Yesterday, Politico's Erika Lovely reported that Congress's upper leadership and committee staffers are making salaries in the six figures.
How many of these staffers are we talking about? About 2000.
The finances of our country's leaders have always been a subject of interest. And the fact that wealth is concentrated in Congress... well, that's not news either.
Last November, Lovely noted in "Report: 237 millionaires in Congress" that those 237 millionaires constitute
44 percent of the body – compared to about 1 percent of Americans overall.
CRP says California Republican Rep. Darrell Issa is the richest lawmaker on Capitol Hill, with a net worth estimated at about $251 million. Next in line: Rep. Jane Harman (D-Calif.), worth about $244.7 million; Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.), worth about $214.5 million; Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), worth about $209.7 million; and Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), worth about $208.8 million.
All told, at least seven lawmakers have net worths greater than $100 million, according to the Center’s 2008 figures.
In Lovely's more recent article, she writes that 43 congressional staffers were even paid the max salary--$172,000, "more than three times the median U.S. household income."
Now the question we must ask is: Are their salaries justified? Do you think congressional staffers even every penny they are making?
Or does it advocate the notion that Washington is corrupt and not in touch with the nation's citizens?