Feb 14 2009
Here Is Congress Creating Wealth – For Themselves
Think Congress is on your side, looking out for your interests and that of your families? Sorry, but the reality is they are as greedy as any business CEO:
People who wonder how elected officials come to Congress on modest means and retire wealthy should study Rep. Grace Napolitano of California. Few have found campaigning as personally enriching as Napolitano … literally. And according to the FEC, her scheme is apparently completely legal:
Read both links – but the point is Congress is human too, and just as greedy.
When LBJ was first elected to Congress, he was a school teacher and was not rich. He spent the remainder of his life in congress until becoming vp and pres. he retired a multimillionaire. He didn’t get his fortune on his salary.
Most people today are well off when first elected to congress, but end up very rich when they leave office. It’s not salaries that do that.
Some congressmen (Mark Sanford SC) don’t end up rich. Think that may be because of being honest and ethical?
What happened to the feature that allowed you 5 minutes to edit? I liked it.
AJ, you owe a fair number of CEOs an apology. They are selling their managerial skills (though I will concede problems with the incestuous nature of many Boards of Directors these days).
Congresscritters, on the other hand, are practicing soft graft. I don’t grudge them good pay – honest government must be paid for – but this is obscene.
[…] Representative Grace Napolitano has found an interesting way to get rich while serving in Congress. AJ Strata links to this Bloomberg story on her novel scheme. During a decade in Congress, California […]
Expose, expose, expose! I read and follow what is going on day in and day out and was unaware of this. It sickens me. I’m an average citizen (notice I didn’t say average Joe lol) jus like most hard working Americans that expect the highest integrity from our elected officials. When are “We the people” going to start standing up and put a stop to this? It starts at the grassroots. 2010 is just around the corner.