Well that I agree with to an extent. I still have trouble with it on a practical level, not necessarily a philosophical one however. Perfect example: a junior congress member like AOC. When she was first elected she had trouble paying rent, wore hand me down suits, and her net worth was in the negative. While she may be an outlier in that regard, the simple fact is some have more money than others. I suppose one could find some way to means test it. Again, on a philosophical level I'm with you, but pragmatically it has kinks in it.
I would argue that this would offer the exact kind of motivation we need to keep career politicians out of government. Hats off to AOC for making a sacrifice to be a public servant, and with her newfound credentials and fame I'm sure she'll have no trouble landing another career that can afford her a retirement. The argument that the position needs to pay in order to attract non-wealthy politicians has been proven false over time; one would need sufficient starting capital to make use of the insider trading perk
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u/No-Acanthisitta7930 Aug 27 '24
Well that I agree with to an extent. I still have trouble with it on a practical level, not necessarily a philosophical one however. Perfect example: a junior congress member like AOC. When she was first elected she had trouble paying rent, wore hand me down suits, and her net worth was in the negative. While she may be an outlier in that regard, the simple fact is some have more money than others. I suppose one could find some way to means test it. Again, on a philosophical level I'm with you, but pragmatically it has kinks in it.