Posted at 1:53 a.m., Thursday, May 17, 2007
Obama received $572,490 in book royalties in 2006
Bloomberg News Service
Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama received $572,490 in book royalties last year, according to his financial disclosure statement filed with the Federal Election Commission.Obama, 45, an Illinois senator, got $425,000 for "The Audacity of Hope," published in 2006, and $147,490 for his 1995 book, "Dreams From My Father."
The royalties for "The Audacity of Hope" are part of a $1.9 million advance he reported in 2005 for that book and two others, including a children's book. Obama said he was donating $200,000 of the advance to charity.
His and his wife's assets were valued at between $455,011 and $1.1 million, mostly in mutual funds. They sold one mutual fund that included holdings in a company doing business with Sudan, campaign spokesman Bill Burton said. The Obamas discovered that during a review of their financial holdings in preparation for submitting the disclosure, Burton said.
Obama's wife, Michelle, is a director of Westchester, Illinois-based TreeHouse Foods Inc. and has an option to buy more than 6,000 shares in the company.
Presidential candidates were required to file personal financial disclosure statements with the FEC on May 15. Senators Hillary Clinton of New York, a Democrat, and John McCain, an Arizona Republican, and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney received 45-day extensions to file their disclosures.
Romney Assets
Romney, 60, founder of Boston-based Bain Capital LLC, a venture capital firm, is expected to report assets of between $190 million and $250 million, an adviser said last week, speaking on condition of anonymity because all of the financial information hadn't been compiled.
Romney's assets are in a blind trust. The Romneys also have set up a blind trust for their children and grandchildren, estimated at between $70 million and $100 million.
McCain, 70, filed a disclosure statement in January. He reported a $56,496 pension from his service in the Navy and received $16,500 in honoraria for radio commentaries, which he donated to charity.
He received between $50,000 and $100,000 in book royalties, which he also donated to charity. In April 2006, he signed a book contract with New York-based Time Warner Inc.'s book division for a non-fiction work.
McCain's wife, Cindy, received more than $1 million in dividends from her ownership in a beer distributorship and has bank accounts worth more than $1 million.
