“In the early 1970s, 3 percent of retiring members became lobbyists; that quickly changed, and by 2012 the figure had grown to the 50 percent range. (Lessig, Republic Lost, Wikipedia) … The dirty secret of American politics is that, for most politicians, getting elected is not that important–what matters is post-election employment. (Sirota, Post-Election, Politicos) …The going rate for former senators in 2012 was between $800,000 and $1.5 million in annual salary. (Nichols and McChesney, Dollarocracy, pp 79-80)“. And Congress wrote the laws that legalize all this.
Our Founders' Warning: “Every government degenerates when trusted to the rulers of the people alone. The people themselves are its only safe depositories.” (Thomas Jefferson)