I disagree. Everyone believes that people are greedy and their only goal in life is money hoarding. But if you ask them what their own goals are, getting filthy rich has very, very low priority.
If politicians are greedy, that’s because 1) to become a politician (in the USA), you already have to be rich, and 2) if politicians are paid lots of money, greedy people want to become politicians.
You don’t want to attract greedy assholes to represent you, but that’s exactly what you’re doing if you pay them too much. The people you do want to be politicians are those who aren’t interested in money.
Politicians aren’t paid lots of money, at least not by the government.
They have legitimate travel expenses and need a place to stay while in session and DC is not cheap. $60k would simply make the temptation to take money greater. You dont want your represetative broke and struggling. Their current pay being too high in not a problem because its not. Their ability to trade with insider knowledge and be corrupted by lobbyists and billionaires is.
That would further incentivize their corruption
Thry should get a massive salary but be strictly banned from all other forms of income.
I disagree. Everyone believes that people are greedy and their only goal in life is money hoarding. But if you ask them what their own goals are, getting filthy rich has very, very low priority.
If politicians are greedy, that’s because 1) to become a politician (in the USA), you already have to be rich, and 2) if politicians are paid lots of money, greedy people want to become politicians.
You don’t want to attract greedy assholes to represent you, but that’s exactly what you’re doing if you pay them too much. The people you do want to be politicians are those who aren’t interested in money.
Politicians aren’t paid lots of money, at least not by the government.
They have legitimate travel expenses and need a place to stay while in session and DC is not cheap. $60k would simply make the temptation to take money greater. You dont want your represetative broke and struggling. Their current pay being too high in not a problem because its not. Their ability to trade with insider knowledge and be corrupted by lobbyists and billionaires is.