who really represents us? Its good to be king.

[ORDagnabbit]

http://fortune535.sunlightprojects.org./lawmaker/454/


Harry reid

Avg. Net Worth in 1995
$5,375,729(Range: $3,201,534to $7,549,924)
Avg. Net Worth in 2006
$3,340,027(Range: $1,913,056to $4,766,998)


Nancy Pelosi

Avg. Net Worth in 1995
$27,720,300(Range: $-77,922to $55,518,523)
Avg. Net Worth in 2006
$38,539,555(Range: $-9,292,881to $86,371,990)

Ron wyden

Avg. Net Worth in 1995
$2,068,674(Range: $796,026to $3,341,323)
Avg. Net Worth in 2006
$5,154,007(Range: $2,713,013to $7,595,001)


Mr. Boner

Avg. Net Worth in 1995
$5,834,227(Range: $2,397,439to $9,271,016)
Avg. Net Worth in 2006
$4,834,513(Range: $2,059,025to $7,610,000)

Mitch Mcconnel

Avg. Net Worth in 1995
$3,190,750(Range: $1,438,756to $4,942,744)
Avg. Net Worth in 2006
$5,364,516(Range: $2,258,032to $8,470,999)

Tom Coburn

Avg. Net Worth in 2004
$2,528,479(Range: $1,276,613to $3,780,344)
Avg. Net Worth in 2006
$2,935,605(Range: $998,209to $4,873,000)

[ben_meyers]

1. Lawmakers have as much as $196M invested in defense

I don't trust any of the sons a bitches, blind trust my ass.

WASHINGTON (AP) — Members of Congress have as much as $196 million collectively invested in companies doing business with the Defense Department, earning millions since the onset of the Iraq war, according to a study by a non-partisan research group.
The review of lawmakers' 2006 financial disclosure statements, by the Washington-based Center for Responsive Politics, suggests that members' holdings could pose a conflict of interest as they decide the fate of Iraq war spending. Several members earning money from these contractors have plum committee or leadership assignments, including Democratic Sen. John Kerry, independent Sen. Joseph Lieberman and House Republican Whip Roy Blunt.

The study found that more Republicans than Democrats hold stock in defense companies, but that the Democrats who are invested had significantly more money at stake. In 2006, for example, Democrats held at least $3.7 million in military-related investments, compared to Republican investments of $577,500.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2008-04-03-lawmakers-defense_N.htm



Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., fourth from right, participates in a ceremony at the U.S. Capitol to mark the five-year anniversary of the Iraq war. Kerry earns the most of lawmakers invested in defense — at least $2.6 million between 2004 and 2006. Some worry that such investments could sway lawmakers' votes on Iraq.

[MedleyMisty]

2. Yeah - the barrier I'd most like to see broken is the economic one

I read the Constitution in early elementary school and planned out my political career, which would of course be topped off by being President. I got a subscription to Newsweek in fifth grade, watched the news, chose to take International Relations my first summer at TIP in middle school, and asked my teachers if they would vote for me one day.

Then I got a little older and realized that although my ovaries were certainly a hindrance to that plan, they were nothing compared to the fact that my parents were millworkers and that we were working class.

[rpannier]

3. Get used to more of that

As the cost for running escalates the ranks of Congressmen that are multi-millionaires will increase.
It takes way too much money to run for office.

Wealthy people know other wealthy people and it's easier for them to raise funds from these people.