New Obama TV Ad: "The Question" - Yes, we are better off
The following are screen shots of the Net Worth of the richest Congress Members as of 2011 and reported by Roll Call.
The details of each of these wealthy Congress members are presented here as screen shots taken from OpenSecrets.org. Open Secrets has diligently reported the net worth of Congress members since 2004; however, doesn't include 2011 yet.
None of these members of Congress, whether Republican or Democrat can say they are not better off today than they were four (4) years ago.
CONGRESS MEMBERS ARE BETTER OFF!
This Roll Call article, The 50 Richest Members of Congress (2011), provides some history details about each member; however, Roll Call seems to low ball the Net Worth of each. This Roll Call report is interactive. To read the details of the Net Worth of each Congress Member, go to the Roll Call report and click on each of the 50 named richest Congress members. Again, the financial gurus can decipher and report, if they are so inclined.
If you click on each of the following pictures, you will find the specific OpenSecrets.org link for each. Open Secrets provides an interactive service for those of you who enjoy digging deeper from 2004 - 2010. There are many stunning disclosures that the media doesn't seem too interested in.
I find this interesting because of the huge wealth gap that has been created over the past decade. If Congress truly represents "the people", the majority of whom are really struggling and, if not, are at least feeling degrees of insecurity for their future, I believe the fact that, as members of Congress, most considerably increased their Net Worth while in Congress IN THE MIDST OF THE WORST ECONOMIC DOWNTURN SINCE THE DEPRESSION, I wonder how they can really relate to THE PEOPLE. Perhaps I am wrong. I hope those in the financial know will take some interest in this phenomena and report back to those of us less savvy.
How did Congress Members financially thrive in the last 4 years? Very well!
Even PAUL RYAN, Yes, he's better off today, has increased his meager fortune since the crash of 2008.
2008 Net Worth: From $790,093 to $2,830,000
2010 Net Worth: From $927,100 to $3,207,000
And John Boehner? Yes, he's better off today!
2008 Net Worth: From $1,700,021 to $6,626,000
2010 Net Worth: From $2,099,107 to $6,085,000
Mitch McConnell? Yes, he's better off today!
2008 Net Worth: From $2,002,038 to $31,955,998
2010 Net Worth: From $9,839,049 to $44,587,000
Eric Cantor? Yes, he's better off today!
2008 Net Worth: From $1,853,155 to $6,707,999
2010 Net Worth: From $2,893,110 to $8,048,999
WHAT THE HECK ARE THESE REPUBLICANS SHOUTING ABOUT WITH THEIR "Are you better off than you were 4 years ago" MEME?
Again, most GOP and DEM Congress members are better off TODAY!
So, who are the richest few?
# 1 - Let's start with the richest member, Rep. Michael McCaul, whose Net Worth is five (5) times or 500% more than it was four (4) years ago from a measely $101 million to over $500 million:
#2 - Rep Darrell Issa has at least doubled his Net Worth since 2008.
#3 - Senator John Kerry whose Net Worth peaked in 2007, dropped in 2008, but has increased since 2008 although not as heartily as Rep. McCauly's or Issa's:
The 25 Richest Members of Congress as reported in 2010 by Open Secrets are:
The Richest Members of Congress as reported in 2011 by Roll Call are:
For the Republican Members of Congress to be shouting their mantra "Are you better off than you were 4 years ago" when, in fact, most of them are hugely better off, I believe the GOP has crossed the rubicon into FANTASY LAND.
Help people see the truth about Congress to help expose just how skewed the GOP message is. The Dems in Congress know they are better off and know the US is headed in the right direction.
PROPHECY: Lastly, as I gaze into my pretend crystal ball, I suspect the the GOP CEOs will do all they can to suppress job growth and it won't surprise me in the least if they do something in concert to tank the stock market just before the election.
I hope I am wrong.