Filthy Rich Politicians: The Swamp Creatures, Latte Liberals, and Ruling-Class Elites Cashing in on America

by Matt K. Lewis

From one of America's sharpest political journalists is this searing, thought-provoking and hilarious takedown of the ruling class running amok in Washington. These are your elected officials. Some are slyly taking advantage of the system. They are hoping no one is savvy enough to notice. But Matt Lewis has. And this is what he’s learned. Today’s politicians are an unsavory lot—a hybrid of plutocrats and hypocrites. And it’s worse (and more laughable) than you can imagine. Lewis will introduce you to a crop of latte liberals, ivy league populists, insider traders, trust-fund babies, and swamp creatures as he exposes how truly ludicrous money in politics has gotten. In  Filthy Rich Politicians , Lewis embarks on an investigative deep dive into the ridiculous state of modern American democracy—a system where the rich get elected and the elected get rich. One of the brightest conservative writers of his generation, Lewis doesn’t just he articulates how Americans can achieve accountability from their elected leaders through radically commonsense reforms. But many of these ruling-class elites have a vested financial interest in rejecting the reforms so desperately needed to rebuild Americans’ trust in the institutions that once made our nation great. This is not an “eat the rich” kind of book, and it is not for those who want to stoke class warfare, topple the whole regime, and burn it all to the ground. This is a must-read book for thoughtful readers who yearn for transparency and will commit to holding their elected leaders accountable to those they are supposed to represent—we the people. The reforms spelled out in this book would incentivize good behavior in our leaders, stymie corruption, and prevent politicians from using the system (and our taxpayer dollars) to feather their filthy rich nests. It is only by taking these steps to reform the system that we can rebuild trust in our institutions and preserve American democracy for future generations. There really is no richer inheritance we could leave them.

Genres: Politics, Nonfiction, Sociology

256 pages, Hardcover

First published July 19, 2023

About the author

Matt Lewis is a columnist at The Daily Beast and the author of 'Filthy Rich Politicians' and 'Too Dumb to Fail.'

Reviews

[Vera · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Mildly interesting coverage of a topic that wildly interests me.

[Ronald J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Millionaires are around 6-8% of the US population, yet more than half of the members of Congress are millionaires (almost a quarter have a negative net worth). Sure, they’re older, more educated than the average American. But they came to Washington to do good and stayed to do well. This book offers some explanations as to how this happened. After all, Harry Truman once said: “No young should go into politics if he wants to get rich or if he expects an adequate reward for his services. An honest public servant can’t become rich in politics.” The rich get elected, and the elected almost always get richer. He discusses insider trading that Congress gets away with, not so much to make money but rather to prevent massive losses (interesting take, not sure I agree). It’s what Peter Schweizer calls “honest graft”—legal but unethical. Also, why are book deals allowed in Congress but no speeches? From the K street revolving door to tax and schooling hypocrisy, if you enjoy politics this is a breezy, entertaining, well-written read, peppered with interesting facts and anecdotes (who knew that AZ Republican governor Doug Ducey was the former CEO of Cold Stone Creamery?). The author is a conservative, but the book is very well balanced, calling out politicians on both sides of the aisle. He does offer some reforms, some of which are: ban stock trading for Congress and their families; increase transparency; ban politicians from hiring their families; pay Congress more; end double-dipping; 10-year prohibition on lobbying; and my personal favorite, term limits. There’s an Appendix that lists the 25 richest members of Congress and the ten richest presidents (#4 through #1 may surprise you). Overall, an entertaining and informative read.

Notable

I’m not a businessman. I’m a business, man. ––Jay-Z

Dave Chappelle called Trump an “honest liar.”

Italian sociologist and economist Robert Michel’s “iron law of oligarchy,” even in a democracy a “ruling class” will eventually emerge.

“I’m less interested in how much money a politician has than whether they believe they earned it,” Grover Norquist

1780 letter to his wife, Abigail, John Adams wrote, “I must study politics and war [so] that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy.” Lewis adds: "In modern America, this concept has been turned on its head to be I must make money so my sons can be politicians.”

Was it a millionaire who said, “Imagine no possessions”? —Elvis Costello

[Laura Donovan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I typically don’t read much about politics, but this is an accessible, absolutely necessary book about the state of our political systems and the way its leaders earn bundles of money. Matt K. Lewis is the perfect author for this work of nonfiction: having grown up in a working class family, the only son of a prison warden, and struggled to make ends meet while waiting around for paychecks as an adult, Lewis knows what it’s like to need every cent earned from work. Meanwhile, through questionable behavior including insider trading, mega book deals and speeches, politicians can get mega rich. The people they are supposed to serve continue to struggle as their very leaders make bank. It’s a bad system, but as Lewis tells us at the end of his book, it’s important not to feel hopeless. Reforms can be made to change this. The first step is awareness of just how rich our so-called humble leaders can get.

I really loved this book. I like that the author weaves in his own personal experiences. The style is accessible to people with lots or no knowledge of politics. The humility of its author flies off the pages. Lewis is perhaps one of the most down to earth people in DC. The district needs more people like him exposing problems like these, and spreading his goodness and godliness around.

[Wendy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ interesting topic but the book feels somewhat superficial. It’s like a string of newspaper synopsis, no super in-depth journalism, and no revolutionary ideas.

[Judie · Rating 5 out of 5]

FILTHY RICH POLITICIANS

Matt K. Lewis

When the US became a nation, the background of the elected officials was very simple: the white men were young, had businesses (primarily farms) to run, served for limited periods of time, had incomes resembling those of their neighbors, and those who elected them. They also didn’t spend a lot of money on campaigning. Things have certainly changed since then.
Today, the membership are older, many by several decades. Instead of serving for only a few terms, many members of Congress have turned the job into a full-time career, spending a lot of time raising money, making a lot of money, and losing touch with their constituents.
In FILTHY RICH POLITICIANS, Matt K. Lewis explores the many ways that politicians (both Democratic and Republican) have used the system to enrich themselves and, often, their families. It is well-written and annotated. Readers can recognize the examples, some rather surprising. It is easy, and sometimes funny, to read. Being aware of and using the information should create more informed voters as well as more responsible politicians.
Nepotism is rampant with many hiring family members or passing on information. In some cases, family members use the politician’s name for their own benefit when people believe, not always with the politician’s permission, that they have the ability to influence policy or increase their businesses. Donald Trump put his daughter Ivanka and son-in-law Jared in high administrative positions and John F. Kennedy named his brother Robert Attorney General.
While many of them had been in Congress for many years, one newcomer, Ilhan Omar, elected in 2020, paid $1.6 to E Street Group LLC, her husband’s consulting firm, from 2019-July 2020. She spent an additional $1.1 million in the third quarter and $27,000 in the following weeks. That $1.1 million constituted nearly 70% of the $1.6 million that Omar's campaign spent that quarter. Her campaign was the E Street Group's biggest moneymaker. They were married in March 2020.
He explores how their personal wealth increases while they are in office. Insider trading is just one of the methods. (Martha Stewart went to jail for it. Politicians get wealthier.) Lewis compares politicians with Major League Baseball where players and managers have been severely punished for betting on a game, even for their own team. (Pete Rose is a prime example.)
Lewis delves into their lifestyles, which expand the reach of their ability to get more money. In many cases, they have attended Ivy League colleges which creates a mind set that differs from the general US population.
Another advantage they have is that when they leave their elected positions, they are able to use their connections to fine more lucrative sources of income via lobbying, book sales, and speeches.
The amount of money a person has to raises to run a campaign can be astronomical and is getting higher, especially since the Citizens’ United restriction was overturned by the Supreme Court. In the House, it could be several hundreds of thousands of dollars the first quarter. They launch their campaign–from their personal network–before anyone else will invest.”
FILTHY RICH POLITICIANS ends with a list of possible solutions to end these advantages as well as lists of the riches members of Congress and US Presidents.
The US’s founders knew what happened in other countries and at other times to prevent the corruption here. One example was the reasons for the fall of the Roman Empire. Many of those ideas, end nepotism, ban stock trading, pay Congress more, end double-dipping, require blind trusts, increase transparency, enact term limits, prevent the revolving door, treat books like speeches, and make tax-rules fair.
One major one is to end Pensions for Presidents. That practice began in 1958 because when Harry Truman left the White House, his personal financial situation was quite low. Congress decided to provide a $25,000 (almost twice his income and assets) as a pension plus administrative support. That annual amount has exploded and reaches millions a dollars a year because of increasing support, including Secret Service protection. Since so many Presidents are millionaires before taking office, they don’t need additional tax payer support.
People want their leaders to understand and work to help them. Understanding why the financial gap between them exists and how it leads to people distrusting the politicians should lead us to remove those barriers.
FILTHY RICH POLITICIANS is a comprehensive, maddening, well-written, easy-to-understand explanation of money on politicians. Lewis’s suggestions for how to change and improve the system are useful and practical.

[Mel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ultimately this book is about reforming the politicians way of doing business. It shines a light on the facts most politicians are rich and that politicians get richer in office. The book is about how’s and whys. Once you understand the scope of the problems the thinking goes you are better able to reform. This is not about abandoning the system just because it is corrupt and is rigged against us. Instead this book holds we have a reasonably good system badly in need of reform to reflect the times we live in. I can learn from that and so can you.

[Rick Lee Lee James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Matt is an excellent writer. I don’t know how he treats both sides with such a hopeful and non-condemning outlook after researching how filthy rich and broken our politicians are, but maybe he is a prisoner of hope. This book is fascinating and I love the appendices in the back of the book listing the richest politicians and Presidents in order.

[John Stevenson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most interesting portion of the book is the last chapter on reforms. These are well thought out and would make a profound impact. There is no way these reforms would ever be enacted by the current members of our federal political class.

[Jim Ogden · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Matt's commentary, especially on the DMZ with Bill Sher, but just liked this.

Some great anecdotes of corruption or at least the appearance of it from our politicians, very good suggestions for fixes, and a lot of inside info that shows how and why the structure of our system leads to so many politicians enriching themselves.

A few places it gets a little over the top about a few examples, but generally it was bipartisan or fair.

[Zach Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. Not a bad book, just not worth my time. Seems to be an accurate and fair description of the scene on both political sides; many politicians are rich, some aren't; some use legal methods, many don't. For such an interesting topic, the book is a relatively boring confirmation of ideas and expectations I would have guessed about it. Story details and ideas for systemic improvements are ok, but generally not very deep.

[Marge · Rating 3 out of 5]

The information in this book isn't new to any of us who read the news. However, the details are most interesting. Let's face it, politicians get rich by looking after themselves not their constituants. They pass laws that are actually made for their own benefit. The end chapter is interesting in that it offers solutions. These solutions will not be used because the laws are passed by the law makers who look out for themselves.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written by an author that I knew tends to be conservative with a forward by someone said to be more liberal (democratic). Lewis pokes at both sides and much is definitely disgusting at the way politicians manipulate our system of government. At times, he poured on too much snark for my taste. Still, I learned a lot.

[Karen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not much new here. And, a problem with political books is that they are old by the time they are published. This edition came out in June 2023, which means it was finished in January 2023. Big upheaval since then dates some of the issues.

[Daniel Hebert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Because I read the daily beast I found out about this writer. The book is a modern version of the Rich and the Super Rich except they now run the government. We don’t have a prayer. It would be funny if it wasn’t so sad.

[Karl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A revealing look at the investments, alliances, and legislation that Washington politicians use to enrich themselves and their friends.

[Doris · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting and straightforward critique of American politicians on both sides of the aisle. The author also offered up some practical solutions.

[Billy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview of the corruption in DC with interesting recommendations.

[Ellie Viggiani · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not very impressed - lots of dumping on liberal politicians instead of focused on the real issue at hand. Interesting topic, mediocre book and probably about 100 pages too long

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

2024.122

[Anne Simpson]

Nothing I didn’t know, but depressing and disgusting nonetheless.

[Heather Branly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably the most unexpected horror story to date.

All jokes aside, very eye opening, well written, and fascinating.