Average Freshman Senator Worth $4 Million

Newsmax.com
March 14, 2011

Sixty percent of Senate freshmen and more than 40 percent of freshmen in the House are millionaires, compared to 1 percent for Americans at large, according to a new report from the Center for Responsive Politics.

The median estimated wealth for Senate freshmen is $3.96 million, topped by Sen. Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, at $94.87 million. The median estimated wealth for House freshmen is $570,418.
“Even though millions of Americans continue to struggle financially, most of the nation’s newest congressional representatives are a world away from such constituents’ financial realities,” said Sheila Krumholz, executive director of the Center.

The figures are not precise because members of Congress are required to report their assets only in broad ranges. The Center, a nonpartisan research group, uses minimum and maximum asset values to arrive at an “estimated” figure.

Overall, freshman members of Congress have an estimated wealth of $533.1 million and a maximum net worth of $845.2 million.

Blumenthal, who married into a fortune, spent millions to defeat Republican Linda McMahon, herself a multimillionaire, in 2010’s most expensive congressional campaign.

After Blumenthal, the next seven wealthiest freshmen in Congress are all House members and all Republicans. They are: Diane Lynn Black of Tennessee ($49.4 million), Rick Berg of North Dakota ($39.2 million), Blake Farenthold of Texas ($35.8), Scott Rigell of Virginia ($29.9), James Renacci of Ohio ($28.4), Steve Pearce of New Mexico ($23.2), and Richard Hanna of New York ($22.1).

At the other end of the scale, Rep. Joe Walsh, an Illinois Republican, has an estimated worth of minus-$317,498.

Other members of Congress whose minimum worth is less than zero: Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.; Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah; and Rep. Sean Duffy, R-Wis.

Among all freshmen, “some are Democrats, some are Republicans, many are tea party conservatives while others are unabashedly liberal,” said Dan Auble, manager of the Center’s personal financial disclosure database. “What unites these freshmen is that, on balance, they’re rich.”