August 11, 2016
The NYT had an interesting piece charting the career paths of Bill and Hillary Clinton, and the extent to which they may have had financial concerns earlier in their lives. Unfortunately, the piece does not adjust for inflation, so it may have misled readers about how well off the Clinton’s actually were.
For example, the piece tells readers that after Bill Clinton lost his re-election bid in 1980:
“The Clintons had stretched their finances to afford the $112,000 home, which was down the hill from the city’s old-money mansions.”
That home would cost a bit more than $280,000 in today’s dollars.
A bit further down the piece tells readers that Hillary took a job at a law firm for $55,000 a year. That would be roughly $158,000 a year in today’s dollars. It also refers to them earning $18,000 a year each as law professors in Fayetteville in 1975. That would be a bit more than $135,000 in today’s dollars for their combined income.
The $100,000 that Hillary Clinton reportedly made speculating in cattle futures in 1978 would be more than $330,000 in today’s dollars.
The $33,500 that Bill Clinton earned Arkansas’s governor in 1978 would be just under $112,000 in today’s dollars and their combined income of $51,200 for that year would be just over $170,000. The $297,000 they reported as combined income 1992 would be equal to more than $490,000 in today’s dollars.
It is also worth noting that Arkansas is one of the poorest states in the country and has a much lower cost of living than wealthier areas like the Northeast or California.
Thanks to Keane Bhatt for calling this to my attention.
Note: The professor salary adjustment was corrected to clearly indicate it refers to their combined income.
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