Obama inked 500, 000 dollar book bonanza five days before taking office

Washington, Mar.19 (ANI): President Barack Obama secured a 500, 000 dollar advance for a children's book project five days before taking office, a disclosure report shows.

The terms of the book deal were disclosed in a Senate financial disclosure report filed Tuesday, reports the Washington Times.

Analysts say there don't appear to be any rules that would bar such transactions after a president takes office, but it's unclear whether an incoming or sitting president has ever signed a book deal upon entering the White House.

Obama approved the advance on January 15. The advance is against royalties under a deal with Crown Publishing, a division of Random House.

The project calls for an abridged version of his book "Dreams From My Father" for middle-school-aged children, according to the disclosure.

A White House aide said that the deal had been in the works for weeks and that the publisher will abridge the book.

The aide, speaking on a condition of anonymity, said the publisher will get half of the money while Obama will sign off on the final version.

In addition, the financial disclosure showed Obama brokered an amendment to an existing book deal with Crown Publishing to put off writing a non-fiction book until after he leaves office.

The book deal came on top of nearly 2.5 million dollars in book royalties paid to Obama last year for "Dreams From My Father" and "The Audacity of Hope," according to the Senate report, which was filed by Robert F. Bauer, who served as general counsel to Obama's presidential campaign.

The disclosure also cites income, listed as more than 1,000 dollars, paid to US First Lady Michelle Obama from the University of Chicago, where she had worked as vice president for community and external affairs.

Last year, Obama reported earnings of 949,910 dollars in royalties from "Dreams From My Father" and 1.5 million dollars from "The Audacity of Hope."

In 2007, he reported 3.2 million dollars in book royalties from Random House.

Obama's books have helped boost the Obamas' income considerably in recent years, from about a million dollars in 2006 to over four million dollars in 2007. (ANI)