing any more paper checks as of such-and-such a date, so get your employees to get with the program.” Nah. A friend of mine, an engineering student, is an intern at NIST and he gets a paper check from the Dept. of Agriculture. I’m pretty sure he has a bank account, too. ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/14 "2004-10-18T14:21:27Z")
> [@Roland Orzabal](#): > > Nah. A friend of mine, an engineering student, is an intern at NIST and he gets a paper check from the Dept. of Agriculture. I’m pretty sure he has a bank account, too. That surprises me, but, hey, when I’m wrong, I’m wrong! 😃 Curiousity - I wonder why Ag is issuing paychecks for NIST employees? ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/15 "2004-10-18T14:25:01Z")
It’s very unlikely that he would not be getting Direct Deposit. But, if he did have check cut, it would look like all the other Federal Government checks. It would be brownish in color, and resemble your Tax Return check (if you get one), or your Bush Rebate Check (if you got one of those). The military hates to write checks. They strongly encourage direct deposit. In fact, they pretty much FORCE you to get a bank account at Basic if you don’t already have one. But there are people, for whatever reasons, don’t have their direct deposit set up, and they are issued a check. The check looks just like every check I’ve ever seen from the Federal Government. So deductive reasoning tells me that the President’s check would look the same. Though he most likely never sees a check. ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/16 "2004-10-18T15:54:55Z")
> [@Bear\_Nenno](#): > > The military hates to write checks. They strongly encourage direct deposit. In fact, they pretty much FORCE you to get a bank account at Basic if you don’t already have one. But there are people, for whatever reasons, don’t have their direct deposit set up, and they are issued a check. When I was in basic training, they paid us in cash, just like the old days. You stood in line and reported to a pay officer, who gave you the cash. Then our drill instructors made us buy money orders with the cash we had just received. ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/17 "2004-10-18T16:08:14Z")
And you were in basic training . . . when? Last year, thirty years ago? ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/18 "2004-10-18T16:11:15Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > I don’t think he gets paid until he leaves office. I’ll look for a cite. Not true. The President gets paid regularly both for a salary and for expenses. They have to do income tax returns every year, which are reported to the press. You can view Bush’s and several previous presidents’ returns at [The History Project](http://www.taxhistory.org/thp/thpwebsite.nsf/Web/PresidentialTaxReturns?OpenDocument). ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/19 "2004-10-18T16:46:22Z")
> [@Iceland\_Blue](#): > > I wanna see his resume… > > Job…Duties…Why did you leave position? 😃 I don’ wanna see his resume, I wanna see his behind leaving the White House, Washington, the US, North America, the Troposphere, Earth Orbit & _still rising_, in that order. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2004, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785/20 "2004-10-18T16:48:36Z")
And if this were Great Debates, you’re political opinion would be welcome. But this is not Great Debates. It is General Questions. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-the-presidents-paycheck-look-like/269785.md?page=2)