4 ms·

AOC claimed the insider trading is an open secret in Congress because: * Congress members don't get paid much and like money. * They are often old with health

AOC claimed the insider trading is an open secret in Congress because: * Congress members don't get paid much and like money. * They are often old with healthcare issues. Their govt health plans are not great. * They maintain two residences, one in DC and one in their home state. AOC rents an apartment in NYC that she never lives in and one in DC. This is a huge expense. Closing this privilege might have other unintended effects... Only the very wealthy can afford to be in Congress.

pc86 3y ago
"We should allow members of Congress to trade stocks using insider information so that poor people can afford to run for Congress" (which costs a million bucks, give or take) is certainly an interesting take.
ericmcer 3y ago
They are complaining because they have to live where they work? What a hardship that no one else faces…
jakelazaroff 3y ago
These are different problems, right? > Congress members don't get paid much and like money. They're paid $174,000 per year. [1] That's 3–4x the median US salary. I know it's not, like, lucrative, but if they wanted a lucrative salary they should have gotten a different job! > They are often old with healthcare issues. Their govt health plans are not great. Fix the government health plan. Or better yet, make it a public health plan available to everyone! > They maintain two residences, one in DC and one in their home state. AOC rents an apartment in NYC that she never lives in and one in DC. This is a huge expense. There are only 541 of these people (plus aides, etc). The government should have an official building for sitting Congresspeople to live in. Like a dorm, but for electeds! [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salaries_of_members_of_the_United_States_Congress https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salaries_of_members_of_the_Uni...
- mcpackieh 3y ago
  > They're paid $174,000 per year. [1] That's 3–4x the median US salary. I know it's not, like, lucrative, but if they wanted a lucrative salary they should have gotten a different job! They could also vote themselves a higher salary, but I guess they realize that would be very unpopular with the general public who, for the most part, get paid far less than politicians. The complaint essentially boils down to spoiled brats whining about wanting to be part of the economic elite. For most of the public, this complaint falls on deaf ears, particularly when it's coming from people who already have a great deal of power and are insulated from the realities of life experienced by most of the people they're ostensibly meant to be representing. "Boo hoo, I already earn 3-4x more than most people in my state and belong to an elite class of policy makers but I'm so impoverished and oppressed because the billionaires have bigger houses than me :(" Honestly more insufferable than Marie Antoinette.
- tracker1 3y ago
  Not when you need to have two residences, one of which in a location well above the average cost of living (DC).
  - jakelazaroff 3y ago
    Yes, I covered that. The government should provide housing in DC for Congresspeople and aides. We don’t need to be okay with insider trading.
bee_rider 3y ago
That seems like a good argument for raising their salaries. Increasing the candidate pool beyond the independently wealthy is good, but letting them do a little crime is a bad way of increasing the candidate pool.

pc86 3y ago

"We should allow members of Congress to trade stocks using insider information so that poor people can afford to run for Congress" (which costs a million bucks, give or take) is certainly an interesting take.

ericmcer 3y ago

They are complaining because they have to live where they work? What a hardship that no one else faces…

jakelazaroff 3y ago

These are different problems, right? > Congress members don't get paid much and like money. They're paid $174,000 per year. [1] That's 3–4x the median US salary. I know it's not, like, lucrative, but if they wanted a lucrative salary they should have gotten a different job! > They are often old with healthcare issues. Their govt health plans are not great. Fix the government health plan. Or better yet, make it a public health plan available to everyone! > They maintain two residences, one in DC and one in their home state. AOC rents an apartment in NYC that she never lives in and one in DC. This is a huge expense. There are only 541 of these people (plus aides, etc). The government should have an official building for sitting Congresspeople to live in. Like a dorm, but for electeds! [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salaries_of_members_of_the_United_States_Congress https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salaries_of_members_of_the_Uni...

mcpackieh 3y ago
> They're paid $174,000 per year. [1] That's 3–4x the median US salary. I know it's not, like, lucrative, but if they wanted a lucrative salary they should have gotten a different job! They could also vote themselves a higher salary, but I guess they realize that would be very unpopular with the general public who, for the most part, get paid far less than politicians. The complaint essentially boils down to spoiled brats whining about wanting to be part of the economic elite. For most of the public, this complaint falls on deaf ears, particularly when it's coming from people who already have a great deal of power and are insulated from the realities of life experienced by most of the people they're ostensibly meant to be representing. "Boo hoo, I already earn 3-4x more than most people in my state and belong to an elite class of policy makers but I'm so impoverished and oppressed because the billionaires have bigger houses than me :(" Honestly more insufferable than Marie Antoinette.
tracker1 3y ago
Not when you need to have two residences, one of which in a location well above the average cost of living (DC).
- jakelazaroff 3y ago
  Yes, I covered that. The government should provide housing in DC for Congresspeople and aides. We don’t need to be okay with insider trading.

bee_rider 3y ago

That seems like a good argument for raising their salaries. Increasing the candidate pool beyond the independently wealthy is good, but letting them do a little crime is a bad way of increasing the candidate pool.