Off the Editor’s Desk 10-4-2023

Want to get rich? Get elected!

While listening to a radio talk show, last week, the conversation centered around former First Lady Michelle Obama receiving a couple hundred-thousand dollars for making a one hour long speech somewhere over in Europe.

So I went to the Internet to find if she had a large fortune and found she has something like $80 million in net worth. Not bad for someone that appears not to have held a working job in her life.

Former President Bill Clinton said that they were broke when they left the White House in January of 2001, but were able to purchase a $1.7 million dollar home in New York. Now, Bill and Hillary have a net worth of well over a $100 million. It has been reported that Hillary collected over eleven million dollars over a 14-month period giving speeches.

Many of our elected representatives have a large net worth before they serve in Congress or as President. Even George Washington’s net worth was over $500,000,000 in today’s money. It is estimated that Donald Trump was the wealthiest president and Harry Truman the poorest with less than a million in net worth.

The top 25 senators or congress members all have net worths in the millions with Senator Rick Scott (R, Florida) on top of the list at over $200 million and Nancy Pelosi (D, California) comes in at 14 with a net worth at $46 million.

No representative from Wisconsin or Minnesota made the list of the top 25 richest people in Congress.

Speaking of Trump, with all his legal troubles he is now facing charges in New York for over estimating the value of his property on loan applications. He probably will not be able to run any business in New York again.

Of course we have people going under the table to enrich them selves, and new charges have been brought against Senator Robert Menendez (D, New Jersey) who was charged with corruption related offenses. The Department of Justice seized gold bars and a half million in cash from his property.

It looks like if you serve in the U.S. Government as an elected official, there is a money trail that follows those people, and that stream of money tempts some. What better reason is there to limit the terms that one person can serve as an elected official? There are many who have made it a political career, like our current president, Joe Biden, who has a 38-year career in government as an elected official. It makes me wonder if he has any idea what it is like living and working outside of the government.

How much do they make? Might be your question, well, the president gets $400,000 annually; Vice President, $239,100; Speakers of the House, 223,500; senators and members of congress, $174,000. Those amounts were established back in 2009 and Congress has resisted an attempt to raise those figures since then. But, to top off that salary while they are serving, there is a lifetime pension of some $139,200 annually to help keep those retired off the unemployment line. Currently there are 611 retired members on the pension list. Folks, it costs us taxpayers some $85 million a year to support those 611 people.

So all I can say, if I was a few years younger, I would like to get on that list.

Thanks for reading!     ~Carlton