Former President Barack Obama is making the most of his first 100 days out of office and is already set to make at least $800,000 from just two speeches this year.

Mr Obama met up with presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin on Thursday at the A&E Networks advertising upfront at the Pierre Hotel and was rewarded $400,000 for a 90-minute interview with her in front of advertisers for the cable network.

That marks the second known speech for that amount since leaving the White House alongside one planned for September sponsored by a Wall Street bank that sparked criticism earlier this week.

When asked by Ms Goodwin how he handled frustrations in the Oval Office, Mr Obama took the chance to joke about his successor, saying, “for starters, by not having a Twitter,” according to the New York Post.

Mr Obama also gave some insight into the banal learning curve he’s encountered in his new life as a private citizen, including figuring out how use the coffee machine at his new home in Washington, DC. He still hasn’t driven a car on his own, he said, but that’s pretty normal for ex-commanders-in-chief.

The former president was criticised earlier this week by several people when it was discovered that he had signed on for the upcoming Wall Street speech.

Senator Elizabeth Warren, who has focused on Wall Street reform and banking regulations in the Senate and was assigned by Mr Obama to help run the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, said that she was “troubled” by the $400,000 revelation.