The Perks of Public Office
17th September 2023
It pays to be a politician—literally.
That’s the argument of conservative commentator Matt Lewis’s new book Filthy Rich Politicians, lambasting the culture of corruption in politics that stems from elected officials monetizing their power in the most flagrant possible ways.
The timing of the book’s publication comes at a populist moment, with the hit song “Rich Men North of Richmond” having topped the Billboard charts and reflecting widespread angst about the growing chasm between the haves and have-nots. Lewis, refreshingly, is able to criticize the excesses of the ruling class without getting mired in the self-defeating grievance that defines so much of today’s populist movement.
Through outlining too-good-to-be-true book deals to hiring family members on staff to capitalizing on all-too-timely stock trades, Lewis takes readers through an eye-opening tour of lawmakers’ conflicts of interest that leave so many Americans jaded toward the Swamp that is Washington, D.C.
As Lewis puts it: “The rich get elected and the elected get rich.”