He is the saddest former president of all time. Joe Biden’s effort to establish a traditional presidential library is running into early turbulence, as sluggish fundraising raises doubts about the scale—and even the ultimate form—of the project meant to cement his legacy.
According to recent reports, the foundation overseeing the proposed Biden presidential library expects to raise just $11.3 million by the end of 2027, a fraction of the sums typically required to build and sustain a full presidential library and archival complex. Internal Revenue Service filings show the organization received no new donations in 2024, instead relying on roughly $4 million in remaining funds from Biden’s 2021 inauguration.
The financial picture has prompted renewed scrutiny as Biden reenters the public spotlight. The former president appeared at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute in Boston on October 26, 2025, where he received a lifetime achievement award, even as questions swirled about the future of his library.
Asked about donations in 2025, the foundation declined to provide specifics, saying only that Biden himself is now beginning to actively fundraise. Aides insist the ambitions remain high, with long-term goals of raising as much as $200 million.
Behind the scenes, however, contingency plans are already being discussed. Sources familiar with the matter say talks are underway about potentially integrating the presidential library with existing Biden-affiliated institutions at the University of Delaware, including the Biden Institute. Such a move could significantly reshape the project, shifting it away from the stand-alone presidential libraries built by many of Biden’s predecessors.
The effort has also struggled to energize traditional Democratic donors. Longtime party contributor John Morgan said he would not give to the project, placing blame squarely on Biden’s inner circle. “The Biden staff, they ruined any type of good library for him,” Morgan told the outlet. “He’ll be lucky to have a bookmobile.”
Others in Democratic circles have cited competing priorities—such as opposing the agenda of President Donald Trump—or lingering dissatisfaction with aspects of Biden’s presidency as reasons for holding back, even if personally solicited by the former president.
A spokeswoman for Biden downplayed the concerns, stressing that the initiative remains preliminary. “We continue to be in an exploratory and planning phase,” she said, adding that Biden is scheduled to attend the project’s first dedicated fundraising event.
The contrast with other recent presidential projects is stark. Former President Barack Obama’s presidential center in Chicago is already under construction and is slated to open in June 2026. The project, which looks like something out of a science fiction dystopia, has caused other problems in the former president’s hometown, mainly that the people living there hate it.
Taken together, the challenges facing Biden’s library underscore a broader reality: he just wasn’t a good president.
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Merge Biden library with Obama?
Obama told him not to run
He can put it in the closet at Penn State he stored top secret documents in.
The alleged Obama library is an absolute “JOKE”. Good possibility it will never open. And what is there to want to remember about Bidumb ??? Joe could use some of the tens of millions his evil spawn coerced from Ukrain and other countries.