Congress' Net Worth Up 25% Since 2008
The aggregate minimum net worth of Congress—the tally of the low ends of the asset ranges listed on all members' disclosure forms—has jumped 25% since 2008 to more than $2 billion, according to Roll Call. Hey everybody let's occupy Congress and light some of their nice things on fire.
The median net worth of a member of Congress is just over half a million dollars. The median net worth of their constituents? It was about $120,000 in 2008, before everything went to shit. An economist Roll Call spoke to estimates that it's gone down by about 17% since then. (Back in 2010, a different analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics found that Congress' median net worth was up 19% from 2008 to 2009, while America's was down 15%.)
So if the economy's got you down, and you don't have a job, and your savings are withering away, and you can literally see your future drying up and crumbling into the wind—stop whining and just get yourself a gig as a congressman. Those guys are doing great.