Biden library foundation far short of $200 million fundraising goal

Former President Joe Biden has reportedly raised only a “tiny fraction” of the funds needed to build a presidential library, according to a report from The New York Times on Saturday.

ReportThe former president’s library foundation is not receiving new donations in 2024 and is instead seeded with $4 million left over from his inauguration in 2021, he said, based on public filings and interviews with Biden donors.

According to The Times, the library foundation declined to share how much it had raised in 2025 and told the media that Biden was only now actively raising money for the project.

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“Yet Mr. Biden’s foundation told the IRS this year that it expects to bring in only $11.3 million in total revenue by the end of 2027. That would be well below the pace set by other recent presidents and far less than the $200 million that Mr. Biden’s aides have said they eventually want to raise,” The Times reported.

Although not technically a presidential library, former President Barack Obama’s “presidential headquarters” in Chicago has raised $1.5 billion so far, according to new filings. President Donald Trump announced that he is preparing to raise more than $950 million before leaving office for the library he plans to establish in Miami.

The publication claimed that due to “inadequate fundraising,” discussions were ongoing about combining a future library with pre-existing “Biden institutions” already built at the University of Delaware. By doing so, the Times noted, it could allow the library to benefit from millions of dollars the university, the former president’s alma mater, has already secured to build a “Biden Hall.”

“Some of Mr. Biden’s most loyal contributors so far said no one had contacted them about donating to the library. Other Democratic donors said they were unlikely to give money even if Mr. Biden asked them because they were focused on fighting President Trump or angry about Mr. Biden’s tenure in office,” The Times reported.

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John Morgan, a longtime donor to the Democratic Party and one of Biden’s biggest supporters, told The Times that he would not give “a dime” to the library, citing mistreatment by Biden’s staff.

Former President Barack Obama is seen near construction of the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago, Illinois, a project that faces delays, rising costs and increasing scrutiny over its finances. (Scott Olson/Getty Images; REUTERS/Vincent Alban)

“Biden staff, they destroyed every good library for him,” Morgan told the outlet. “He’ll be lucky to have a book cart.”

The Times added some context to Morgan’s decision not to help fund Biden’s library, writing: “In contrast, Mr. Morgan said he had dinner with former President Bill Clinton last week to discuss a possible donation to his library for expansion. Mr. Clinton and former President Barack Obama maintained much better relationships with their donors and supporters, which allowed them to build major foundations and libraries, Mr. Morgan said.”

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Biden’s library foundation issued a statement announcing it was postponing fundraisers until now to allow time for “intensive research” that includes visits to other presidential libraries.

“Mr. Biden has said little about his plans, beyond that he wants his library to be somewhere in his home state of Delaware. Aides say he envisions something smaller and cheaper than Mr. Obama’s headquarters,” The Times reported. he wrote. “Even so, it appears to be well short of the $200 million target.”

Biden Hall and the Biden Library are currently two separate projects “vying for the same pool of donors,” according to The Times. The publication added: “Many loyalists say they hope the library will be located within the hall, turning the two projects into one.”

Former President Joe Biden makes remarks regarding the Francis Scott Key bridge collapse in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on Tuesday, March 26, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

When asked for comment by The Times, the University of Delaware said it had not transferred any money to the Biden library foundation and declined to comment on the potential merger of the two projects. The Biden library foundation also declined to return The Times’ request for comment on whether it is considering combining the Biden Hall and Biden Library projects.

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“We continue to be in the exploratory and planning phase,” Biden spokeswoman Kelly Scully told The Times.