No wonder Barack Obama may have proposed the sequester; with all the cuts that are due to take place, there is one cut he knew he didn’t have to worry about: his own salary.
The sequester, also known as the Budget Control Act, lists government expenditures section 255, which includes “Compensation for the President” as being exempt from the cuts to be implemented.
Article 2, Section 1, Clause 7 of the Constitution states:
The President shall, at stated Times, receive for his Services, a Compensation, which shall neither be encreased nor diminished during the Period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them.
Last month the Congressional Research Service released a report delineating which programs are exempt from the sequester’s cuts. Among them are: Social Security and Medicaid; refundable tax credits to individuals; and low-income programs such as the Children’s Health Insurance Program, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, and Supplemental Security Income.
The report also noted, “Some discretionary programs also are exempt, notably all programs administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Also, subject to notification of Congress by the president, military personnel accounts may either be exempt or reduced by a lower percentage.” Former presidents’ pensions are exempt.
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