Discussion: With Obama's $400K Speech, Chaffetz To Revive Bill Curbing Presidents' Pensions

[bojimbo26]

Don*t forget Mr Chaffetz , Donny charges his guests $200,000 a time to stay at Mar-a-Lago .
Will THAT affect Donnys pension ?

[pshah]

If you keep putting your foot in your mouth Jason, it’ll never heal. Now run along and go home already.

[austin_dave]

It likely will, eventually.

[chicago11]

Treating the President’s pension like a disability benefit? Methinks Chaffetz ought to investigate the Russian connection issues instead.

[clare]

Obama’s speech fees bother them and yet the astounding amount of money that Trump and his spawn are fleecing from us daily, is somehow okay.

[paulw]

@follies

No elected official should get a pension

If elected officials don’t get pensions, the incentives for deferred bribes go up that much more. I’d be happy to see them all get full pensions in return for no lobbying, no running “think” tanks, and full disclosure of all subsequent work and all correspondence regarding that work.

If you keep legislative pay and pensions low, then you skew toward people who have no need of that extra money.

[greysea]

but pocketing untold millions by vacationing in your own resort every fucking weekend is A OK.

[bluefalcon]

Oh look it’s the guy that ran home scared last week with a fake injury whose career is on the ropes.

I remember that guy, the one with no credibility.

[austin_dave]

[imkmu3]

@centralasiaexpat

Here’s my amendment: Cut off pensions for any congressmen who lobby after leaving Congress

Here’s my amendment: Cut off the balls for any congressmen who lobby after leaving Congress.

FIFY. I’m feeling militant this morning I suppose.

[circusmax]

@josephebacon

Well, I also remember the very long legacy of Mormon insistence that blacks were an inferior race cursed by The Big G.

While we’re at it, don’t forget that the State of Oregon outlawed black people, it’s in their constitution 1859. Not 1359, eighteen fifty-nine.

[jmg_dc]

This is ludicrous. The Presidency is the hardest, most important job in the world, and yet we pay the President like a low-level law firm partner, while failing CEOs like Marissa Mayer are taking home paydays in the tens or hundreds of millions. Paying the President more would diminish the incentive to “cash in” after the end of the President’s term. We should pay the President at least $2 million/year and should provide a solid pension. Only then would it make sense to set limits on post-term compensation.

[chlarry]

Yes, Jason, let’s ding ex-presidents for making money off of having been president, while completely ignoring that the current president has monetized almost every aspect of the presidency. And I am just wondering, Jason, “How will we know what the income of the ex-president’s is? Who gets to peek at their income tax forms? Are you going to require some transparency about the ex-presidents’ income tax forms, but not the sitting president’s?”

[circusmax]

@steviedee111

When Chaffetz cashes his first big check for lobbying or giving a speech in his post-Congress career is he going to reimburse the government health care system for his foot surgery?

Of course not, but if we go the full Mo.

Is Jason going to take responsibility for doing wrong and succumbing to gravity? No? Is he going to ask healthy people to pay for his sickness? Injury? Does he expect others to pay for his mistakes?

[terrymahoney]

Are congressional pensions means tested like this? Serious question, not rhetoric.

[trumpdog]

@spencersmom

ETA: Can’t help noticing that the $2 million the Obamas donated to Chicago schools isn’t getting equal coverage to the former president’s speaking fee…

Yeah and I can’t help but notice there’s no separate story about it here at TPM
Or numerous sanctimonious articles about why Pres. Obama shouldn’t donate HIS money
Or quotes from Warren saying how the Obamas can’t relate to people by giving back to the community
Seems people crawl over broken glass to tear the Obamas down yet are slow to give them a little praise.
Strange.

[trumpdog]

Oh and fuck Chaffetz.
Its funny that all of a sudden Congress wants to review pensions AFTER Pres Obama leaves the White House. Yet not a fucking peep out of them while the Trumps are grifting left and right while Trump is IN office. It’s such bullshit.

His dumb ass tweet got the dragging it deserved but it won’t stop them from going after Pres. Obama - even after he’s out of office. It’s like they can’t let go of their ODS.

[darrtown]

You gonna curb trump’s pension, Jason?

[austin_dave]

I really don’t think these folks want to open up the government pension can of worms. I know of a young person who works for the senate. She started at a 6 figure salary at 35 yrs old, and I’m told that she would be vested for a pension of 50% of her salary after 5 years of service. (I think the pension would start at her retirement age, not at 40.)

I know there is a lot of mythology about congressional benefits, but I think if even half of what is passed around is true, they get a pretty great deal.

[fgs]

President Obama’s $400,000 speech should revive the progressive income tax.